December 27, 2021 - Reaction Time

Toward the end of 2001, I was approached with an opportunity to utilize, what was at the time fairly new technology, World Wide Web to enhance our ministry outreach… (in case you didn’t realize it, the “web” didn’t start rolling out to the public until 93-94… and the first Windows platform was Windows 95.) I jumped at the chance to use this to increase our audience to share God’s Playbook with… and we began our weekly CoachBurden.com outreach…

Today CoachBurden.com turns 20 years old!!! (March 1 of 2021 we hit our 1000^th consecutive weekly devotion going out, and I shared a bit of the exciting opportunities it has afforded us… look into the archives if you want to read more about it.) We were presented an opportunity to expand our outreach and jumped on it!

As I thought through ideas for this week’s devotion, I simply went back to a very basic concept… the best players are the ones with not only good skills, but also with great reaction time. The idea of reaction time involves detection, processing, and responding to a stimulus. Once the need is detected, one must properly process the information/options and then execute the right response. For instance, a sprinter is waiting for the audio stimulus of the starting gun, and has trained to efficiently set his body in motion as quickly as possible… yet a basketball player has the visual stimuli to consider of teammates making cuts, where the defenders are, etc. But the reality is that a great athlete is making decisions and in motion in just fractions of a second… anything more than that and the opportunities are missed.

As a coach I could often be heard yelling, “That was a good thought!” Yet good thoughts or intentions must be executed in a timely manner. For example, if a player sees an open pass but waits too long to throw the pass, there is a good chance there will be a deflection or interception… Right thought… poor execution!

It is a bit ironic to me that in this day and age of instant gratification, I spend much of my leadership time discouraging delayed responses… (as a dad I have regularly stated that “delayed obedience is disobedience!” I realize there is also a matter of prioritizing what and when we do things, but I found that delaying action often ends in forgetting…)

This is all on my mind following a message I preached yesterday… it dealt with reaction time… when the shepherds heard about Jesus they "said to one another, ‘Let us now GO to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.’ And the came with HASTE…” (Acts 2:15b-16a)

They heard (detected a stimulus), processed the information, and executed a response. As a result, they didn’t miss the opportunity… (in my mind I wonder, did they leave their sheep unattended or wait till a shift change… we just know it became a priority!) Then they immediately became missionaries telling others…

I then thought about Jesus’ Great Commission command to “GO” and wondered how many of us, in spite of having good intentions, live a life of delayed obedience (disobedience)? His command carries with it the intent of using great reaction time…

Let’s not just GO MAD (Make A Difference), let’s GO NOW!

Side Note: as you read this, please pray about how you could partner with InBounds in our upcoming 2022 season… Your gifts will help us GO!

December 20. 2021 - MAKE A STRAIGHT CUT TO THE GOAL and HURRY!

I have written/taught many times over the years about the idea of efficiency… no wasted movement on the court… i.e.:

·         On defense bust your butt to where the offensive player is going and claim the real estate, instead of chasing him…

·         On offense make straight cuts to the basket… no banana cuts…

·         When dribbling, do just enough to find a lane and then make a straight cut to the goal… overdribbling simply closes lanes…

I’m not going to spend a lot of time on the athletic examples here… just a phrase I used… “Make A Straight Cut To The Goal!”

In Luke chapter 2 we see the story of the birth of Christ… and most, maybe all that are reading this, have head the story of the promised Messiah’s birth as the Savior! And if you haven’t accepted the gift of the Savior, I urge you to do what the shepherds did upon hearing this story…

15 When the angles had gone away from them to heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “let us GO STRAIGHT to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.” 16 So they came IN A HURRY… (NASB)

Make a straight cut to the goal… the goal of salvation… and peace that is found only in Jesus! The Scripture goes on to record that the shepherds then made the message known to others…

I love a recent meme I saw on one of the social network platforms… it emphasized the core message of the promise of why Christ came… it was from Isaiah’s prophecy (chapter 9):

6 FOR unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is GIVEN…

FORGIVEN – what a glorious prophecy and promise! Receive it and share it! And “HURRY”!

December 13, 2021 - A Torn Thigh Muscle and Some Broken Toes... NO EXCUSES!

“Basketball is my favorite sport, I like the way they dribble up and down the court… when, Willis Reed stood so tall, Playing D with desire, it’s basketball” (Kurtis Blow, Basketball)

I’m sure some of you old timers now have that song bouncing around your head...

It was the 1970 NBA Finals Game 7 between the New York Knicks and the Los Angles Lakers… Willis Reed had missed Game 6 due to a tear in his thigh muscle that happened in Game 5; stating later that he didn’t want to regret sitting out 20 years later, he suited up and made his way out to the court… to everyone’s shock, including the Lakers. Reed only scored 4 points and pulled just 3 rebounds, but harassed Wilt Chamberlain into many misses, as the Knicks went on to win.

I was thinking about when players choose to play hurt… (probably because my 16 yr. old daughter Faith dropped a 45lb plate on her foot in the gym Saturday night, breaking multiple toes; and when her older brother called to tell me about it, he didn’t say they were coming home… Instead, he said Faith wanted to stay and do upper body since she broke her toes…)

I LOVE it when players focus on what they can do… not on their limitations!

The Apostle Paul has a well-known story from his life where he states (in 2 Corinthians chapter 12) that he had prayed 3 times for the “thorn in his flesh” to be removed… and I LOVE what the Spirit prompts him to write in response to having to “play hurt”…

“Therefore, I take pleasure in infirmities (weakness, illness, injuries), in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (12:10)

I don’t know what you are going through, but I do know there is still a “game to play” and we (the body [team] of Christ) NEED you on the court doing your part! Do what you can to Go MAD (Make A Difference) in someone’s life this week… don’t let your hurts stop you from being a help!

And by the way, when Willis Reed “stood so tall” in Game 7 on D, his teammate, Walt Frazier, picked up the scoring slack dropping 36 points and dishing out 19 assists. It is one of the most impressive Game 7 stat lines you will ever see, yet, overshadowed by the desire of the injured player that still suited up and gave his all.

Let’s concentrate on picking up the slack when our brothers and sisters are hurt…

December 6, 2021 - Trust the Coach, Not the Scoreboard! (Part 2)

I ended last week’s “game plan” with these words: “Trust the Coach, not the scoreboard!” I also mentioned an old adage coaches use that says “trust the process.” 

Those words sound good but I feel there are some things we need to further address in order to pull this off. Trusting a coach has the implication that sometimes you may not understand what He is doing… his decisions on when to play you… how to use you… when to correct you… etc.

I have probably shared in these weekly “game plans” the following example on at least one occasion, maybe more… (after all in just a few weeks CoachBurden.com turns 20 years old.) In my office I have a photo of me in a huddle when I was coaching high school basketball; in it I can point out some players that to this day I still have an incredible relationship with… to the point I get messages like, “Coach, I love you and miss you.” Also in the picture is at least one young man that despised me as a coach. The other important information pertaining to the photo, I am very clearly angry at one or more of my players… and the one it seems directed at happens to be one that has sent me messages about missing me??????????

