Off-Season Training; Off Guard But Still Prepared

Sometimes life catches us off guard. We may not have been expecting certain things to happen. I chose this photo because obviously it was an off guard picture but I was still prepared for it. My hair was combed, my make-up was still in tact, and I was sort of smiling. As I was looking at this photo of me, I thought, even though I was caught off guard, it’s still a cute picture. But one thing I’ve learned is that you can be caught off guard but still prepared. How? I’m glad you asked! You prepare by training in the off-season.

We can look at the off-season as the happy times, the sunny days, and the peaceful moments. During these times, we should find ourselves making preparations for times ahead. No, we can’t “predict” everything that will happen in the future. The Holy Spirit may reveal some things to us but ultimately, sometimes we don’t get a heads up on what’s coming next. So, for this reason, we must maximize while we are at peace.

When we think about sports, we learn that there is an off-season to every sport. The purpose of the off season is to prepare for the times that are coming. During the coming times, there will be back to back events and situations until that specific season runs its course. And until that happens, you have to work until completion. The player can not quit mid-season. The player trains and conditions just for the preparation of what’s to come. Now, of course, a good off season training does not automatically mean the team will win every game or even that they will have a winning season. However, it does mean that mentally and physically they have made preparations to get through it!
Just like us, we would like to score big in every endeavor and we would like to ace every test that comes our way, but sometimes this does not happen.

Sometimes we are caught off guard and depending on how well we have been training; we may not be prepared to ace the test. So we fail it. Publius Flavius Vegetius Renatus said we are to “prepare for war in the time of peace.” This means, we should be training during off season! Not focusing on the events and endeavors of others, but making sure we are prepared for the future.

It’s ok to be caught off guard but it’s not ok to be ill-prepared. It may not be raining in your life right now but do know that the rain is coming. Are you prepared? How do we prepare? We prepare by building up our faith. We prepare by praying consistently. We pray by spending time and communing with God on a regular basis. We prepare by being knowledgeable of the enemy and his devices. We prepare by ensuring that we are positioned according to God’s will for our lives.

What I’m saying is, being caught off guard is uncontrollable at times but there is no excuse for not being prepared! Start today!