April 29, 2019 - Avoiding Screens

Often when guarding an opponent, a defender has to be aware of screens… and must have a plan on what to do if a screen is set. (For those that aren’t basketball savvy, a screen is when an opposing player sets up as a “wall” to block or pick the player off from following the guy he is guarding.)

Screens are difficult because one typically cannot see them coming because of being focused on the player he is covering… and thus they are often called blind screens… demanding that he have teammates that warn him when a screen is coming! (A vital role of teamwork is communication!)

Once one hears that a screen is coming, he has to determine if he is going “under” or “over” the screen… based upon if the player he is guarding being more of a threat to pull up for a jump shot or is more apt to drive to the basket; yet other times, one’s teammate may call switch and take over covering his responsibility…

You may be wondering how in the world this pertains to a weekly devotion? It came to my mind last week while in a chapel service, when the speaker shared a video clip of the rap artist Flame doing his song “Move.” It is really a great song with many truths in it… yet the following line jumped out at me:

“Hey watcha lookin at… get from in front of that screen…

That is so obscene… Jesus died for that very thing”

Obviously, Flame is not discussing avoiding “screens” in basketball, but I do believe his reference to avoiding video screens does refer to the enemy’s (opponent’s) desire to create a wall to block or pick us off from our mission… through the use of “blind screens” such as internet porn… a seemingly innocent drink at the party… things that can get us knocked off ball… off mission.

At risk of writing a sermon here, we need to be careful of anything that can “screen” us off of our mission! We need great “teammates” to warn us when they see problems ahead, (and need to listen to those warnings.) We need to be good “teammates” as well and warn others…

We need to take heed of the warnings of Scripture to avoid works of the flesh… far too often we are as unwise as an alcoholic sitting at a bar… we are sin-aholics that  think we are strong enough to watch wrong things… to dabble in wrong things… etc. These are ways the enemy is knocking us off course…

As a coach I would regularly tell players to get around the screens… as a minister I am telling you the same!

2 Timothy 2:22 Run away from infantile indulgence. Run after mature righteousness—faith, love, peace—joining those who are in honest and serious prayer before God. (The Message)

Ephesians 5: ¹⁵ See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, ¹⁶ redeeming the time, because the days are evil. ¹⁷ Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. (NKJV)

Walk circumspectly… be aware of your surroundings… when the “screens” are coming… and get around those “screens.”

Bottom line is that we are trying to stay on mission by avoiding things that will pick us off!

Flame goes on to say in his song, “If the Lord tell me move I move, anything He want me to yeah I do… but if it ain’t of the Lord then I won’t budge.”