Over the years I have been privileged to coach quite a few players that possess tremendous skills on the basketball court. It is quite amazing to see the abilities they have - both natural and learned. Some are incredible shooters; some incredible leapers; some incredibly fast; some simply see the floor better than everyone else; and every once in awhile you get guys that are great in many categories.
Yet having great skills/athleticism is not all it takes to be a great player. It is one thing to be a practice player and a totally different thing to be a big-game player. I have often been scouting another team during their warm-ups and witnessed a kid that hit everything he threw up. Usually an assistant or someone would comment about what a great shooter the kid is. My response is normally, “We’ll see what he does with a hand in his face – a lot of people can shoot open jumpers.”
The point is that in order to be a great player, one must be able to perform under the adversity of the bright lights, the big game, poor referees, when behind on the scoreboard, etc. The simple fact is that the game is sometimes played under difficult circumstances.
In the church we have a lot of “players” that do well when things are going good. WHOOPEE! Even the world has good attitudes and does well when things are going in their favor. The true mark of a “great player” on God’s team is how he or she performs under adversity. Is the fruit of the Spirit evident? Are they still “making the right plays”?
I recently returned from the Dominican Republic and saw “great players” that live in adverse conditions yet still serve the Lord through loving His people.
10 If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small. (Proverbs 24)
Adversity should equal opportunity for us to shine as believers!
For additional reading this week go to: http://www.catalystspace.com/content/read/francis_chan/
A good friend sent this link in an email and it is a great read that I would call “Like Christ, if I could be like Christ!”
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