For five days I had a tree lying across the front lawn, with no action on my part.  I know it was five days because they were counted out for me (if you know what I mean).  You see… the tree began in an upright position and was marked to be taken out because of its proximity to our home.  So I did what any guy would do… I attacked the tree.  During my all out assault on the tree, I watched my chainsaw slowly give up more than halfway through the cutting.  And after 2,356 attempts to restart my chainsaw, I decided to punt on that option.

I sat by the half cut tree and a few very poor options began running through my head, most of which would result in the tree falling on my house.  The better of my ideas was to wait for a logger to walk by with a working chainsaw.  After a half-hour of watchful anticipation for Paul Bunyan… no luck. That didn’t pan out.

I’ll admit that I even prayed that God miraculously send down a bolt of lightning that would mysteriously start my chainsaw… God remained silent.  Finally, I came full circle back to my first and seemingly best solution – go get the ax.  Yep.

How manly I felt… marching out of the garage with an ax, heading toward the tree that seemed to now be mocking me, half cut but still standing.  Full of machismo and adrenaline, I swung at the tree like Babe Ruth chasing a hanging curve. After a couple dozen (or seemingly hundred) swats at the oak tree, it finally began to creak.  One more chop… one more lean on the tree… and down it fell.  I had conquered the tree…but the job isn’t finished.  The fallen tree now rested comfortably on my lawn (as my wife reminded me daily – for a week).

Being a man of God requires that we do more than attack an impossible challenge.  The job usually begins after we overcome the obstacles – with clean up duty.  Too many times we try God on.  We accept a challenge that He has offered us and we attack it with conventional tools.  When those tools fail us, we are faced with the decision to give up or keep going.  And even after completing the task before us, there’s still work to do – which may require new and different tools.

Have you walked away from God’s challenge because the work was too hard or the tools weren’t working?

God has given you the capacity to get the job done, but sometimes tunnel vision sets in and it appears that there is only one way to accomplish His work.  You have to stay in the game and find different tools. The work may get harder, the sacrifice may be higher, but the result is still the same… you must complete the work God has set before you.  You must finish.

My tree was taken down… but it still laid on the ground.  Even after all the labor I invested to take down the tree… there was still work to do.  Just as with our life of faith.  We invest, we work, we sacrifice, but the job isn’t finished until every single remnant and reminder of transgression is removed.

I realized that cutting up an entire oak tree with an ax was not the smartest decision.  I can do it, don’t get me wrong (insert man grunt here)… but it’s just not the best option.  So I called in another guy for help.  He has experience and he knows how to finish the job the right way… with the right tools.

God calls you to the challenge, but He doesn’t expect you to do it by yourself.  There are parts you need to complete on your own, but you’ll need some help cleaning up the mess… trust me on this.  Don’t give up, put your back into it, and get some help from friends – God should get your best effort and sometimes you need to allow others to help.  Above all else… finish the job.

I was watching an amazing documentary not long ago about world class surfers who have walked away from taming the normal wave, to challenging 70 foot monster waves off the north coast of Maui – a place called Pe’ahi Jaws.  I’ve been to Maui and driven down to the area of Pe’ahi, but the big wave season had passed, and what I saw was amazing enough.

The surfers at Pe’ahi Jaws grab their gear, and head into the water to tackle the waves not by paddling out, but with jet skis and tow ropes.  The waves are so incredibly immense that the surfers must be towed into the wave by jet ski… and then it’s up to the surfer to let go and simply survive.  Many have had broken limbs and some found death.

Can you imagine the adrenaline rush and the feel of absolute sobriety when these surfers crest the monster wave and begin their 30mph descent down the face?  With fearful respect, these elite surfers attack the wave with the understanding that each wave they catch , may very well be their last ride.  But there is an interesting side story.  Each surf team has a crew of rescuers, perched on jet skis, ready to risk their own lives by knifing right into the force of the wave and pull their brother out of harms way when things go wrong.

Everyone is on watch, no one goes in without back-up, and no man is without a team of brothers ready to risk their lives to keep each other safe.  These guys… are immersed.

