The Last Forty Feet

By: Rev. Scott Armstrong

Recently Dr. Eddie Estep, Kansas City District Superintendent, shared an article from Kansas Wildlife and Parks with me. In “The Last Forty Feet,” Kent Barrett maintains that the success of most endeavors depends on preparing well and following through to the very end – “the last forty feet.”
 
Barrett quotes famed fly fisherman Flip Pallot: “Life in my world comes down to the last forty feet. Many anglers have amassed wealth that gives them the opportunity to make a fishing trip. They go to the local pro shop and buy all the right clothes, rods, reels, lines, and flies. They present their credit card. They arrive at the lodge, also paid by credit card. They step on a skiff, resplendent with all the right clothes and tackle. The guide poles them within forty feet of a tailing bonefish. Sadly, their credit card won’t take them that last forty feet. They have come all that way, but with that last forty feet, their credit card is worthless. They have forgotten to bring the skills they need, because they didn’t invest the time to develop them. They neglected to bring the skills to get them that last step to the bonefish. Life has made it too complicated for them to understand the value of the last forty feet. The last forty feet is the barometer of what you have been willing to invest.”

Read those last two lines again.

What good does it do to spend all that time and money if you haven’t prepared to do what you’re going there to do?
 
This concept applies to more than fly fishing. It has everything to do with the effort we put into our preparation for important events. I wonder what “the last forty feet” is in missions or other ministries. Is it the careful preparation of the call after a well-sculpted sermon? Is it the prayerful discernment given while talking to someone who does not know the Lord? Is it the thoughtful attention to how an illustration will sound when you give a workshop with multiple cultures present? Is it the intentional consideration of talking with a leader or key “gatekeeper” before we forge ahead with our strategies and planning?

What is your “last forty feet”?