On the first day of one of my classes in graduate school, the instructor began by asking each person in the class to share their full name, place of birth, and the name of their favorite movie. There were 40 people in the class, so the exercise lasted for more than an hour—almost the entire duration of the class. At the time, I was confused by his technique, and even criticized him for it. It bothered me that he would spend so much time on acquiring such apparently useless information. But over the years, I have realized the wisdom of his approach.

Tim understood the power of movies. Movies are modern day stories. By asking us to name our favorite movie, he was trying to understand our stories. Our favorite stories reveal something about who we are (or who we want to be) and what’s important to us. So by asking us to name our favorite movies, Tim was trying to get a sense of who was in his class, what was important to them, and how to reach them. Since Pablo Picasso said that good artists copy but great artists steal, I decided to steal Tim’s technique—and I use it in every class that I teach.

Whenever I ask a class to name their favorite movie, someone in the class will inevitably ask me to name mine. My answer? Shawshank Redemption. Shawshank Redemption is about a man named Andy (played by Tim Robbins) who is convicted of murder, sentenced to life in prison, but uses his ingenuity to transform the culture of the prison, positively impact several of the inmates, all while plotting his own escape. What I like most about Shawshank Redemption is the strategy Andy employs to plot his escape.

When he first arrives at the prison, he asks the influential and crafty Red (played by Morgan Freeman) to procure him a rock hammer and a large poster of Rita Hayworth. Red understand the second request. But he is dumbfounded by the first. Why would anyone in prison want a rock hammer? We find out the answer to that question after Andy escapes. We learn that for two decades, Andy was using the rock hammer to dig a hole through the wall in his cell, a hole that he covered with the poster of Rita Haywood. We also learn that Andy was a student of geology, which is the study of time and pressure. The point is that if you apply enough pressure to an object over enough time, it will eventually yield—even if the pressure applied is a small rock hammer.

According to Shawshank Redemption, time and pressure are two key ingredients in the formula of success. When we fail to reach our objectives or secure our blessings, it is often because we have failed to include time and/or pressure in our plan We either haven’t spend enough time or applied enough pressure. Time and pressure. Alone they are insufficient. Together, they are unbeatable.

Here’s my question for you today: which ingredient in this success formula have you ignored? Time or pressure?

Some of us have ignored the significance of time in achieving success. We simply have not invested enough time to secure the results that we desire. Malcom Gladwell has written that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to master a task. I’m not sure how he arrived at that number, and more than a few people disagree with his calculation. But one things is certain. There is no way to achieve or contribute anything worthwhile or make a lasting impact without a significant investment of your time. We tend to overestimate what we can achieve in the short term and underestimate what we can achieve in the long term. An overnight success usually takes 20 years. Nothing worth having comes easy, and there are no shortcuts to success. Building a career, building a strong family, building wealth, building physical fitness, and building a sanctified life all take time.

While investing time is a necessary condition for success, it isn’t sufficient. We have a tendency to confuse tenure with knowledge, impact, or success. Just because you have invested a significant amount of time in a career, a relationship, or a skill doesn’t mean you are good at it. I once heard a story that perfectly illustrates this truth. A teacher who has spend 39 years in the classroom applied for a promotion as a principal. When the position was given to someone else, this irate teacher demanded to know why he was overlooked given his extensive experience. He was informed that in the view of the committee who made the decision, he did not have 39 years of experience. He had one year of experience that he had repeated 39 times! Just because you spend alot of time on a task doesn’t mean that you know how to do it right or well.

Some of have factored time into our formula for success. What some of us have ignored is the significance of pressure. Pressure is necessary. In order to grow, we all need pressure. Sometime we need to apply pressure, and sometimes we need pressure applied to us. When life applies pressure, we are forced to grow, forced to find solutions, forced to adapt forced to confront our fear, forced to find answers. Doc Rivers, the highly esteemed NBA coach has said that “Pressure is a privilege.” When we apply pressure to an object, a goal or a relationship, it may resist but it will respond. Whenever pressure is applied, a response is guaranteed. No pressure, no response.

Time and pressure. Apart they are insufficient. Together, they are unbeatable. Consider the counsel that greets us James 1:2-4 (MSG)

Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.

Time and pressure. Apart they are insufficient. Together, they are unbeatable.