Counterintuitive Control: Speed Creates Stability
A Skiing Devotional
Beginning skiers have it backward. They think the way to stay safe is to go slow. Go slow, stay in control, stay stable. It makes intuitive sense. But experienced skiers know the truth: going slowly and tentatively actually makes you less stable. A skier barely moving, hesitantly edging, trying to stop – that skier is more likely to fall than one carving aggressively down the mountain.
Why? Because turns create stability. Carving – laying the ski on edge at speed and cutting through the snow – creates a dynamic equilibrium. The skier is constantly balancing through turns. The momentum, the angle, the rhythm of turning – all of it creates control.
A skier going straight down, trying to scrape to a stop, is rigid and unstable. A skier making smooth, confident turns at speed is in control. The turns are what keep you upright.
This is counterintuitive. Most people think hesitation equals safety. But in skiing, tentative movement is dangerous. Committed movement is safe.
Spiritually, this is profound.
Many Christians approach faith tentatively. They try to follow Jesus carefully, not committing fully, hedging their bets, keeping one foot in the world. They think this is safer – less risk of being wrong, less chance of looking foolish. But tentative faith is unstable. One wind gust of doubt, one small obstacle, and they fall.
But committed faith – radical commitment to following Jesus, bold steps of obedience, aggressive pursuit of holiness – creates stability. The very commitment that feels risky is actually what keeps you upright. The turns you make toward Jesus are what create equilibrium.
Joshua 1:8-9 records God telling Joshua: "Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do all that is written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."
Strong and courageous. Not tentative. Bold commitment creates safety.
Proverbs 28:1 says: "The wicked flee though no one pursues them, but the righteous are as bold as a lion."
Bold. Lion-like. Confident commitment. That's stability.
2 Timothy 1:7 says: "For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and a sound mind."
Not timid. Not tentative. Power. That's what creates spiritual stability.
Psalm 27:1 says: "The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?"
No fear. Bold confidence. That's when you're stable.
The tragedy is when Christians ski tentatively down the mountain of life, trying to stay safe through hesitation, and they fall repeatedly. They never experience the stability that comes from committed, bold faith.
Tomorrow's Practice: Identify one area where you're skiing tentatively – holding back, not fully committing, hedging your bets spiritually. Maybe it's serving God but keeping your career as a backup plan. Maybe it's following Jesus but maintaining old friendships that pull you away. Maybe it's committing to church but not really engaging. This week, make a committed turn. Go all in on something God is calling you toward. Notice how the commitment – the very thing that felt risky – actually creates stability.
Reflection Question: Are you skiing tentatively through life, trying to stay safe through hesitation, or are you making bold, committed turns toward Jesus that create the stability you're seeking?