“Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades” is an expression that deals with the question of how close is close enough? how close must one come to “right” in order to be declared “right.” In a spelling bee, how many letters must one get right in order to win the prize? The meaning of the saying is clear: Real life isn’t like horseshoes and hand grenades. One must do the assigned task exactly as dictated by the rules in order to receive credit. If close is afforded the same value as spot-on, then close, because it is simpler and requires less effort, will eventually replace spot-on as the measure of success. In the physical world in which we all live, close earns no points.

Not so in the spiritual world where being “religious” (obeying church doctrines) is deemed equal to being “spiritual” (obeying God’s doctrines)–“luke warm” has become equal to “hot.” Recall that God equated “luke warm” with vomit in Revelation 3:14-20. Notice that He characterized as “luke warm” (vomit) a church body that was convinced that they were spiritually “hot.” Because the people in the church at Laodicea believed their church-defined righteousness to be equal to God-defined righteousness, He described them as “… wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked.” In God’s church, CLOSE IS NOT CLOSE ENOUGH.

Another popular saying tells us that “Practice makes perfect.” Many an athlete has reminded himself of this “fact” while flinging a basketball toward an iron rim time after time after time. However, as one very successful basketball coach wisely points out, practice does not make perfect; ONLY PERFECT PRACTIVE MAKES PERFECT. How right he is. In the basketball world, practicing a jump shot thousands of times incorrectly will not produce a good jump shooter no matter how fervently the shooter may believe otherwise. He will always shoot the ball incorrectly because he ignores what is written in The Jump Shooter’s Guide to Success. The theory is that, because millions of players shoot that way, that way must be the right way, even though they cannot find that teaching in the guide. At the college where I once taught I one day found myself in the gym where a basketball player was practicing his jump shot. I noticed that when he released the ball from in front of his forehead he hit the goal consistently. Conversely, when he released the ball from higher location he missed consistently. Still he continued to release it from a higher location. I took the liberty of pointing out that truth. He laughed, then continued to use the higher release–and miss consistently. The definition of lunacy is to repeat an error over and over while expecting a successful outcome.

In the spiritual world, billions of people embrace heathen doctrines and traditions because they ignore what is written in The Believer’s Guide to Success. The theory is that, because millions of parishioners practice those policies, those policies must be right, even though they are condemned in The Guide. And when someone reminds them of what is written in The Guide, they react as did the ball player–they go ignorantly on their way, believing that their errors are in fact God’s will. L.J.