Why would some love me and yet others hate me? It really boiled down, not to circumstances, but to character! The ones that loved me were convinced I was on their side… even when I was frustrated or making a decision they didn’t understand. They could “trust the process” because they knew I would only make a decision based upon what I thought was good for them… The one(s) that hated me simply did not trust my character… that I was on their side, and thus their approval always rested on if the circumstances were what they wanted and envisioned.

Multiple times this week I have been in counseling/teaching settings where I had to remind people that we should not allow circumstances to be how we judge if God is on our side. He sees things in a different way than we do. And if we only believe God loves us when things are going our way, we are doomed to doubt when life is hard.

God is good! God is love! My personal circumstances do not determine those truths!

If God does or allows something I don’t understand, I rest in His goodness and love, even if I don’t like the current circumstances. I have often taught the following truth: God and life are not synonyms! I add to that: Circumstances and character are not synonyms!

As Jesus was facing his arrest and crucifixion, He knew the apostles would encounter circumstances they would not understand… circumstances that would make them feel God had left them (which in a physical since He did.) And Jesus shared these words on how to handle even difficult times:

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in (trust) God, believe (trust) also in Me.” (John 14:1)

 

As He told them to trust, even in the dark times coming, He went on to remind them: “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6)

 

So we may boldly say, “The Lord is my Helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?” (Hebrews 13:6)

November 29, 2021 - Trust the Coach, Not the Scoreboard!

Have you ever heard a coach say, “Trust the process!”? Especially during rebuilding times for teams there is a need to establish a foundation… and that means sometimes that the scoreboard/winning is not the objective. There is the old adage that sometimes you have to “be willing to lose the battle in order to win the war.” 

In other words, building a team or a program requires patience and trust… trust that the coach has a plan and a purpose…

I think of times of requiring a certain number of passes on offense to emphasize teamwork, in spite of maybe there being an open shot earlier in the set… I think of benching the starters in order to emphasize a need for energy… I think of benching a player for a whole game to teach consequences for actions… and the list goes on. The problem is that players and/or fans don’t always stop to consider the end goal of the coach… just the immediate results.

Yesterday as our pastor was teaching in the book of Psalms, he reminded me of these truths in our every day lives. We tend to look for immediate results (rescue) in our circumstances and when we don’t get them, we get angry and discouraged. The problem is that in doing so, we forget that God has a purpose and a plan, where He has stated He will use the circumstances for our eventual good… we just don’t like waiting. God wants to not just be viewed as our rescuer, but also as our refuge!

Pastor Matt reminded us to trust / hope in the Coach because:

“God is good! God is faithful! God can be trusted!”

If you focus on Him instead of your circumstances, then you allow God to be “not just the God of your destination, He is the God of your journey.” (Matt Brooks)

Why are you cast down, O my soul?

And why are you disquieted within me?

Hope in God; For I shall praise Him,

The help of my countenance

And my God

(Psalm 42:11)

Trust the Coach, not the scoreboard!

November 22, 2021 - It's About the Team Not the Scoreboard

I’ve watched quite a few basketball games recently, and one thing that has really stuck out to me, (maybe because I am working some much with our church life groups), is the demeanor of the players. With some of the teams you can see that they love being on the court together… others not so much. 

In one recent game my wife looked at me and asked why it appeared that the team that lost seemed happier than the team that won? I thought it was quite interesting that a team showed that the joy is in the playing of the game together… the journey… not just in what a scoreboard says. I also had noticed that throughout the game, the team that lost was more encouraging to one another… more apt to help one another off the floor… etc.

You may be thinking, yeah but they lost… and if we judge success by the scoreboard that is true. But the game, like life, is not always going to go our way. Sometimes we play poorly… or are weak… or the ball just doesn’t bounce the right way… or simply the other team is more talented.

What if we viewed our life as believers (being on God’s team) together in this way? What if we just simply bought into the idea that winning or losing, we are going to enjoy “the game” together?

One thing I often told my teams is that the scoreboard turns off very quickly after a game… therefore build things that last beyond the timer!

I often bring up the passage in Hebrews 10:24-25 that tells us to be with the team… to “not forsake the assembling of ourselves together…” Yet we are told not just to “take the court together” and not just to play our part… BUT to do the things that losing team was doing the other night… “considering one another in order to stir up love and good works… exhorting one another.”

I know I have written about this topic recently, BUT want to remind you that this concept involves INTENTIONALITY… “considering” your teammates. Make a plan now to encourage someone and lift him/her up!

It’s about the team, not the scoreboard!

November 15, 2021 - Building Your Program

I was just reading an article about Texas A&M football coach, Jimbo Fisher; it is dealing with the speculation that LSU is trying to lure him away to coach in Baton Rouge… (and would probably offer many things to do so)… to which Jimbo has replied that if he were to leave, “you ought to say that’s the dumbest human being…” He was basing that answer on the fact that his current school has built one of the top recruiting classes in the nation coming in next year (and could even end up with the top class.) In other words, he looked at the program he is building… to potential rewards of the future… and realized he needs to honor his contract and stay put… and not miss the rewards! 

It reminded me of a song that I wrote the lyrics for many years ago… one that I recently came across and hung on my office wall… one that, to be very honest, made some folks uncomfortable. It was written from the perspective of if Satan were talking to a child of God… it is called “Crawl.”

I know that He’s your Father, and wants the best for you

But for some strange and unknown reason, you keep listening to me too

I know how to intrigue you, and what you will not flee

And though you do not have to, you keep crawling back to me

So, Crawl, Yes, Crawl

I say Fall, Yes, Fall

Don’t listen to your Master, and Crawl

I’m roaming all about, seeking who I’ll devour

I’ll take away your peace, through the final hour

I might have lost you in the end, but until that time I’ll see

You falling to enticements, as you come crawling back to me

So, Crawl (even though you have wings)

Yes, Crawl (though you could soar with ease)

I say Fall (even though the Spirit grieves)

Yes, Fall (leave behind your joy and peace)

Don’t listen to your master, and Crawl

The story and the song take my mind to 1 Corinthians 3

9 For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building. 10 According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. 11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. 14 If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.

If you have trusted Jesus as your Savior, you are saved… that is the foundational hope/truth of the Christian. You came to Him with empty hands and accepted what He offered you. But once that foundation is laid, we should build upon it.. with the assurance of looking ahead to future rewards.

Salvation is a result of His work… which this passage reminds us, will forever endure!

Rewards are the result of our work… which this passage reminds us, are subject to testing!

Be a wise builder of a Godly program in your life…

November 8, 2022 - Restoration vs Retaliation

We have been marching through our rules/expectations we set for our MAD Hoops outreach… and as a reminder, these are set to Make A Difference on and off the court! Last week I shared the idea of being a “one another team” that seeks to edify/build up instead of tearing down.

