Do or Do Not. There Is No Try.
Star Wars is one of the largest and most successful movie franchises of all time. Iconic images of Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker have graced the front of lunch boxes, t-shirts, and cereal boxes for nearly three decades. There have been spin-off books, comics, cartoon shows, and even a Christmas special. As we approach the much-anticipated release of the final film I decided to expand the Star Wars universe into a previously uncharted territory – the devotional. A long time ago in a state far far away a young writer by the name of Ben Kendrick was watching the recently released DVD “Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back”. As he stuffed his chops with Pop Secret Movie Theatre Style Popcorn a familiar green face appeared on the screen.
Alright, I’m switching to first person now. Who doesn’t love Yoda? He was the ultimate hero for skinny little dudes like me. Here’s a guy that’s 2ft tall, green, wrinkled, and has a face only a mother could love; but he could lift spaceships and fight bad guys better than anyone. He had faith that could move mountains (or X-Wings). But none of that is what I’m gonna hit today. Here’s where we’re going. During Luke’s training Yoda scolded Skywalker for saying “I’ll try”; to which the Jedi master stated “Do not try, Do or Do Not… There is No Try”. Now, a question for you guys. How many times have you used the word “try”? Maybe told one of your friends, “Hey man, I’m gonna try to get control of this cussing” or “Honey, I’m gonna try and get to church every Sunday from now on” or “I’m really gonna try and contribute more to our church financially”. What would Yoda have to say? Maybe I’ll make little green cloth bracelets that have “W.W.Y.S.” on them made up (That’s right - What Would Yoda Say).
Yoda would tell you that when you use the word “try” you’re doing nothing more than setting yourself up for failure. It gives us an easy out; we can say that we tried, and for a lot of us that seems like a success in itself. But trying is mediocrity when success can be achieved. Instead, what if you said to your friends, or yourself, “I’m going to stop cussing”? If you placed your hopes in a more concrete orientation, you’d have more to lose, you’d be going back on your word if you didn’t succeed. It’s empowering to say “I’m going to (fill in the blank)”. You’re lifting weights in the gym, you’re on your back looking up at the bar, you look to the left and see all these weights, you look to the right and see more weights. What is a better attitude? You could say in a sheepish, timid voice “Alright self, I’m gonna try and lift these weights, if we don’t do it that’s okay, maybe we’ll get it next time” or you could harness your inner Arnold, grunting and growling “Alright, these weights are nothing, first I’m gonna lift them a thousand times, then I’m gonna run for governor of California”. You can bet that muscle head didn’t get to be governor because he tried.
Trying is complacency.
In the NIV bible, Revelation 3:15 states, "I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other!” Proverbs 1:32 adds, "For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them." The church needs us to be bold, to make things happen. How can the youth and young adults make a difference in the world?
While everyone else is trying we’ll be doing. We’ll stop trying to share our faith with our friends; we’ll just do it. We’ll bow our heads before we eat, we’ll challenge our friends to steer clear of temptations that lead to heartbreak, we’ll seek to inform the nonreligious, we’ll stand up to the hateful misunderstandings of faith by other Christians, and we will be doing God’s work.
So, stop “trying” leave that to the complacent; lets be leaders and succeed in places we never imagined being able to travel. We should settle for nothing less than perfection in our character. Obviously we will never be as perfect as our God, but there’s no hurt in shooting for the stars.
Peace,
Ben Kendrick