A few months ago, I heard Bill Curry speak at a community-wide luncheon. Curry is a two-time Super Bowl Champion and NFL Pro Bowl player. He coached at several prestigious colleges including the University of Alabama and Georgia Tech. He is currently a commentator for ESPN. During his after dinner speech, Curry said something that I hope I never forget:
There are two kinds of pain - the pain of discipline and the pain of regret. One is temporary. The other lasts forever.
Which kind of pain do you choose? The pain of regret that haunts you forever or the temporary pain of discipline that eventually makes you better?
When I exercise I usually feel it the next day. It is painful but it is a good pain because I know that the result of the uneasiness will benefit me. The pain of discipline is healthy and vital to growth.
All of us have some regrets in our lives. I regret not working harder as a young athlete. I regret giving up the discipline of writing for many years. I regret some dumb decisions that I’ve made. I will die with these regrets – and, I suppose, I will die with even more.
But I don’t want to fill my life with regrets. I would rather fill my life with accomplishments. As much as possible, I want to fulfill the dreams that God has for my life. It will require discipline and it will require pain. But, as Bill Curry said, it is only temporary.
What about you?
Are you willing to endure the temporary pain of discipline in order to avoid the permanent pain of regret?
3 comments:
Great thought, Gene! Thanks!
Gene, After getting in late last night and then up early again for work and realizing the list of things I needed to do this week I was getting tired and feeling sorry for myself. Too much to do, not enough time. Certainly it would be ok to skip my kung fu class, skip writing, and just head to bed. Thanks for shaking me up and making me stick it out!
You're welcome, Ted! I checked out cubiclewarrior.com last night. I'm on your RSS feed so I'll look forward to hearing more from you. Take care!
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