As every Navy SEAL knows, you will never rise to the occasion when a crisis arises -- you will sink to the level of your training. Those who appear to take up the challenge without batting an eye are those who have conditioned themselves in advance to be ready for such a situation. It is easy to imagine that we can all become heroes if the opportunity presents itself, but if you are not faithful in the stressful every day situations, you will not suddenly discover your fortitude when you face an exceptional one. Heroes are made one day of training at a time.
Training hurts. It feels pointless when the goal is far away or seemingly non-existent. It can take decades to build the abilities that may only find their fulfillment -- or failure -- in one brief moment of time. But training builds character, shaping us into stronger people who can face even the every day situations with more confidence and success. We must train, and we must do it now, or the moments may pass us by. As believers, we must train to be like Christ. We have the Holy Spirit as our Coach, our Helper, but without daily discipline in the exercises He gives, we will never have the strength that is our potential. It's worth the work!
For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant,
but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness
to those who have been trained by it.
Hebrews 12:11