BUT how do we handle “intentional fouls”? What do we do when the other person is intentional in his outburst… physically or verbally? This is a hard one… I have shared in the past that I grew up with, and still wrestle with, and “I don’t get mad, I get ahead” mentality. Yet, everything we have been sharing is that our MADness should not about anger, but about Making A Difference…

Here is the last rule we post at our outreach:

·         Player that commits an intentional foul (physically or verbally) will be asked to leave the gym… staff will determine this and then escort the player out…

At this point of the rule, we all are probably ok with it… after all there is the good of the whole at stake. We can’t allow one out of control player to mess it up for everyone… BUT doesn’t that player matter? Therefore, here is the rest of the rule/expectation:

·         …pray with player, and invite the player to return to the next MAD Hoops session.

Our goal is to Make A Difference in one another’s lives! The reality is that we all blow it sometimes and commit “intentional fouls” (often times to those we are closest to)… so we need to always be reminded of our goal…

Galatians 6:1 Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted.

Restoration is more important than retaliation… Let’s Go MAD and love on some folks this week!

Here is the “Player’s Prayer” we have at the end of our rules/expectations… hope it is a reflection of your heart as well:

Player’s Prayer: Lord, as I lace them up today, I pray that you will be honored through my attitude and actions. I pray that others will see a difference in me. I commit that no one will work harder than I do, because you deserve my best in all I do. I commit that I will respect others – teammates, coaches, opponents. Lord, help me Go MAD (Make A Difference) on and off the court! In Jesus’ name I play and pray, Amen!

November 1, 2021 - A One-Another-Team (What does that sound like?)

The past few weeks we have been working our way through the culture-changing rules/expectations we set for our MAD Hoops outreach… or more accurately the culture-changing rules/expectations set out in Scripture for a MAD (Make A Difference) life… 

This week’s expectation of “players”:

·         Player is expected to play under control… not just physically but also emotionally; it is expected that players try to control their tongues by avoiding the use of profane language… There is a zero-tolerance policy for the use of God’s name is vain!

-          Ephesians 4:29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.

When I share this point I want to emphasize that in Scripture I have found that whenever we see something God says is best to avoid, He replaces it with what is best… the emphasis here is not what we don’t say, but more on what the verse tells us to say… things that edify… things that “impart grace to the hearers.”

So, what does it mean to “edify”? The definition of the Greek word means to build up… and metaphorically it means: the act of one who promotes another's growth in Christian wisdom, piety, happiness, holiness…

What about imparting grace? This is the idea of being a holy influence… and bringing joy and pleasure to the other…

When you listen to the soundtrack of your life, both on and off the court, are you one that tears down or one that builds up? Are you trying to make things better for your “teammates” or just trying to make things better for yourself?

I’m just telling you that in our MAD Hoops world, it has been amazing to see men on the court that weren’t complaining and pointing fingers, but instead encouraging one another… we are intended, by God, to be a one-another-team!

October 25, 2021 - The Hardest Job On The Court/Field

Over the past couple of weeks, I have been keying on the MAD Hoops rules we utilize in our outreach… these rules are written for a couple of desired outcomes: character/attitude of players, and better enjoyment of the games… 

These rules center on the idea of reminding a player who he is AND who he is not. So let’s lead into this week’s rule with a scenario from my life… I have always looked at ways to make a little extra to help out the family (in the ministry world this is called “tent making”; based upon how the Apostle Paul made tents as his side gig for income.)

One of the seemingly logical avenues of revenue for me would be reffing games… yet I remember the first time I tried that as an 8th grader… my coach asked me and my friend Chris to call a 6th grade game… and I still remember looking at a dad in the stands that was screaming at me and asking him if he wanted the whistle… I knew then that my temperament and reffing were a good match.

Reffing is one of the hardest jobs in the word… requiring fast judgement, while under great scrutiny. Often from the opening tip… kick… pitch… people are screaming at refs; in spite of the fact that refs are generally pretty good… but he statistics of how often they are right are truly staggering… even with modern rules for challenges and replays they are usually right even on close calls. (So much so that many think challenges should be done away with because they generally don’t change a call and just slow down the games.)

One of my biggest pet peeves is watching players forget who they are and decide they are referee supervisors. Therefore as a coach I had a “No Palms Rule” where I benched a player whenever he showed his palms to a ref to question a call… this week’s rule: Player is not a referee… (And neither is a fan!)

·         Player is not a referee… there is no need for you to point out someone else’s travel, double dribble, etc… but own up to your mistakes…

-          Proverbs 28:13 He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.

We would be amazed at how different life would be is we stopped scrutinizing everyone else’s calls n life and just “played the game” - remember “Players Play!”

(Note: this is not to suggest that heathy accountability is not needed… I heard that explained at a recent conference as “protective love”… not intended to penalize like a referee!)

October 18, 2021 - "You've gotta make that shot!"

Have you ever been sitting in the stands at a game and overheard (or been the culprit) someone berating the players for messing up? I “love” it when the brilliant fan, or coach for that matter, states the obvious such as, “What are you doing, you’ve got to make that shot!” Or after a turnover, “Watch what you are doing you threw that pass away!” As if the player didn’t already know that… 

I have shared many times my philosophy I settled on for coaching and life… Players Play! Coaches Coach! Refs Ref! Fans Cheer! And last week I started sharing some of our culture-changing rules of our MAD Hoops outreach… these are Biblical principles applied to the basketball court… and hopefully beyond to the court of life.

This week I’ll share another one:

Player Is Not A Coach… there is no need to point out when someone else makes a dumb play (that player already realizes it)… but it goes a long way to admit when you make a bad pass or dumb play!

-          Matthew 7:3 And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?

I’ll take it a step further and state this is a good rule for “coaches” as well. This is not to eliminate accountability, but when someone has messed up, they are typically fully aware… so even the job of a coach is to give instruction for moving forward… the time for a “coach’ to key on the negative is when the “player” is unaware of what was done wrong. I’ve heard coaches spend entire timeouts harping on what was done wrong instead of giving clear direction of what to do right.

Galatians 6:1 says, “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any TRESPASS, you who are spiritual RESTORE such a one in a spirit of gentleness…”

TRESSPASS: a lapse or deviation from truth and uprightness…. a “TURNOVER” or “MISSED SHOT”

RESTORE: to strengthen, perfect, make complete, make one what he ought to be… TRUE “COACHING”

Can you imagine how much more pleasurable the game/life would be if we committed to building each other up instead of tearing each other down?

October 11, 2021 - Team Culture: Behavior a Result of Expectations

As I sit in a hotel room this morning, I am reflecting a bit on the journey of utilizing sports in ministry… (that is what I am teaching on at a conference.) I am getting notes together but also looking back at the InBounds Ministries story. We have seen opportunities worldwide to present The Substitute Gospel message… and to share God’s Playbook! 

