“We should enthusiastically be looking for OPPORTUNITIES
to “get to the goal!” This is a quote from last week’s devotion… This was shared
right before our annual post about “Giving Tuesday”… and lets be honest, every
time “giving” comes into the equation there is some discomfort, and at times
even disgust, as it seems there is always someone asking for something.
Yet the post I put on about “Giving Tuesday” was a bit
different than most… it actually used the concept of the “Triple Threat
Position” in basketball… one where a player with the ball is in position to pass,
dribble, or shoot… the post asked these questions: “What are you in position to
do?” -and- “Are you ready to make a play?”
I often hear players described as either a “shoot-first”
or a “pass-first” type of player… I could write a lot on just my thoughts about
that type of description but I will keep it succinct… neither one is, in my
opinion, the mark of a great player; I believe a great player is one that has a
“score-first” mentality. You see the goal, is points for the team… and if the
best option for doing that in the situation is to shoot, then by all means take
the shot; if the best option is to create space, then by all means dribble; and
if the best option is a teammate that is in better position to score, then by
all means make the pass!
As stated last week, the same is true for us as the
church… to score… the OBJECTIVE is to share the Gospel and teach the Word. And
now that I have reviewed a bit, I want to actually share this week’s thought
(and yes, I have many times been told I am long-winded… have even had players
in the past make fun of me talking too much.) What I plan to do is take the
next few weeks to break down the 3 parts of being a “triple threat,” which creates
a “score-first” mentality.
This week lets talk passing… which involves not just the
player with the ball, but also the teammates. If a player has ball-in-hand and teammates
open, a decision must be made about who to pass it to; the answer is to pass to
who gives the best OPPORTUNITY to score (which is the goal!) Maybe it is the
teammate already set up in position to take the shot… or maybe to the teammate
that is in position to create a lane to take the shot… BUT it does no good to
pass to teammates that have no desire to get to the goal! (I can’t stand to watch
a bunch of needless passes that get the team nowhere!)
So, one of the things I teach in basketball is to make
sure you are in a ready position to not only receive a pass, but also to do
something with it. There is a common rule of thumb that a shooter does most of
his work to prepare for the shot before he ever gets the ball… (ie making the
right cut… positioning the feet… etc.)
So, in order to avoid being too long-winded, let me make
a couple of key points for the “passing game.”
1.
Be willing to share the ball with teammates that
are in a better position to score than you… and there may be more than one
option… so you have to choose which you feel gives the team the best chance to score…
2.
Be active in putting yourself in position… in good
passing lanes to be able to receive the ball and score…
One more quick story to explain point number 2… I often
hear players complain that they were open but not getting the pass. Sometimes
that is true due to having a selfish teammate; yet often it is a result of
being open but not being the best option. In my daughter’s game the other night
she was doing something I have pointed out to her before, she was drifting into
an open area that she felt was a good lane to score, yet was not in an available
position for her teammates to make the pass. She was open but not visible… she
needed to do better work in getting to open “passable” lanes… otherwise her
teammates did not have the OPPORTUNITY to make the pass.
I shared that story to not only admonish us to be working
to get open, but also to not be frustrated when “teammates” are asking you to “pass
the ball.” At this time of year, you will have people “calling for the ball”…
1.
It may by your local church that needs funds to
equip (set up) teammates to “score” – yes there are times that the church is
the “scoring” option of sharing the Gospel… yet, it should always be the “scoring”
option of teaching the Word… as often the Gospel should be handled by the
individual team members as they are going through the “game of life”
2.
It may be ministry/missions organizations that “want
the ball” (need help) – i.e. we at InBounds work very hard at putting ourselves
in position to “score” and I try to make it visible to you, our teammates, to
be able to “make a pass” to help… YET, I also know there are others that are
positioning themselves to score as well… so as always, I cannot tell you where
to “make the pass” but you need to look for what gives “the team” the best
option to “score!” After all that is the OBJECTIVE… the GOAL!
This season of giving make sure to assist the team! At
InBounds we value your prayers and your resources (if you feel we are the best option
to “pass the ball” to!) And we realize that many care, but maybe are not in position
to “make the pass”… lack OPPORTUNITY.
Paul said it this way when thanking the Philippians for
their renewed giving to his ministry… Philippians 4:10 But I rejoiced in the
Lord greatly that now at last your care for me has flourished again; though you
surely did care, but you lacked OPPORTUNITY.
