Balance, Eyes, Elbow, Follow Through

Steve Backlund
Sep 14
3 min read

Balance, Eyes, Elbow, Follow Through

By Steve Backlund

As a basketball coach, I taught that to shoot a successful basket effectively, you need to apply BEEF: Balance with your feel, keep your Eyes on the basketball rim, your Elbow pointing correctly to the rim, and then Follow Through with your shooting hand moving downward toward the rim. Just as in basketball, if we want to improve our spiritual, emotional, relational, and physical life skills, we too will practice specific things over and over again. And the one that both basketball players and influencers alike need to practice on is FOLLOW THROUGH.

The Crucial Role of Following Through

Following through on our commitments and decisions is necessary for personal and relational victory. One of my "25 Beliefs for Leaders and Influencers” is: I make commitments with forethought, and I follow through on what I say I will do. This isn't just about grand promises; it’s about "renewing our mind” with the decisions and commitments we've already made. This is one of the five sources of healthy mind renewal:

God’s promises (2 Peter 1:4)
Our biblical identity (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Our prophetic words (1 Timothy 1:18)
Testimonies (Revelation 19:10; Mark 8:18)
Our commitments and decisions (2 Corinthians 9:7)

This fifth source of mind renewal – "the commitments and decisions that we've made" – is where follow-through truly shines. As it says in 2 Corinthians 9:7 (which I teach in my book Fully Convinced), "Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion. For God loves a cheerful giver.” This verse basically says, “God loves a cheerful decider.” Cheerfulness is evidence we are attaching faith to what we have decided to do and believe. These decisions and commitments can be financial (giving commitments, strategies for getting out of debt, budget, etc.). They can be time commitments we have made or a decision we have made about how to approach a situation that we’re facing (a difficult relationship, personal weakness, investments, etc.).

Decide and Then Re-Decide

The crucial point is that after we decide what to believe or do, we keep re-deciding (renewing our mind with that decision) over and over again. We say to ourselves, “Yes, I affirm that decision. I re-attach faith that this is the right direction to go.”

“I am to commit this amount to the building fund.”
“I am supposed to be in this job.”
“I am not supposed to help the family member out financially.”
“I am committed to the home group.”

The best example of how this works is in marriage vows. I choose my wife, Wendy, again and again. I renew my mind with this commitment. As I do so, I increase in cheerfulness, energy, and strength. I also more easily overcome the challenges that every marriage has. It is not just a one-time decision.

The Danger of Double-Mindedness

A lack of cheerfulness in our commitments often stems from being double-minded. James 1:18 speaks of a man who doubts and describes him as "a double-minded man who is unstable in all his ways". A double-minded person believes one thing one day, and believes another thing the next day. They tend to allow their feelings and circumstances to shape their beliefs and decisions, and thus, don’t follow through on what they have decided previously to do. (Certainly, there are times we will change our minds, but it cannot be done impulsively based only on feelings or negative circumstances.) Too often, we grow weary (and do not follow through) with our most important decisions and commitments because we do not consistently renew our minds with them.

Building the Muscle of Follow-Through

Following through on what we say we will do is a main component of integrity. It builds trust in the eyes of others, and it causes greater fulfillment in life. When we see its importance, we will be careful to make decisions with forethought and consistently stir up (attach faith) to those decisions. As we do so, we will get stronger and stronger and stronger in follow-through. We and others will be glad we did so.

Back to Basketball

Practice. Practice. Practice. My players spent more time practicing than playing in games. We are all practicing vital skills so when we get into our big life games, we will do the right thing instinctively. Following through on what we have committed to do a great “drill” for us to keep practicing.