Yet one of my favorite stories to think back upon is the MAD Hoops story; this outreach truly has been a culture changer… on and off the court… stateside and abroad. When we determined we could go MAD (Make A Difference) in men’s lives through pickup basketball, I started thinking through all the years I had spent on playground courts… YMCAs… school yards… driveways… etc. I thought about not only the fun and excitement, but also the very normal outbursts of tempers/arguments/fights… (And since the inception of InBounds, I have pointed out that sports are simply “life put in a microwave”… getting all the highs and lows… the fair and unfair… just in the condensed time of a game.)

I could spend a lot of time just sharing stories here but wanted to get to the points that jumped out at me for this week’s devotion (And possibly will spend the next few weeks sharing from the “written rules” of the MAD Hoops story.) I mentioned the idea of being a “culture changer.” Culture is something that is built upon typical behavior that is directed by expectations. Therefore, I started piecing together ideas/rules (from personal experience and years as a coach/AD) for MAD Hoops that were Biblically based, in order to re-direct expectations on the basketball court, and then hopefully in life off of the court. What does The Playbook have to say about the pickup basketball culture?

Last night I pulled up an article on “the unwritten rules” of pickup basketball. (Found on basketballword.com) “Unwritten rules” is simple way of saying “expectations/culture”; no matter what is written down, how do people act and react… Here is a quote: “In pick up, basketball foul calls are the responsibility of either the defense to call the fouls when they foul a player, or the offense calls their own foul. Many times, it’s offense calling the foul and that’s where most of the arguments stem from.”

I am in full agreement with that assessment. Therefore, I established the first couple of rules of MAD Hoops (again designed to be not just court lessons, but life lessons):

·         Player that commits the foul calls the foul… players are encouraged to own up to the things they have done wrong! Defense, call it if you hack someone! Offense, call it if you charge or clear out illegally!

James 5:16 Confess your trespasses to one another…

·         Player that has been fouled should play through the contact… do your job without expecting to be bailed out by a call!

Philippians 2:14 Do all things without complaining and disputing

We witnessed a rec center culture change… we watched a church basketball league change… we watched overseas culture change… as a result of new clearly defined expectations of taking personal responsibility in what one does wrong, and in not allowing what someone else does wrong to keep one from doing right…

Can you imagine with me, off the court, if the team (the church) spent more time “playing through the contact” and confessing where we have wronged others?

Let’s Go MAD together!

PUT ON YOUR RALLY HAT

 Hello Team, hope this email finds you doing well as we prepare for cooler temps... holidays... baseball playoffs... football games... and yes the start of hoops season...

InBounds is primed for a busy fall/winter... including a trip I am taking at the beginning of this next week to coach at the Free Grace Alliance International Conference in the Houston area on using sports in our evangelistic/discipleship mission...

Yet to be fully transparent, with the aftermath of dealing with a pandemic and other issues for the ministry, we are in GREAT need of your help to finish out this year and start strong in 2022... (Financially speaking we are "way behind on the scoreboard")

Typically we, and other ministries, will start reminding folks of what we do as the year winds down in hopes of end-of-year gifts... this year, due to our current status, I am not waiting until the "2 minute warning" but instead trying to "go hard through the whole 4th quarter"...

The end of 2021 will mark 15 years of our support-based mission raising funds...

The end of 2021 will mark 20 years of weekly devotions found at CoachBurden.com (that is over 1000 consecutive)

The end of 2021 will mark 25 years of using a sports platform for our ministry endeavors in local, national, and international missions...

What I hope and pray is that 2021 doesn't mark the end of these endeavors... we need your help! - would you consider a sacrificial 1-time or recurring gift to the ministry?

​

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October 4, 2021 - Temper Over Tempo

The goal of any team’s gameplan is going to be to set the tone for the game according to the team’s tempo and style… and adversely, to get the other team out of their comfort zone. This is one of the reasons why teams love to play at home with not only the familiarity of the court/field, but also the advantage of a fan base that helps build energy at the right times. There is a common discussion at tournament times about teams playing for the home court advantage… BUT the reality is that it can only happen if a team can successfully play on the road as well… since the advantage is gained by having the best record in all games.

With the reality that the home court is typically the easier place to play, can you imagine if an athletic director made scheduling calls and refused to play away games? That may work if you are the hottest ticket around and people are clamoring to play against you but normally not an option. (I remember during one of my stints as an AD when I was instructed to schedule games WAY past the typical time, and without a home field for the team… and had to schedule all away games… that was fairly easy to do.)

The church is often guilty of only wanting to schedule “home games.” Let’s face it, Sundays are an easy time to set the tempo how we want… (and yes that includes music style, dress style, etc.)… we set a tone we hope will attract the “visiting team.”

Please don’t hear me wrong; I believe it is important to take advantage of a home court advantage and set a tone for the way we want to “play the game”… but I am not sure we can be attractive enough to be put on visitors’ schedules apart from spending some time at “away games.”

In John 17 we read of the real “Lord’s prayer”; the time when Jesus is spilling His heart to the Father. What is cool is that He pray for His apostles and their place in the world… while desiring them to not be of the world. He is recognizing they will be “playing on the road”… especially since the “home court” churches were yet to be established. He also prays for us! Did you know Jesus prayed for you? If you are a believer you fall under the banner of verse 20 where Jesus says, “I do not pray for these alone (the Apostles), but also for those who will believe in me through their word…”

What is interesting is that Jesus doesn’t talk a lot about their “playing style”, but more about their mindset… He wanted them to not be separated by their location or their style, but by their values and how they think. 17 "Sanctify them by Your truth, Your Word is truth.”

Jesus was more worried about temper than tempo…

Paul echoes these thoughts by reminding us in Romans 12:2 that we are to be “transformed by the renewing of our minds.”  

John Wooden said that we can be “quick but not hurry.” In other words even if the tempo of the game changes, our temperament shouldn’t.

The opposition will try to impose its will on us… get us playing their style… and it is easy to fall into the trap. That is why Romans 12:9 reminds us to “cling to what is good.”

Playing the game of life with the right temperament, in spite of whatever tempo is set, is based upon transformed minds that have been sanctified by God’s truth. The world can speed us up or slow us down in tempo… but shouldn’t alter our mindset.

September 27, 2021 - What gets your attention?

“What gets our attention gets our affection.” Matt Brooks, LifePoint Church 

That phrase was shared yesterday during a sermon, and I immediately thought of how it relates to basketball… (I know that is strange but after close to 20 years of doing these weekly devotions, my mind seems to always go to athletic analogies…) It was a reminder that we can see someone’s motivation based upon where their attention is directed.

I actually had many stories from the past pop to mind, too many to actually share… but I will give a good example of the thoughts that were triggered… I thought of guys that I played ball with in the past, that obviously were more attentive to their individual success and stat lines than the team’s success; and the team’s success was only a way to bolster their individual reputations. These were guys that were truly ok with the team losing as long as they looked good. These were guys that rushed to the scorebook following games to confirm that their stats matched what they were keeping up with in their heads. (It is not surprising if a guy that is not a big scorer is aware that he only scored one or two buckets in a game, but a bit unsettling when a volume scorer has kept up with making 10 or 15 shots…)

These were guys that forgot “there is no ‘I’ in team”… and love the joke but ‘there is an ‘I’ in “win”!

