Out of the Zone (Vol. 4, No. 12)

Pardon me for being a little skeptical, but if there really is a zone, I think I would’ve discovered it by now.

“Great game today, Shaq!”

“Thanks, Mort. I was really in the zone. Couldn’t do anything wrong. Short shots, foul shots, rebounds – everything just seemed to work.”

And the fact that he’s 12 feet tall, weighs 500 pounds and practices 375 days of the year has little to do with it. Simply a matter of being “in the zone.”

These zones purportedly materialize for some people in all sorts of situations. The classroom, the corporate boardroom, the laboratory – even in relationships. One who is “in the zone” has incredible prowess. Athletic agility multiplies. Business acumen sharpens. Answers come easily. Steep trails flatten.

Something enticing about being in a place where everything turns out right with very little effort. Something frustrating about having no idea where that place is or how to find it, but knowing you’re not in it. Are there guides for such a place?

“You’re almost there. Just a little to the right. A little more . . . little more . . . Nope, sorry. You missed it.”

For the first half of my life, I believed that I could find the “famous” zone. I dreamed of being a star athlete or a rock star. The fact that I was short, slow, and totally devoid of any physical coordination didn’t discourage me. And the lack of musical talent didn’t really seem to be that big of a problem. I really thought that somewhere a magical place existed where things come together in a beautiful way.

In the last half of my life, I have slowly and painfully become aware that “the zone” isn’t discovered until you leave it. It’s when you look back on something that you discover how good it really was.

Yet, that perfect time – that time “in the zone” – didn’t feel all that perfect as it unfolded. In fact, there were moments when you longed for that particular time to end. Problems abounded, conflict arose, obstacles were everywhere.

But in hindsight, when you look at that same time period, you see problems solved, conflicts resolved, and obstacles overcome. Your hard work, practice, preparation, and God’s grace in abundance paid off – and sweetened the memories.

The truth is we’re all “in the zone.” Problems, conflicts, and obstacles are simply part of life. And when God walks with us, we have to work pretty hard to be out of the zone.

Have you been working pretty hard lately?

Shine On!

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