I had a dorm room to myself for one semester way back in 1982. Studying physics and math left little time for the kinds of things that usually occupy a typical college freshman. To clear my mind during study sessions, I’d throw darts—sometimes even in the dark.

One night, I threw my third dart and didn’t hear the usual “thud” as it hit the board. Instead, it made a strange sound—almost like it hit paper. The room was dark, so I walked over and flipped on the light. There, in the center of the board, were two darts stuck in the bullseye—and the third dart lodged in the flight of one of them.

So, here’s a question: Does a dart stuck in a dart that’s in the bullseye still count as a bullseye?

I have no idea how many thousands of throws I made at that dartboard over the years. But I can tell you this: I never hit three bullseyes in a row when I first started throwing. At the beginning, my goal was simple—just hit the board and not the wall.

When you began your faith journey, were you aiming for the bullseye—or just trying to hit the board? Were you told you had to be “perfect” in everything you did? Or did someone share the amazing grace that God offers?

Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

John draws a clear contrast between law and grace. Are we focusing on the bullseye of legalism—or on the broader board of grace? One restricts. The other advances.

That night in the dark, sheer repetition and practice (and maybe a little luck) allowed me to land three darts in the center of a target I couldn’t even see. I just knew where the bullseye was. In the same way, spiritual maturity trains us to discern God’s target for our lives—not through sight, but through faith.

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

If I picked up some darts today, I’d have to start over. I’d be lucky to hit a single bullseye—maybe even lucky to hit the board. Years of unpracticed muscle memory would make me clumsy and inconsistent. I’d have to give myself grace. Either to accept what I could do in the moment, or to press forward with determination until I could once again hit the target.

God has given us grace. We should extend that grace to ourselves, too. But that doesn’t mean drifting into sin under the assumption that grace covers everything.

What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?

It means that when we miss—when we fall short—we don’t give up. We pick up another dart and throw again.

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

So give yourself grace. If you miss the board, try again. Keep throwing, with your eye fixed on God’s specific plan for your life. Keep practicing. No one gets it right the first time. Don’t let discouragement keep you from trying again just because you can’t hit the mark every time.

…Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:

“God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

Return to God with humility and repentance, and He will lift you up.

Keep trying, brothers and sisters.
Stay strong in the confidence of God’s grace.
And don’t stop throwing darts.

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