Don’t get me wrong, we need high-volume scorers… we need individuals to do their jobs (what they are good at)… so the “I” doing his job does matter… BUT the motivation is the issue…

Romans 12 tells us to play our individual role on the team… it begins a long section of Romans that tells how to do that. Verses 3-8 remind us that we each have unique abilities and positions on the team. Then verse 9 begins with: “Let love be without hypocrisy...”

I talked to my dear friend Grant Hawley, who is my go-to guy for handling the original languages of Scripture, and he explained that the phrase is really just 2 words in the Greek… something along the lines of Love Genuinely or Authentically… he went on to say that it is called a Pendant Nominative in the Greek language and serves as somewhat of a heading to the section to follow… which happens to go all of the way into chapter 15 telling us how to be genuine in our love… how we can be motivate by a team-first mentality instead of a me-first mentality. (What do I bring to the team… not what does the team bring to me.)

Obviously, my goal here is not just centered on sports teams… but on the church! And by that I do not mean just the Sunday morning gathering, but the life-team you belong to… what are you bringing to the team? How are you playing your position? Do you focus on loving others, or is there a hypocritical/selfish motivation to what you do?

Let’s focus on the team!!!

September 20, 2021 - Own Your Space (Part 2)

I was reminded yesterday of many years ago when I was sitting in on an open gym run for some high school players (and probably wrote about it in these weekly postings)… my good friend and GREAT coach (Coach Mike Gurley) was overseeing the scrimmage and showed me why he has been so successful over the years. During the scrimmage, he was not teaching plays or running drills, he was simply encouraging and clearly communicating… 

By “clearly communicating” I am not referring to the x’s and o’s of where guys should be cutting or setting a pick or making a pass… those things would come later when he was actually conducting practices… but he was clearly defining players’ roles and making sure they knew he was on their side!

The particular play that popped into my mind was of a young man that was very gifted with speed and power; he had blown by his defender and hit a lay-up, to which Coach G exclaimed his pleasure and his “vision” for this young man. He (the coach) loudly shared his approval of the shot, and then reminded the player that he was to only shoot shots like that because he wasn’t good shooting from outside. That sounds harsh but it was the truth of how the young man would best benefit the team. (And following the reminder of the player’s role, Coach yelled, “You know I love ya!”

The reality is that great teams are made up of players that understand and execute their roles. Defining roles motivates players to “own their roles” and take more responsibility… and in the event they don’t like their roles, to have a clear picture of that they need to do to change that; and a clear picture of how the team is to work together. Clarity breeds unity!

Romans 12:6a says this, “Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them…” I love a line from how Eugene Peterson worded it in The Message: “let’s just go ahead and be what we were made to be, without enviously or pridefully comparing ourselves with each other, or trying to be something we aren’t.”

My pastor said it this way yesterday when teaching from Romans 12: “Find your lane” He went on to then encourage us to get moving in those “lanes.”

Each of us should be diligent to know our gifting(s) and how we are designed to benefit the team! In my time of coaching, I often talked about not just taking up space but “owning your space” (both offensively and defensively.) [I wrote about this concept a couple years ago: I often tell players to “own their space.” I explain that the game is about “owning real estate”; beating the opponent to the spot he wants when playing “D”… or getting to the spot you want when on offense. June 2019]

So, this week’s bottom line is a reminder to OWN YOUR SPACE!

September 13, 2021 - Are You Willing To Lose Your Cookies

Over my years of coaching, I loved having those players that were “game changers”… difference-makers… players that would infuse energy when needed… players that always brought maximum effort and intensity. These were not always the most athletic or the most skilled… but were probably leading the team in deflections and diving on the floor to recover loose balls. These were truly the players where the team was the priority. (I’m picturing many, many years ago when John Sperling would run out the end doors of the Faith Heritage Christian School gym to puke, and then right back onto the floor to finish his conditioning sprints… sacrificing personal comfort for the good of the team!) 

In our ministry I often use the phrase “go MAD” to encourage “players” to Make A Difference… when challenging youth I often remind them to be “thermostats” instead of “thermometers”… bottom line is that we are to not be sitting idly by…

A very common passage I share from has a command to “consider one another” (fix our eyes upon one another… the team) "in order to [paroxusmos]” (Greek word - which is translated in various ways in different translations; some of these are: stir up, stimulate, motivate, spur, provoke…) “love and good works.” (Hebrews 10:24)

We are charged to be very intentional in serving the team… are you willing to “run out the end doors of the gym and lose your cookies” for the sake of the good of the team? Our church experience is not intended to be just about what the church can do for us… but more about what we can do for the church!

September 6, 2021 - In The Race For Lost Souls

As I sent some time today preparing for a devotion I get to share tomorrow at an FCA meeting… I was reminded of a very basic truth that needs to challenge us… I’ll get to that shortly… 

I love that I get to utilize the sports platform to proclaim God’s truth! Tomorrow it is an FCA meeting… in a few weeks I get to share on Sports Missions at the Free Grace Alliance International Conference… I weekly train some young men in hoops, while mixing in devotions… I get to share these weekly devotions from a sports platform… etc. I also love the Scriptures have so many athletic references!

As I started my notes for tomorrow, I found myself in a familiar passage, 1 Corinthians 9 where Paul talks of “winning” people to the Lord… in fact he shares that his entire approach to life is that he might “by all means save some… all for the sake of the Gospel.” (vss. 22-23)

I plan tomorrow morning to use this passage as the backdrop of my testimony as to why and how we can use sports “for the Gospel’s sake...” Yet, then in my studies, while reading a verse that I have taught many-many times, is an incredible challenge!

Before I share this challenge, let me ask you… has there been a time where you accepted Christ as your Substitute… where you put your trust (faith) in His finished work on your behalf? Christ’s death and resurrection not only paid the price for your sin, but also gave you eternal life… this life began when you believed in Him… and it granted you a place in God’s family… on His team… in His race! (See Ephesians 2:19)

And in 1 Corinthians 9:24 Paul asks a very simple question: “Do you not know that those in a race all run…” He then goes on to challenge us on the fact that we should be committed to win… But win what? 

In this passage, Paul has already expressed clearly the goal… the mission… win people! Live for the Gospel’s sake!

If you are a believer and reading this, YOU ARE IN THE RACE FOR LOST SOULS… how are you running? Is the Gospel a priority in your life? Note: I didn’t ask if you are thankful for the Gospel… I asked if it is a priority… where you are actively trying to win people?

August 30, 2021 - Not Out of Timeouts

“With the seconds ticking away, Webber was lost and knew he was about to be trapped in the corner. He needed help, and he knew it. But no sweat, there were still 11 seconds remaining. Plenty of time. So, he called a timeout.

One problem: Michigan was out of timeouts.”

(ESPN)

This was in an article about the infamous timeout call that Chris Webber made, with his team trailing by two points… a time when the pressure mounted and Webber went to his instinct of getting to the huddle to find instruction, comfort, etc. The problem is that in sports you are not allowed unlimited timeouts!

