Matthew 21: 28-32

Follow through on your serve

Since a young boy, I’ve enjoyed the game of tennis. I remember getting lessons on not just the rules of the game, but also the having the right stance and always keeping my eye on the ball. I was a decent player, but I remember my shortcoming of not doing what I was told in practice when it came to the actual match. 

One of the keys to victory is to hold serve. To get the best serve, I was told to follow through on the ball. In the times I did what was instructed, I had good results. But I admit in the heat of the real match, I found myself holding back and playing it safe by just dinking the ball over to get it in play – in hopes it would be good enough to win the point.

This was never the way to succeed on the tennis court, and it certainly isn’t any way to succeed in life. The two sons in this gospel were instructed by their father to go and work the vineyard. One said “no” but ended up doing what he was told. And the other said “yes” but didn’t follow through on the task at hand. 

While the first son followed the father’s request, he should have said “yes” from the very beginning. And the second son showed deceitfulness and lack of backbone when it came to doing what he said he would do. I must confess I’ve acted like both sons – waffling and disingenuous. 

Words and actions – can we do both? Can we be both? God certainly did when He sent His son down to live among us – to show us how to “let your yes be a yes, and your no a no.” His good words were followed through by His actions. The Word became flesh. 

When it’s our time to serve, whether on a tennis court or in the real world, make sure to follow through. Putting the good word into action is a winning combination and the name of the game. The racket of the world can be distracting. The key is to keep your eye on the ball.  The game of life is to set our eyes to God, know His love and match our words with our actions. Game. Set. Match. 

– Julian Katz