Locked Out

The other day I saw a picture of Dwayne Wade having lunch at a street side cafe in Australia and I must admit it just hit me wrong. I thought, "Come on Flash. You're not supposed to be in the Outback. Your place is on the hardwood of the Triple-A Arena, soaring high above the rim dazzling defenders on your way to an earth shaking slam with all of Miami on your back." But he's not, as the NBA lockout is keeping our super star athletes jet-setting around the globe, instead of hooping it up on the court.

It's the 132nd day of the lockout with the team owners and players in the NBA working out a financial deal each can live and play with, and it's big business that I don't even pretend to know anything about. Like most fans, I just want the big guys to get the deal done so we can end the lockout and go back to watching Wade, LeBron and Bosh do what they do best...play basketball. Yet before that's going to happen, important daily affecting, life impacting business must be hammered out and agreed upon. And until that happens, forgetaboutit, everyone's locked out of Basketball. For as they say, It's Show Business, not Bro Business.

Now before we go pulling out a soap box and telling the world how selfish, greedy and arrogant the NBA owners and athletes are, think for a minute about our own lives. From a spiritual perspective, are there areas in our own lives where we've posted a "Locked Out" sign to God? Maybe its something we didn't agree with Him about so we've silently closed the door and walked away on that chapter of our God relationship. Here's one for starters; Prayer? Or maybe reading and obeying His word? What about our weekends, or better yet our money? Take it a step further. If we've locked God out of our lives, what about our spouse? Our kids? Other people who truly love and care for us? How we relate to God is usually a good indicator of how we relate to others.

At our Goodfellas 6:00 AM Prayer this week, one of the guys prayed passionately about letting God cut away the stuff that needs to be taken out of our lives. As he prayed, it seemed to strike a cord in all the fellas as sounds of "yes" and "do it", filled the room. The more intense the invitation to "cut us Lord", the louder the agreement from all the guys. It resembled the Rocky movie scene, when Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed were going at it toe to toe in the ring, and in the corner when he's beaten, bruised and bloody, Rocky cried out to his trainer, "Cut me, Mick. Cut me."

I've found that God will only step into our lives in the areas where He's allowed access. To keep Him locked out will keep Him locked out. Yes, He may be all-powerful, but He's limited by our own individual wills, and giving Him permission to only work in the comfortable areas of our lives, is in truth causing us to miss out on the total God experience.

The NBA Lockout is having a far reaching affect on millions of people when you take into consideration the loss of revenue in each city and market. It goes beyond players and owners putting more money in their coffers and the fans just enjoying a good game, as those connected to the sport are beginning to feel the pinch now that games are canceled. And the same trickle down affect is experienced when we keep God locked out, as over time we will begin experiencing the pinch in every area of our lives. So what do we do?

On this PrayDay, follow David's lead and give God permission to do a Heart Search on you. Pray: "Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts" (Psalm 139:23). Who knows, you may find an area where you have locked God out of your life. And if you have, then end the Lockout today so we can all go back to enjoying life the way God intended us to do.