According to an article on Wikipedia…  “In sports, a time-out or timeout is a halt in the play. This allows the coaches of either team to communicate with the team, e.g., to determine strategy or inspire morale, as well as to stop the game clock.”

All of that intro to remind us of what a GREAT TOOL a timeout is… an awesome opportunity to hear from the coach when we need rest… when we need encouragement… when we need a game plan… or even just to get comfort when things aren’t going our way.

Right now, life is REALLY HARD for many. Our church is finishing up a week-long prayer vigil where “teammates” committed to 1-hour slots of prayer… and honestly there is just a whole lot of pressure where many feel “trapped” and “need help.”

So, a simple reminder today… “The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth.” (Psalm 145)

CALL A TIMEOUT… WE ARE NEVER OUT OF TIMEOUTS!

August 23, 2021 - Quickly From Mountain Tops To Valleys

In the past I have written about athletes’ testimonies of how they felt jubilation upon winning, only to followed at quickly by depression… wondering about if the medals/trophies are all there is??? 

Recently there has been much talk of the mental state of athletes, with many admitting to their mental health struggles. We have seen Olympic champions bowing out of competition… tennis champions withdrawing from tournaments… etc.

Michael Phelps has won a record 23 gold medals in the Olympics, yet has shared that following the 2012 Olympics he became very depressed… to the point of being suicidal.

These are examples of athletes that have risen to the top… only to find themselves unfulfilled. They are not alone… they are facing questions that have plagued mankind… question of the meaning and purpose of life. Think about it, these athletes have literally had to give their lives to arrive at the podium… only to either retire or get back to the grind.

Solomon had similar observations about life. In fact, he stated in Ecclesiastes 2:22-23: For what has man for all his labor, and for the striving of his heart with which he has toiled under the sun? For all his days are sorrowful, and his work burdensome; even in the night his heart takes no rest. This is also vanity.

In the passage Solomon was realizing that in an of itself, all the hard work and accomplishments of his life would eventually be left to someone who had not put in the work… it seemed very hollow… to be “vanity.” (And that word has the idea of being worthless or futile… and the idea of being a vapor…)

For time’s sake let me get to his conclusions… 24 Nothing is better for a man than that he should eat and drink, and that his soul should enjoy good in his labor.

He is saying that if a man is going to work hard, then he should enjoy the fruits of his labor… I believe he is talking about a great sense of satisfaction and accomplishment… Yet, he gives another piece to this observation, that it is only truly lasting and meaningful when there is recognition of the source…

24b This also, I saw, was from the hand of God.

Throughout the book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon (the wisest man to live) concludes over and over again that life only has meaning when our focus/motivation is God! Here is a Players’ Prayer I penned years ago:

Lord, as I lace them up today, I pray that you will be honored through my attitude and actions. I pray that others will see a difference in me. I commit that no one will work harder than I do, because You deserve my best in all I do. I commit that I will respect others --- teammates, coaches, referees, opponents. Lord, be glorified! In Jesus’ name I play and pray, Amen!

August 16, 2021 - Dealing With Pressure

Over the many decades I have been a basketball player… coach… trainer… fan, I have witnessed many different styles and philosophies of play; and of course, over the many decades I have been a believer… teacher… missionary… minister, I have witnessed different styles and philosophies of living. 

The thing that came to mind for this week’s devo is the style/philosophy in which we face adversity. Many “players” attempt to deal with pressure by avoiding it… yet, I have always had a mentality that the best way to handle pressure is to attack it.

A common approach when I was younger was to always try to get into the “belly” of the defense… or the idea of taking the ball right at a shot blocker…

I remember playing in a 4v4 tourney years ago and facing a very stacked team with a 7-footer in the middle. The guy had played division 1 college ball and was home in the off-season from his overseas pro gig… I, on the other hand, was already greatly out of playing shape (unless looking like you have a basketball under your shirt is being in shape…) Basically, we had a group of guys that got into this tourney to simply have some fun and we ran into a team of guys that were young, athletic, and still competing at a very high level. I decided to set the tone for our team; knowing we were greatly outmanned, I decided the best approach for us was to simply “attack” …

I will tell you that we surprised them greatly and were tied with them at half… eventually dropping the game 114-100 (I think was the score.) How did I set the tone to “attack”? On my first touch, I took the ball down the baseline and went up to throw down a dunk on the 7-footer; he proceeded to throw my attempt into the seat (I still think he fouled me; and in all honesty, even if he wouldn’t have, I couldn’t dunk anymore at that point of my playing days), BUT I had let my team know we were not going to try to avoid adversity, but instead face it head on!

When I think about my playing days, I truly was a MUCH BETTER shooter when under pressure. In fact, some guys that played against me regularly would tell their teammates to lay off of me outside… basically the more the defender got into my space, the more focused I would become, resulting in better mechanics. When the game was on the line, I became a dynamite free throw shooter, as I tended to mentally lock in better.

Basically, I am reminiscing about the “good ole days” because I see how so many people, including Bible teachers, act as thought the goal of the Christian life is comfort and avoiding pressure. I’m just not sure what Bible folks are reading, as I see that much of the ink used to write it was concerning how we face struggles, not how we avoid them. Therefore, even our prayer lives revolve around being rescued more than around how we can “get into the belly” of the pressure.

Yesterday at church I was reminded of Paul and Silas in jail, when the earthquake jarred open the cells and broke their chains… they determined they were not freed to run from, but freed to run to making a difference in people’s lives…

Romans 12 gives us a really cool picture of what our “team philosophy” should be… and in verse 12 it even tells us how to face pressure: “…persevering in tribulation…” (NASB2020)

That word “persevering” has the idea of remaining and enduring… doesn’t sound like the goal is remove it but to use it…

Pressure is simply opportunities to Go MAD (Make A Difference)!

August 9, 2021 - Leaders Learn (Title somewhat stolen from my dear friend Coach Todd James)

Today brought numerous reminders of the same basic truth that I want to share for this week… I was speaking at a teacher orientation for a Christian school on how a Biblical Worldview should change the campus culture… I have spoken on this before but loved digging further into some research 

In the classroom we wonder how the kids are receiving instruction…; In the workplace we discuss moral… if it is a good place to work…; and we could go on asking questions of any environment we find ourselves in… which in essence is asking if it is a good culture.

In the sports world we often hear about team culture… about what sets apart a program for excellence (or the adverse of where a program went wrong.) I always am interested in how the players view the coach…

There are many things we could jump into this week from these thoughts, but the main thing that has jumped out today (in things I have read… in discussions I have had with friends about places they are serving…, etc.) involves a challenge to leaders… BE LEARNERS!

My good friend Todd James sends out devotions and updates at different times in the week… he is a missionary that serves in, and utilizes a basketball platform in, Ireland… and he, like me, loves Coach Wooden. So, each week I get reminded through his messages of Wooden’s wisdom… and Wooden said, “When you're done learning you're done!” (And I think anyone would agree that he was an expert on developing a winning culture.)

