The secret code
I’ve used the phrase, ‘cracked the code’ a few times lately, like around work or church or whatever, and whenever I hear myself say something a few times I wonder where it came from, or, what planted that idea in my head? or, why do I have this on the brain lately?
What’s interesting to me is, by now I’ve ‘cracked the code,’ and found that’s not enough. It’s not enough to enter the secret code and walk away. No, you’ve got to open the vault up. You’ve got to enter the safe. It’s not enough to hold the keys to the Kingdom; you’ve got to lay claim. ‘Cracking the code,’ then, no longer interests me. You know what it takes. You know what’s at stake. Now, go, and do.
You know the way, so walk therein.
And you’ve got assurances, on this way. Hear the promises made to the people of Israel in Isaiah 30:19-22 (I like the NIV for this one, as it doesn’t shy away from grosser imagery):
People of Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. How gracious he will be when you cry for help! As soon as he hears, he will answer you. Although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them. Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Then you will desecrate your idols overlaid with silver and your images covered with gold; you will throw them away like a menstrual cloth and say to them, “Away with you!”
The secret code is obedience. You’ll look right and you’ll look left, and, sure, you’ll be tempted by fruit in each direction. But you’ll hear another voice--one not of temptation but of longing for the truest good--and that voice will show you the way. Thy word, oh Lord, is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path!
This isn’t new. There are all sorts of books and programs dedicated to, or at the very least hinting at, this ‘secret.’ Jocko’s Extreme Discipline gets there, 75Hard gets there, David Goggins’ motivational message gets there. The Hollywood Secret is desire, but the real secret is discipline. Fail and try again. Fail and try again. Fail and try again. Walk the way, every day, and keep listening for that voice that’s unlike your own inner voice. Listen for the voice of discipline. Because your desires will drag you to hell.