CYBERCOLUMN by Brett Younger: Stopping and starting

Posted: 6/18/04

CYBERCOLUMN:
Stopping and starting

By Brett Younger

Quitting has a bad reputation.

Vince Lombardi growled, “Quitters never win, and winners never quit.”

Richard Nixon put it: “Defeat does not finish a man. Quitting does. A man is not finished when he’s defeated. He’s finished when he quits.” (Presumably, he said this before he quit being president.)

Ross Perot argued: “Most people quit on the one yard line. They give up at the last minute of the game, one foot from a winning touchdown.” (Presumably, he said this before he quit running for president.)

Steven Pearl lamented: “I phoned my dad to tell him I had stopped smoking. He called me a quitter.”

Norman Vincent Peale preached, “It’s always too soon to quit!”

Quitting has gotten a bum rap, because quitting is often a great idea. It’s never too soon to quit!

I need to quit: Quit skipping breakfast. Quit eating drive-thru food (except for the Southwest Chicken Salad at Jack in the Box). Quit listening to talk radio (except for NPR). Quit checking my e-mail four times a day. Quit copying pages I’m not going to read. Quit paying attention to Southern Baptists (it only makes me mad). Quit trying to appear smarter than I am. Quit over-estimating the importance of people who complain. Quit under-estimating the importance of people who don’t complain. Quit wishing my house was closer to the church and take pleasure in the scenery on I-35. Quit putting my children, Graham and Caleb, in columns unnecessarily. Quit wishing I was taller, thinner, younger, richer or that my bald spot would disappear. Quit thinking about what else I should be doing and enjoy what I’m doing this very minute. Quit taking myself so seriously.

The Bible is in favor of quitting. The Greek word for repentance, “metanoia,” means to quit going one way, turn around and head the other way. Saint Paul writes, “Put to death, therefore, whatever in you is earthly: fornication, impurity, passion, evil desire and greed. Get rid of all such things as anger, wrath, malice, slander and abusive language.” It could be paraphrased, “You people have some serious quitting to do.”

You need to quit: Quit nagging. Quit smoking. Quit eating too much. Quit watching television shows that make you dull. Quit reading magazines that make you stupid. Quit playing Solitaire on the computer at work. Quit yelling. Quit fighting. Quit being late. Quit obsessing over being late. Quit worrying about the crabgrass. Quit ignoring advice in the Baptist Standard. Quit being late for Sunday school. Quit cheating on your tithe. Quit being so hard on others. Quit being so hard on yourself. Quit dividing people into winners and losers. Quit thinking the problems of the world aren’t your responsibility. Quit counting your money. Quit believing you deserve everything you have. Quit wanting more. Quit thinking the perfect life is around the corner. Quit feeling trapped by what you’ve always done. Quit the job you should never have taken. Quit complaining about anything you’re not willing to work to fix. Quit resenting your mother. Quit being afraid.

The good news of the gospel is that things don’t have to stay the same. By the grace of God, we can quit.

Starting, unlike quitting, has a great reputation. Everybody loves the idea of beginning again.

Carl Bard understood the goodness of starting over: “Though no one can go back and make a brand-new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand-new ending.”

Ivy Baker expressed the same hopefulness: “The world is round, and the place which may seem like the end may also be only the beginning.”

Good endings start with good beginnings. Fyodor Dostoevski wrote, “Arriving at one goal is the starting point to another.”

Mick Jagger of The Rolling Stones seems to have been paraphrasing Dostoevski when he sang, “If you start me up, if you start me up, I’ll never stop, so start me up.”

I know it’s never too late to start. I need to start: Start writing these columns earlier. Start trying new things. Start getting rid of old junk. Start cooking. Start going to bed on time. Start kissing Carol goodbye every morning. Start eating salads. Start rolling down the window. Start changing the oil every 5,000 miles. Start calling my mother every Sunday. Start listening to the birds. Start noticing the sunset. Start reading a poem a day. Start reading the Bible as much as I read books about the Bible. Start dreaming. Start believing in starting again.

The Bible is about starting over. Jeremiah wrote, “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah … for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” Jesus echoed the prophet when he said to the woman caught in adultery: “Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more.” Grace is a great big sacred “do-over.” The hope of faith is getting to start again and again.

It takes courage, but you should start again: Start looking for good things to start. Start breathing deeply. Start appreciating little things you’ve never noticed. Start the projects you’ve been putting off. Start turning off your phone. Start exercising. Start saxophone lessons. Start keeping a journal. Start watching PBS. Start planning your next vacation. Start drinking decaf. Start listening to someone else’s radio station. Start telling more people more often that you love them. Start speaking to your neighbors. Start looking homeless people in the eye. Start learning the names of your friends’ children. Start giving others the freedom to start again. Start asking co-workers if they have a church. Start getting into the sanctuary before the chiming of the hour. Start singing louder. Start listening to the Spirit. Start imagining. Start changing. Start living the life you’ve always wanted.

The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single start. The good news of the gospel is that we can begin again. By the grace of God, we can always start anew.

Brett Younger is pastor of Broadway Baptist Church in Fort Worth and the author of “Who Moved My Pulpit? A Hilarious Look at Ministerial Life,” available from Smyth & Helwys (800) 747-3016.