As I talked to a friend a few minutes ago, I was sharing that a strong leader has to be honest about himself… learning what God says about him… and learning from what others see in him (things that may be a personal blind spot.)

As I talked to the staff at the Christian school today, I reminded them that even our discipline should be based upon learning about the student… the why is often more important than the what… in order discipline for growth… for reaching desired outcomes.

The other area I have been researching heavily the last few days involves our deep need for God and for others… which REQUIRES a deep need to learn more from the Word, and from taking an intentional interest in others. To steal Coach James’s headline today: LEADERS ARE LEARNERS!

Proverbs 12: 1 Whoever loves instruction/discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates correction is stupid.

August 2, 2021 - Beaten Black and Blue

My mind has been heavy on the idea of “training” today… as I had a 10+ hour drive, I had ample time to ponder this week’s devotion and many other things within our ministry. I was drawn back to the camp I did a couple of weeks ago (and the devotion I shared) that dealt with hard work and preparation (execution of the plans.) “Recruiting” (evangelism) and “Training” (discipleship) continue to be the pillars of what we do!

Yet in some ways, they seem opposed to one another… one is absolutely free, not the result of work on our part… the other is costly, hard, and requires discipline. I know that Jesus said His “yoke is easy” and that His “burden is light.” So how could I say that discipleship is hard?

First of all, understand that in Matthew 11, when Jesus made the easy/light statement, He was dealing with the incredible weight the pharisees had laid upon the people for them to be close to, or pleasing, God. (There were hundreds of laws to obey just to try to get right with God.) Jesus in turn said that in order to be “yoked”/attached to Him and pleasing to the Father, it would be “easy” and that the load would be “light.” Jesus was, I believe giving a glimpse of salvation that is “by grace through faith” and also referring to the fact that pleasing God didn’t require hundreds of laws, but in Jesus’s own words He would share a little later just “love God… love people.” (Matthew 22)

But what about the hard stuff? I thought about multiple passages that came to mind on the idea of training for maturity… throughout the New Testament we see references to this training process…

Hebrews 12:1 telling us to “lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us”

1 Corinthians 9:25 says that one that “competes… is temperate in all things” (exercises self-control)

2 Timothy 3:16-17 tells the value of the Scriptures in “training” and the goal of being “complete” (mature) and “equipped (furnished) for every good work”

Evangelism/Salvation (being on the team) is free and totally dependent upon placing one’s faith in the work of Jesus… Discipleship is the training process of growing and maturing to be used by God.

One other verse that jumped out at me was 1 Corinthians 9:27: But I discipline my body, and bring it into subjection…

Paul here uses an interesting choice of words… he is making a boxing reference in the passage and the word “discipline” has the idea in Greek of beating the body black and blue (picture the boxer having the trainer hitting him in the stomach between each sit-up) so that he is taking his body/life and “bringing it into subjection” which literally means making it a slave… THIS IS HOW PAUL DESCRIBES THE DISCIPLESHIP PROCESS... THAT IS MOTIVATED BY THE DESIRE TO HAVE NOTHING STAND IN THE WAY OF BEING ABLE TO SHARE THE GOSPEL WITH OTHERS!

July 26, 2021 - "I Got To Tell Him He Won!"

I just finished up a week of leadership/hoops training with a group of high-school-aged girls; during it I went through John Wooden’s Pyramid of Success (Building Blocks for a Better Life), which I talk about… write about… think about… often. I love Coach Wooden’s perspectives on life/team… 

During the week, I had the girls help run a kids’ hoops clinic with me… to learn how to implement our “mission” into the teaching of the game. One young man that participated showed to be a really good athlete/player for his age. (Not to mention the HS girls thought we was “so cute”!) The boy’s name is Crocker, and I immediately could see that he not only loves to play, but is used to being successful, based upon his solid motor skills and understanding of the game. During one of the days a friend stopped in, that knows Crocker and his family, and told me that Crocker is even a better baseball player. Then Crocker’s mom mentioned that he had a swim meet coming up… let’s just say the boy is a good, old-fashioned, all-around athlete.

I tell you all of this due to a post I just read this morning from Crocker’s mom. Over the weekend he competed in a state swim meet… and I was anxious to see her post to see how this little “stud” athlete did. The momma started by sharing about Crocker’s sister and her great commitment to the sport/team… then she moved on to Crocker with these words, “Crocker has had a tough swim season and is having to learn a lot of lessons, and to learn to cope with disappointment and loss. No medals at all this year.”

Losing is hard… especially when you are used to being one of the better/more talented players. For a young guy, or an old one, it is truly a lesson of humility and growth. Yet, something I have taught (that I adapted a bit from Coach Wooden’s philosophies) is that sports not only build character, but in the words of Wooden, they reveal character. Crocker’s momma is right, these are times of “lessons”, but also she got to see a revelation…

Momma went on to say, “Crocker comes home so excited for his friend who showed out big time in the last lap of a race. The very friend, who he could have spent all summer jealous of. But, he was so proud of him! Then his (the friend’s) mom sends me the picture of him (Crocker) helping him out of the water. Crocker’s words to me were ‘Mom, I got to tell him he won!’ That right there, that is why. That is why I am more proud of him this weekend than I think I could ever be if he had won that race himself. I want my kids to love others more than they love themselves. And I think he learned how rewarding that can be.”

Wow! I think I could just stop there, but the purpose of this weekly devotion is to expound on “game plans for life” as found in God’s “Playbook.” Crocker just gave a great illustration of what the body of Christ should look like…

1 Corinthians 12:26-27 And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are the body of Christ (TEAM), and members individually.

John Wooden, “I once heard team spirit defined as a willingness to lose oneself in the group for the good of the group… I changed ‘willingness’ to ‘eagerness.’ Willingness is more like, ‘I will if I have to.’ Eagerness communicates an attitude of ‘I’ll be happy to sacrifice personal accomplishments for the good of the team.’”

ARE YOU EAGER TO SERVE THE TEAM? ARE YOU EAGER TO SUFFER WITH ONE ANOTHER? ARE YOU EAGER TO REJOICE IN THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF OTHERS?

July 19, 2021 - Shortcuts lead to Short-Term Success

It would take too long to type out how busy we have been the past few weeks… and even now I am in my office after a full day with a group staying with us for a residential hoops/leadership training camp. So now, I am trying to get my weekly duties for InBounds taken care of… including this week’s devotion. 

My insanely busy schedule has me tired and this week’s devotional offering comes from a reminder I received while starting to go through John Wooden’s Pyramid of Success with the players. I try to live out the first building block of The Pyramid… the one of Industriousness (Hard Work.) Wooden states, “There is no substitute for work. Worthwhile results come from hard work and careful planning.”

This week’s camp, yesterday’s sermons I preached, last week’s lesson I taught at a conference, the basketball camp I ran I ran the week before that… all involved a large amount of hard work and a HUGE amount of careful planning. And honestly, when I am sitting still, feeling so exhausted, and at times overwhelmed, the question becomes “Why”?