Maybe the only thing you’ll tackle today is a report that is due.  Or maybe you’re challenged to keep your marriage alive.  Or perhaps, your teenage son or daughter is just about to ruin their life with drugs… or maybe you are about to ruin your own life with addiction.  These are the Jaws of Pe’ahi in life – giant waves rolling in.  Are you ready?  Do you have back-up standing by?

Check out the Video:

 I look into the eyes of Christian men on a regular basis and see training that is fit for wading… but certainly not surfing.  I’m not excluding myself either.  I am inspired by that “thing” that says… go all in!  Ride the big wave! If we all were trained and disciplined as well as the elite surfers – we could attack the monster waves in life with certainty of rescuers standing by.

Pray.  Gather with your brothers.  Participate in Holy conversation.  Read God’s word.  Speak about your faith and what God means to your life.  Be a man.  Don’t back down.  Don’t give up.  Be prepared.

The “big one” is coming just over the horizon… are you ready?  Are you willing go out to the deep and take on the challenges that seem impossible?  Ready to tackle the Jaws?

I pray each day that I have the courage to face such challenges with a faith that leaves me solely dependent upon God.  Walking each day in the knowledge that I could be crushed, tossed, and flung around like a lifeless ragdoll… leaves me totally aware of God’s power and grace.

As for the surfers…I wasn’t so much impressed with the riding of the wave itself as I was impressed with the immersion into the pursuit.  This is a picture that I will hold for my faith life.  C’mon man!  Someone tow me into the face of this life… I’m ready to ride!  You better be standing by… I will return the favor.

If you’ve read my book, The Knight’s Code, you know that in chapter  5—Discovering Your Lawn Language—I use the analogy of weeds in the yard likened to the sin in our lives. I talk about one spot where my neighbor’s yard comes up to my yard. This time of the year, the weeds in his yard, when they’re mowed, can look like the grass in my yard. But as the week goes, the weeds start to come up above the grass and you see the clear difference.

As the grass is starting to turn green now, I’m noticing that his weeds have now encroached into my yard. In fact, last year there was an almost perfectly straight line at our boundaries where the weeds stopped and my grass started. This year, as the grass comes out of dormancy, his weeds are a good two feet into my lawn.  If I don’t take care of that soon, next year they’ll be four, maybe five feet, into my yard.  Bottom line is they’re coming, whether I like it or not, notice it or not.

Here’s what’s just not fair to me . . . why couldn’t I walk over to that invisible boundary this year  and see that my Bermuda Tiff 419 has actually taken over several feet into his yard?! We all know it just does not work that way.

Here’s the point. As guys, we tend to be just like that. If we don’t put up boundaries and precautions against the “weeds” around us, particularly in people we are with consistently, before we know it, their “weeds” are over into our “yard.”

Now, this does not mean as Christians that we only hang out in “holy huddles.” We can be just as guilty of being a negative influence. But we must be pro-active about protecting ourselves from sin, habits, language, principles, and especially attitudes of others that we can take on and can take us down. Have you ever watched one person with a bad attitude slowly sour an entire group? Yeah, we’ve all seen that. Conversely, we have also seen someone with an infectious positive attitude affect a situation for the good. One person can change an entire room full of people.

So, with your family, your co-workers, and buddies, take note of where you are influencing and where you are being influenced. If you realize someone is influencing you in a wrong direction, it isn’t that person’s fault. You’re no victim! That understanding is a clear signal for you to take action to change the influence. In some cases, yes, it will mean you need to end, or for sure decrease, your time around that person. But in most cases, they don’t even have to know about your decision, you just have to put up some boundaries to make sure you and Jesus are doing the influencing.

Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.” —1 Corinthians 15:33

A thick bankroll is no help when life falls apart, but a principled life can stand up to the worst. Moral character makes for smooth traveling; an evil life is a hard life. Good character is the best insurance; crooks get trapped in their sinful lust. —Proverbs 11:4-6

So, is there any relationship or situation where you see that a few “weeds” have crept a little farther into your “yard”?  Covering a little more ground than they were last year, last month? Take some steps now to put up the proper boundaries to get yourself right and headed toward growth. Prayer, Scripture, and accountability are the best weapons of the faith to create boundaries, and yet at the same time, give you the utmost freedom. Be an influencer, then you can be a leader.