Timeout! What The Heck Are You Doing?

by | May 30, 2016

It’s common to see players or teams call for timeout during the course of sporting events. In baseball, the catcher or manager may call timeout and go to the pitcher’s mound for a discussion on the best strategy for how to pitch to certain players. In football, we’ll see coaches call timeout to manage the clock. In basketball, we see coaches call timeout simply to help reverse the opposing team’s momentum.

Something that always makes me laugh is in pro wrestling when one of the performers, usually a jobber or cowardly heel, is getting pummeled by his or her opponent and they foolishly attempt to call timeout. The irony of that scenario is the fact that there is no such thing as timeout in professional wrestling. The crowd laughs and the ref usually gets involved. That wrestler, most often, then uses the disruption as an opportunity to gain the upper hand.

Taking timeout is an important need for many reasons.

Dreaming boldly and foolishly requires focus and trust in God. But it’s also important to call timeout from time-to-time to provide stress relief, gain a more open perspective, collect new insights, and examine your path. It also provides time with god much in the same way that Jesus modeled in Matthew 14.

Take Timeout in Your Life

All these scenarios present a good reminder that, in life, we sometimes need a timeout for many reasons. It could be to revisit the strategy for striving toward our goals. It could be to make sure we are using our resources wisely. That is true of our time, our money, and many other assets. Sometimes, we need timeout simply to minimize the impact of a seemingly downward spiral.

Regardless of the reasons, a timeout is a key personal growth tool we would be wise to use more often. With that understanding, here are some things to consider when it comes to taking timeout:

Call timeout and go to the Word

In Psalm 46:10, we are presented with one of the most well-known verses (the first part of it anyway) among both believers and non-believers;

“Be still and know that I am God.”

This passage is sometimes thought to mean “to be quiet in God’s presence.” While that is an admirable act, the phrase more literally translates to the stopping of frantic activity and to be still. So then, for God’s people, the act of being “still” means looking to the Lord for help.

Jesus knew this and he understood it. In the fourteenth chapter of Matthew, for example, Jesus snuck off to an out-of-the-way place for a timeout (verse 13), but is spotted and swarmed by villagers. His reaction is not one of anger or rage – as mine would have been – rather, he takes pity on them and heals their sick.

Then, in an act of even more grace, when his disciples try to clear out the villagers to give him his timeout, Jesus instructs them to feed the crowds and even performed a miracle to feed them using five loaves of bread and two fish (Matthew 14:23). Afterwards, he again snuck off to the wilderness and remained there for an extended period of time.

Even Jesus took timeout. He intentionally sought it. Time to stop the frantic activity and to be alone with God.

Call timeout and consider where you are

We’re coming up on the middle of the year and you can be sure I will be doing at least one, and perhaps a set of posts, about doing mid-year checkups on your life and your goals (subscribe to my posts via email so you don’t miss them). However, there is no magical date or timeline in which you need to hold yourself to when it comes to checking in on the status of your life.

There’s no magical time you must to hold yourself to for checking in on the status of your life & dreams. Click To Tweet

Think about it, if you ignored all the clear, tell-tale signs of a major health concern because you were waiting until some magic moment that you were absolutely certain, you’d might not survive. From a personal experience, I can attest to this. In 2015, I had to have an appendectomy. The only sign I had was pain in my lower abdomen. I had no fever or digestive problems. No nausea or vomiting. Just a 2 A.M. awakening that I knew was not right.

I went to my doctor at their time of opening and told them I was having extreme pain in my lower right abdominal area. They got me right in without debate. Following an examination, lab work and a scan, I was prepped for surgery. The O.R. nurse commented on how well I looked for having appendicitis. Because I took the time to examine the conditions rather than waiting for things to become more dire, it did not rupture and I was able to avoid a colossal mess.

Call timeout and dream about where you want to go

“If you are on the wrong road, progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road; and in that case the man who turns back soonest is the most progressive man.” – C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity

Once you’ve taken a look at where you are, you have to think about where you want to go and determine if you are on the right path for getting there. And you may sometimes be on the right path, but there simply is no momentum or force to move you forward. That means you have decisions to make.

Making decisions can be a painful experience and I for one am a person who has always hated making them. But that’s one of the reasons for calling timeout. You just might get the clarity you need to factor everything and make a clear-minded decision so you can move forward with confidence. Sometimes that may even mean giving up on something you’ve invested a lot of time and effort in doing. If it doesn’t move you forward, why the heck do you continue to stay with it?

I can’t go further in this post without first recognizing that we sometimes are at a loss when it comes to identifying where it is we want to go. Through a lot of prayer, I’ve been guided to many people and resources as well as direction. I think one of the most important things in this area is to be available to God, which is why it was the first topic in the Year of Listening Up series.

However, there are many podcasts, conferences, TedTalks videos and personal connections you can utilize in this quest as you take timeout. Here are a few books I have found particularly helpful:

Call timeout and think about what you need

Finally, once you’ve identified where it is you want to go and where you are today, consider what you will need to get from here to there. Some of this information can be determined from your personal research using resources shared in this post. Much of it will come from prayer and prompting from God.

When you dream boldly and foolishly, it’s important to be very focused on the goals at hand. It’s also important to stop for a timeout from time-to-time. As you do so, you bring about some much needed stress relief, initiate a more open perspective that could yield new insights, and you just may find that you are going about things wrong or that there is a better way to pursue those goals.

Another important thing to remember about taking timeout is the time it provides you to be alone with God. Not only is it a good idea to take that time, we should be intentional about finding time to sync with God, just as Jesus did in Matthew 14. As you talk to God, ask him for direction and perspective. Seek also his wisdom and favor. More on that as we begin next month’s topic in our Year of Listening Up Series.

I hope you enjoyed this post. I hope it spoke to you and connected. I’d love for you to comment here. You can simply share a line or two of what you found most interesting or share ways you have successfully found ways to call timeout so you could be alone with God.

Many blessings and thanks!