I think Wooden’s quote gives the answer… Why? Worthwhile results! We all want to be successful in our goals, and there are not shortcuts to that… shortcuts tend to lead to short-term “success.”

The Scriptures say is very clear… I love the Proverbs and the consistent reminders of the benefits of hard work and planning, and the consistent warnings of the results of laziness.

Proverbs 21: 5 says, “the plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty; but those of everyone who is hasty, surely to poverty.”

[“Careful planning puts you ahead in the long run; hurry and scurry put you farther behind.” (Prov 21:5 The Message)]

So, what are you striving for in life? Are you carefully planning? Are you faithfully executing those plans? 

July 12, 2021 - Play Your Role For The Good Of The Team!

I must confess that most of my teaching/writing tends to gear toward the individual believer… and I was that way as a coach also. I truly did not see the overall team picture like some of the other guys I coached with… So thankful for guys that made me look much smarter than I am, but also learned that I saw some details in individual players that others didn’t. The fact that we saw things from a different perspective, actually made us a better coaching staff. 

There is an old phrase that says, “The whole is greater than the sum of the parts.” Mathematically that does not make any sense… if you add the numbers, you get the sum. But in things such as sports, that is not the case. The fact that a team has bigger or better individual players, does not mean they will be the better team; the better team will be the one where each player accepts and performs his/her role.

A simple example would be: A team executes a beautiful half-court play that ends with a high-flying alley-oop dunk… who is the star of the play? Some would say the guy that can jump so high… some would say the guy that can make the beautiful pass… but I wonder also about the guy that cut through the lane to draw the defenders out of position… what about the guy that that set a pick to free up the passer… or the guy that set a back screen to free up the high-flyer?

The point is that in team sports, it is truly not about individuals shining on their own, but in individual parts producing a greater whole. I loved teaching and showing players the beauty of executing their roles properly… which meant being in the right place, doing the right things, at the right time.

I bring all of this up, as I was privileged to speak and listen at a Free Grace Alliance Summit this past weekend. The overall theme of the conference was “Identity” which seems to fit well in my style of teaching/coaching… as “identity” lends itself to talking about the individual. As I stated in the intro, much of my teaching revolves around that. Yet, I was in a speaker’s line-up at this conference that included some guys I truly consider all-stars… guys that, due to my association with them, made me look a lot smarter than I am. One of those guys is Grant Hawley, the Executive Director of the Free Grace Alliance. Grant has an incredible grasp of the Scriptures and an understanding of the original languages. Each time I sit under his teaching, I am blown away with how he sees the “overall team picture” of the body of Christ!

I love teaching/coaching/mentoring individuals to be the best they can be… but truly see more and more that the goal is to be the best we can be for “the team”!

Ephesians 2:10 is a verse I have taught/written about MANY times. In fact, it is one I LOVE to use to motivate serving the Lord.

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. (Eph 2:10)

After reminding individuals of the incredible Gospel message found in Eph 2:8-9, that our salvation is totally based upon what God has done for us, (“by grace… through faith”), I then have regularly pointed out the idea that the all-seeing God who is not bound by time, (knowing who would “believe” in the finished work of Christ), started designing plays (“good works”) to run (“walk in”)… showing individuals that the God not only wants to use them, but has designed “plays” for them.

BUT in seeing the beauty of the mystery of Jew and Gentile becoming one through the work of Christ… the emphasis on the new team that is found in the verses following in chapter 2, I see verse 10 in a different light…

We (plural) are His workmanship (singular)… the “team” is the beautiful work of art… the good works that God “diagramed” beforehand does involve each of us “playing” our role… but they are “plays” intended for the “team”! WE ARE IN THIS THING TOGETHER! Sometimes one’s role may be to score… or maybe to throw the pass… or maybe to set the screen.

God wants to use us together!!! Teamwork makes the dream work! Accept and perform your role…

July 5, 2021 - Playing With A Sense Of Urgency

This week’s “game plan” involves more complexity than the usual offering… it is one of challenge… one of conviction (and confession)… one of concern/desperation… More of that in just a bit…

As I sat taking some notes over the past few days for some upcoming speaking engagements, it has been done with also thinking through our ministry. And it brought me to thinking about “why teams do a full-court press”?

The most common reason teams put on a press, is that it is late in the game, and they are behind on the scoreboard; this allows them to try to get the other team to make careless plays and turn the ball over… Some teams will sporadically put on a press (maybe full-court… or ¾Court… or half-court) to simply change the rhythm of the game for the other team, again trying to get some turnovers… And some teams simply play pressure-basketball, always trying to speed up the other team… to wear them down… to turn them over… Why do turnovers matter, it gives an opportunity to go on offense and SCORE!

Just so you know, I am a coach that believes in “playing to the :00s”… I don’t like backing off on defense because we are behind, and the game is out of hand. I think it is important to play every minute… every second… we committed to play games, not just win games… BUT admittedly I don’t know that I have always played/coached with urgency. (Although one of my favorite years coaching was a group of 5^th/6^th grade girls that we nicknamed the “Greedy Girls”, because we trained them to WANT THE BASKETBALL! They were so much fun to coach/watch…)

So now I am going to try to fit in all the stuff I mentioned in the opening, without turning this devo into a rambling sermon… This topic came to mind as I was evaluating some things for our ministry to make a presentation to our board. Coming out of the pandemic waters, we have found ourselves in a hole financially, “behind on the scoreboard.” As I looked at options of what to do, one thing would be to simply “back off and let the clock run out”; or we can “press” and try to make some things happen. (Told you there would be some concern and desperation.) This all hit right as we entered the month of July, which is insanely busy (and typically is each year) with ministry opportunities. (i.e., Just today I was able to share the message of The Substitute with around 40 kids!)

Again, the month of July is typically very busy for us, but this year I had made a decision to dig in and go hard for the month, and my confession… that I was probably motivated more by needing to raise revenue than opportunity to minister; which is a bit of a catch-22 since we need to raise revenue in order to minister… so it is a matter not of what we are doing but why…

Then as I have been studying, I was brought back to a very familiar passage… John 4:35B… “Behold, I say to you (Jesus speaking), lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!”

So, what was Jesus saying there to the disciples? When a field is “white for harvest,” it is already ripe… needing to be harvested NOW or else it will go to ruin. In fact, one article I read said it this way: “It’s best to go ahead and harvest on the early side since if you wait too long, the heads (of the wheat) will ‘shatter’, meaning that the grains will fall onto the ground.”

Jesus was stating that we need to “put on the full-court press” and realize time is running out for some.

I challenge you to “play” with a sense of urgency!

I challenge you to not determine the urgency based upon being in the black or red (financial motivation), but being in the white (spiritual motivation.)

Sure I am hoping that this busy month helps our organization regain some traction financially, BUT even if our “doors had to close” I will stay motivated to share the harvesting-truth of the Gospel! Will you join me?