I donât often make a big deal out of stuff, but every once in a while, I just hit the proverbial end of my rope. In my history, both as a Christian and not, Iâve dealt with a lot of different people. Iâve been the manager of hundreds, the salesman to the people who are building their very first home, and even a coach to 5-year-old soccer playersâcomplete with the fathers and mothers of those players. And along the way, Iâve heard it all, seen it all and probably said it all, too.
My latest round of dysfunction reminds me of a scene from Jerry Maguire, that Tom Cruise movie about the professional sports agent who makes a living recruiting top college prospects into the big time. Thereâs this one quarterback kid, Frank Cushman, whoâs being recruited by every NFL team and every agent, and Jerry has him on the hook. The only challenge is that the prospectâs father, played by Beau Bridges, wonât sign a contract for representation. But he does say âMy word is my bondâ and, âI donât sign contracts, but what you do have is my whole word, and itâs stronger than oakâ. Maguire and Cushmanâs dad seal the deal with a handshake.
Even if you havenât seen Jerry Maguire, you can probably guess what happens. Another agent, Bob Sugar, comes in and steals the contract from Jerry and even gets it in writing. Itâs NFL signing day, and Sugar has just stolen Maguireâs biggest client. Jerry confronts the quarterbackâs father saying, âIâm still sort of moved by your âstronger than oakâ thingâ. But no deal. Jerryâs out and Sugarâs in.
âMy word is stronger than oakâ. Man, an oak is a big tree. And itâs wood is incredibly dense and strong. They make wine barrels, floors and even Viking ships out of it, for crying out loud. So to see something that strong compromised would take a lot of force. Unless it wasnât made of oak in the first placeâŚ
So hereâs what Iâm trying to get at: Â Â Â Keep. Â Your. Â Word.
- If you say youâre going to do something, do it.
- If you commit to following through with a task, do it. On time.
- If you make a commitment to faithfully love your wife until death, do it.
- If you tell your kid that youâll be at his game, recital or practice, be there.
- If you set an appointment to call or meet, keep it.
- If you screw something up, relationally or even physically, own it.
- If you have to re-schedule, do it in advance, not as an apology after the fact.
This isnât just because being a man of integrity requires the aforementioned, but keep in mind that other people (aka- your sons, daughters, co-workers, etc.) are going to follow your lead. If itâs okay for us, then itâs okay for them.
Iâm so tired of living in a society where making excuses and shifting the blame to someone else has become the new ânormalâ. The root word of âcommitmentâ is âcommitâ, and I didnât even need a Greek or Hebrew translation to see it. When we commit, itâs a covenant to follow though. Itâs non-negotiable and irrevocable.
As a Christian man, I am committed to living as if you could build a ship out of my word. It wonât sink if you rely on it. It wonât even leak.
I may fail at a lot of Godly man tests, but my word IS stronger than Oak.
How about yours?
Whatever your lips utter you must be sure to do, because you made your vow freely to the LORD your God with your own mouth.âDeuteronomy 23:23
David Dusek is founder and director of Rough Cut Men Ministries and author of Rough Cut Men: A Manâs Battle Guide to Building Real Relationships With Each Other and With Jesus. Rough Cut Men has been presented to NASCAR teams, at West Point and the U.S. Naval Academy, at military bases around the world and at hundreds of churches and menâs conferences of every denomination. To find out more about the Rough Cut Men, or to book David for an upcoming menâs event, please check out roughcutmen.com.
Photo Credit: Â Jerry MaGuire/ Tri-Star Pictures