Numbers 15:39-40 “You will have these tassels to look at and so you will remember all the commands of the Lord, that you may obey them and not prostitute yourselves by chasing after the lusts of your own hearts and eyes. Then you will remember to obey all my commands.”

What are we being coached on here? One of the things I see is a reminder- a tassel. The tassel is a symbol so we will remember, a lot like the wwjd (what would Jesus do) bracelets.

How do we get ourselves into trouble spots? We often loose sight of God. We get the urge to grab for our vice in life; most often we have not completely forgotten God, the vice was our focus at that moment in time. We choose ourselves over God.

When it is all done some feel the guilt or anger associated with the pleasure of me me me; once the moment is done guilty thoughts of “why did I do that” can set in. By this time it is too late to take back the guilty pleasure. It is done. Learn from the experience.

I equate this with athletes who slack in their effort and then think they can simply apologize to their teammates for their lack of effort, focus, and concentration. The team will suffer do to the lack of one individual. There is a statement I will often use when coaching “You are only as strong as your weakest link.”

Think about what can happen in a blink of an eye? My Memphis Tigers basketball team was 9 seconds away from an undefeated season. We trailed for 9 seconds all year in the last minute of a game. Nine seconds is a lot of time compared to a blink. What happened or didn’t happen in those 9 seconds changed lives. Life happens in an instant, and then it is gone.

We need constant reminders of God, who God is, why we are passing on our vices of this world. I know I do. It is good to ask ourselves if “me” is better than God. Are we looking to replace God in our own lives by our food consumption, sex, cars,partying, etc…?

Paul has compared following the faith to athletes who “go into strict training”. I competed at an elite level. How did this happen for me? I went into strict training. One cannot sprint near full speed around a 400m track clearing 10 hurdles in the process without going into strict training. I was constantly reminding myself of what I wanted. I burned with desire to win in this race.

Without the “tassel” I will forget God and all of his glory and majesty that comes with him