A Good Reason

(Contributed by Mitchell Greene)

Recently I was at my local rock climbing gym where a boy and his father were trying the sport for the first time. The young man looked to be around the age of fifteen, and he seemed very athletic.  But sadly, he just didn’t have the experience to climb to the top of the wall. He tried over and over but kept falling. His dad tried to help, yelling out what to grab onto and chanting inspirational quotes, but it just didn’t matter. Whatever the father said, the son’s response was the same: “I can’t! It’s too hard!” And down he went. I could see in the kid’s face that he desperately wanted to reach the top, but it was obvious that it wasn’t enough. Despite his dad’s motivational efforts, which were quite inspiring I should add, nothing seemed to bring success.

This encounter reminded me of a recent speech I heard by Eric Thomas. In classic motivational tone, Eric spoke about a boxing match that had taken place well before I was born. This was the infamous fight between Buster Douglas and Mike Tyson. Buster’s mother had died just before the fight, and she believed in her heart, and publically shared, that her son would win the fight. Her son would beat the great Mike Tyson. Her death, prior to the realization of the prophetic truth in her words, gave Buster the reason he needed to beat the most feared fighter in boxing history. He won that fight, as Eric Thomas profoundly expressed, because Buster needed to honor his mom’s words, especially in her death. That was Buster’s “why.”

Thomas declared that if your reason to do something is greater than the obstacles you face, nothing can stop you. If your reason is not greater than your challenge, you better find a better reason.

It’s all in your “why.” Is your “why” greater than your “how?” Why do you have a second job? Why are you training to run a marathon? Why did that young man want to get to the top of that climbing wall? Anything and everything you do has a reason.  If you can’t think of what that reason is, then why are you even doing it? If every day of work is just too hard, you obviously don’t have a good reason to be going. Start asking yourself “Why?” Every time you think “I can’t do it” or “it’s too hard” ask yourself why you’re doing it.

After I left the gym I wondered why he wanted to get to the top of the wall so bad. I think that he wanted to know what it felt like to do something that even he said he couldn’t do.

I didn’t stick around to find out. But, I’m guessing, either then or eventually, he’ll find his “Why” and then he’ll win.