In his book “The Game Within The Game” The National Basketball Association (NBA) legend Walt Frazier writes:

“All great athletes essentially come to a fork in the road where they have to change their approach to succeed. It's a sign of intelligence and character. My college coach, Jack Hartman, made me play only defense for a full year in practice when I became academically ineligible for my junior year at Southern Illinois. Embarrassed, I thought at first about arguing with Coach Hartman over what I felt was a tremendous slight. But instead I started lifting weights and working so hard on my defense that my teammates hated to see me match up against them in practice. That was the turning point of my life, on and off the court.”

I thought about that observation after I heard the news that Boston Celtic star Jason Tatum was recently awarded a five year, $314 million extension—the richest contract in NBA history! What’s fascinating about that contract extension is that even though the Celtics won their 19th NBA Championship (the most in NBA history) this year, Tatum didn’t win the Most Valuable Player Award, and struggled in areas where he usually shines. He didn’t score as many points as he usually does. But he led the team in assists, and made several key defensive plays. Several commentators have pointed out that over the years, Tatum has changed his game. He doesn’t score as much or as often as he used to, but he has learned to impact the game in many others ways. After changing his game, his team won a championship—and he got a huge contract. I’m not sure if Tatum has ever read Frazier’s book. But he is certainly a case study of Frazier’s contention. “All great athlete come to a fork in the road ,where they have to change their approach in order to succeed.”

I am convinced that Frazier’s insight not only applies to great athletes. It also applies to all of us—especially anyone seeking greatness in any dimension of their lives. Building great relationships, making great decisions, and pursuing great outcomes all require the ability to adapt.

This insight was humorously reinforced to me during an experience I had on a recent flight. I was sitting next to a man who had a duffle bag in his lap. The flight attendant came by and said “Sir, you must place your bad underneath your seat before we take off.” He smiled and nodded his head. She walked away. But the bag didn’t move. Three minutes later, she walked back by our row. She repeated her request, but this time her voice was a little louder and her frustration was evident. My seat-mate smiled and nodded his head. She walked away. But the bag didn’t move. Three minutes later, she returned. By now, Miss Flight attendant was fully enraged. She went postal (no shade to anyone who works at the post office lol). “Sir! “ she screamed. “Are you deaf?” And then she repeated her directive, emphasizing each syllable of each word. PLEASE. PUT. YOUR. BAG. UNDER. THE. SEAT. And again, you guessed it—he smiled and nodded his head. Finally, I interrupted the interaction and said “Ma’am, I don’t think he speaks English.” After some research, she discovered that he did not. But for some reason, she had assumed that if she just increased the volume of her request it would change his behavior. She didn’t realize that success would require another approach.

As I reflected on that experience, it occurred to me that we often attempt to solve the problems we facing by doing MORE of what we are already doing, when what we actually need to do is something entirely DIFFERENT. To succeed, we usually must change our entire approach.

This is precisely what the Apostle Paul did. Paul is one of the first and certainly one of greatest evangelists in the history of Christianity. Imagine a world with no church buildings, no bibles, and no knowledge of Jesus Christ. Paul fearlessly entered this world, and succeeded to an astonishing degree. He would identify a major city, visit in a synagogue in that city (if there was one), and then use the synagogue as a platform to share the message of Jesus. Synagogues were Jewish meeting places—and for a season, his strategy worked. But his success came at a great cost. He was constantly harassed, and often physically abused. Finally, Paul decided to change his strategy. When he arrived in the ancient city of Corinth, he came to the fork in the road. Acts 18:4-8 tells us what Paul did:

Each Sabbath found Paul at the synagogue, trying to convince the Jews and Greeks alike. \ He testified to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah. 6But when they opposed and insulted him, Paul shook the dust from his clothes and said, “Your blood is upon your own heads—I am innocent. From now on I will go preach to the Gentiles.

Then he left and went to the home of Titius Justus, a Gentile who worshiped God and lived next door to the synagogue. Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, and everyone in his household believed in the Lord. Many others in Corinth also heard Paul, became believers, and were baptized.

Paul changed his strategy. And it is not an exaggeration to say that this change in strategy changed the world. Had Paul not adopted a new approach, it is not unlikely that he would have grown weary of sharing the good news about Jesus, and we may have never heard it. That shift still reverberates down through the centuries.

Are you at a fork in your career?

Are you at a fork in your marriage?

Are you at a fork in your parenting?

Perhaps its time to adopt a new approach. And here’s the kicker: sometimes the change needed is not revolutionary, dramatic, or even painful.

All Paul did was go next door.