March 4, 2019 - "The Flu Game"

It has gone down in the annals of NBA Finals history as “The Flu Game”… if you are a Michael Jordan fan you will remember it well. During the 1997 Finals, Jordan’s Chicago Bulls were facing the Utah Jazz with the series tied at 2 games apiece; and when game 5 rolled around, MJ was hit with serious flu-like symptoms or food poisoning… Needless to say he was struggling… tired… dehydrated… etc. BUT, this was the NBA Finals; the game had significance!


MJ struggled at times but ended up scoring 38 points to lead his team to victory. He had overcome… persevered… in spite of how he felt!


The reason I thought back to this game is because of something my youngest daughter, Faith, said to me. Faith struggles with OCD and anxieties… out of the blue she can get depressed or anxious… yet, she has one of the most incredible hearts for the Lord and for people that I have ever seen. (I’m not gossiping about Faith, she openly shares her struggles in hopes to help others.) During one her “battles” she stated that she feels like a hypocrite or a fake at times when she is serving, knowing what is going on in her mind below the surface… BUT, she still goes on… she still “plays the game.”


I used that phrase about the game intentionally; Faith was feeling like things were a fake, or in other words a game… In Michael Jordan’s case, we were talking about a game… but one that is “life” to him; in Faith’s situation we are talking about it feeling like a game, but her carrying through because it is LIFE to her!


I tried to encourage her by pointing out that victory is not measured by lack of obstacles/struggles, but by persevering in spite of obstacles/struggles. The reality is that every time we step on the court of service, we are dealing with our own issues… as Pastor Matt Brooks has stated many times, “We/re all jacked-up in some way!”


The Apostle Paul had his share of issues to face… I often refer to his letter to the Philippians where, from a prison cell, he wrote about his joy in remembering them… focused on others instead of his real issues. But another passage came to mind also… 

1 Corinthians 12:

7 And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. 8 Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. 9 And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.


I love the way Pastor Peterson put it in The Message:

7-10 Because of the extravagance of those revelations, and so I wouldn’t get a big head, I was given the gift of a handicap to keep me in constant touch with my limitations. Satan’s angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty! At first I didn’t think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me, My grace is enough; it’s all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness. Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ’s strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size—abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become.

I read one particular line of this to Faith while prepping for this devo… and she LOVED IT! She said she is going to frame the quote… “Satan’s angel did his best to get me down; what he did in fact was push me to my knees.”


Let us know if you have struggles we can pray for… but in the midst “Play/Serve humbly my friends!”