Learn to fall

As I was training for the triathlon this week, I stumbled and tumbled. A few years back this belly flop would have been bloody and banging: scraped hands and knees, bone jarring. I have perfected klutziness.

But this time I didn’t gush O+. On an uplifted sidewalk section, I tripped. But as I fell, I rolled, wasted my momentum, got up and went back to jogging without so much as a scrape. I had learned to fall in soccer.

My previous technique — the one that leads sidewalk carnage — was like a body shriek. My mind panicked, muscles tightened, limbs extended themselves to shock-absorb. Every pound of body weight took the hit.

Then I copied the boys who played soccer with me. When tripped, they curled their bodies up and let themselves roll freely. They didn’t try to “stop” the fall. It saves you a trip to ER.

Christians need to learn to fall. A fall should not injure badly. You should roll out of it quickly, gracefully and without abrasions. Get up and keep running. As you walk with Christ, there will likely be a few stumbles through the years. Christianity is not living in perfection, but constantly aiming at perfection. Learning to get back up after a fall is part of that.

Estate planner: Give it away

As an estate planner formerly, my pastor would counsel people how to handle their retirement money: Give it all to your children now, before you die, because if you wait, the government is going to get a bunch of it.

As much as people didn’t want Uncle Sam to gobble his unfair share, they would always balk. They want to make sure they have enough in case they get sick. Or whatever. Inevitably, the IRS trundles away with the kids’ inheritance.

There is a lesson for us Christians: don’t hold back on giving to God. Only what you give is credited to your account in Heaven. Don’t wait for another day, a better offer, a wider safety margin. Because the devil is going for his oversized slice of the pie. Give it recklessly (that is, with faith). Throw caution to the wind and your money to the offering plate. God is able to keep you from the rainy day for which you are saving.