May 30, 2022 - GREATness (Honor on Memorial Day)

Well happy Memorial Day… although it is a bit strange to say “happy” about a day that honors men and women that have “fallen”; thus, the day brings an element of mourning as well to those that are remembering loved ones. BUT I do believe there is room for “happy” and “joy” and “celebration” and “honor” on this day… not in focusing on them being gone… but in focusing on how they lived! 

As I prepared for a preaching engagement I had this weekend, I kept thinking about this concept… and thought about the idea of winning a trophy/award, be it a team or individual honor… it is in essence a celebration, not that the year is over, but in how the year went… The trophy/award causes reflection on a season or tournament where GREATness was achieved… and when that is spread over a career for individuals it may even end with a Hall of Fame memorial.

So, this week I ask us to reflect on our own lives… when we are gone will we be missed? Will there be a void left of service to God and others? Will people look back on our season and celebrate how we “played the game”? I’m afraid that most “memorials” or eulogies are just reminder of “players” that were good… I want us to be remembered as “players” that were GREAT! And in the Christian world, I believe that to be similar to the armed forces world, in that the GREATness is measured in service and sacrifice…

Matthew 20:26-28 (Jesus speaking) “…but whoever desires to be GREAT among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave ---- just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

May 23, 2022 - Choose wisely… where you “run” and who you “run with”!

My plan is for things to be short and sweet this week… partially because I am exhausted from travel, and also because sometimes you simply need to quickly make a point… (i.e., in basketball there is not a lot of time in the huddle, so a coach just gets straight to it!) 

I can remember in my playing days spending a lot of time at local courts for pick-up games… and I remember those times when I hooked up with teammates that simply didn’t play the way I liked to play. Usually that meant they were just running and gunning… not playing team ball. Note: this doesn’t mean they were playing wrong… they were not breaking rules… I was simply running with the wrong guys and needed to find different teammates!

Do you want to honor God with how you “play the game”? Do you want to make a difference with your life? Evaluate who you are “running with”!

I was reminded of this simple truth as yesterday our pastor emphasized how often when we are led to do something for God, it can involve choosing new surroundings and /or new teammates. He gave many Scriptural examples, but since this is time-out I’ll share one simple verse:

Psalm 120:6 My soul has dwelt too long with one who hates peace.

Choose wisely… where you “run” and who you “run with”!

May 16, 2022 - Don't Get Knocked Off Ball!

Recently as I was doing a Total Player Academy individual training session I asked the young man what was the biggest issue he was facing when playing at his new school, and getting ready to try out for the high school team… he basically talked about the physicality of play and the challenge of not being “knocked off ball”… 

That is not the exact terminology he used, but it is typical training terminology I use. I want players to be strong with the ball… and when they make moves to finish strong… to be “knocked off ball” means that you were knocked off mission or off purpose… a problem many believers have spiritually!

During our session I quickly changed some plans to start showing him some ways to be strong with the ball. When I was a player, I wasn’t the most skilled or the tallest or necessarily the most athletic… oh I could shoot it a bit… and I had some pretty decent hops… but my strength was my strength with the ball! I would was good at taking possession of what real estate I wanted, and when I got my paws on the rock I was going to get to finish!

In our session I did some of the TPA traditional ball drills where I apply weight/pressure against the ball handler and make him stand strong but then I went ahead to my old bread and butter move from high school… a drop step power play. In a nut shell it is this… when you get the defender behind you, drop-step PIVOT to seal him on your backside – POUND the ball on the dribble to make sure there is as much ball in hand time as possible (less time to steal it) and creates a sense of urgency in your play - POP the ball into a 2-hand grasp for strength – PLANT the trailing foot into a solid stance – and POWER to the rim!

I know the alliteration is very preacher-boy of me, but meant to make it easy for the player to remember – PIVOT/POUND/POP/PLANT/POWER – and when this is done properly it makes it easy to take the contact and stay on mission… on purpose!

In our Christian walk, God has given us the plan in His Playbook on how to best “play the game” of life… success involves:

Pivot to establish yourself to get in the right position… put the enemy behind you!

Pound the truth of the Playbook into your head… hide the Word in your heart!

Pop that truth into your grasp to not waver from it… grasp on to the Word in your daily choices!

Plant your feet firmly toward your goal instead of dancing around in the wrong direction… be intentional in pursuit of ministry!

Power your way to the goal with the unwavering, uncompromised truth of the Gospel and the Playbook!

Finally, my brethren (teammates), be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.” Ephesians 6:10

This is a verse preceding the importance of putting on the armor of God BECAUSE the enemy will be trying to “knock you off ball!”

May 9, 2022 - New Team, New Coach, New Philosophy, New Teammates

Last week we posed the questions of “Where do I fit?” and “Am I good enough?” The idea was to realize that our place on God’s team, and those we offer the gift of a place on God’s team, is based solely on the realization and acceptance of Jesus being “good enough” and offering Himself in our place! Thus, we talked about the idea of the Gospel truth of “Just as I am without one plea, but that Thy blood was shed for me!” 

Yet once we are on the team, it only makes sense to want to play according to our new team’s Playbook… This week I shift from the realization that I am on the team, not based upon how good I am, but that now I want to strive to honor God with how I play the game… and this week’s truth came to me as I heard an old country song from George Strait… which I will get to shortly…

First picture with me a player going to a new team… a new coach… with a new philosophy. The player will have to immerse himself in the playbook and spend as much time on the court with his new team as possible. It would be really difficult if that player said, “I’ll play with my new team on some days and with my old team on others.” It would be difficult to not get confused…

CHURCH IS IMPORTANT! And by that I do not mean simply the idea of what folks we happen to attend the same services with on Sundays, but instead the idea of a group that is like-minded… heading in the same direction… following the same Playbook… where we do this thing called life together! There is accountability and encouragement… there is an expectation of giving your best.

This is the idea of “not being unequally yoked” (see 2 Corinthians 6:14); the verse in our English uses the word “unbelievers” (which is absolutely accurate in the context), but as I looked up the word it also carries the idea of the unfaithful… anyone who at the time is not trusting God and thus “running the plays of the old team.” And the idea of being “yoked” is the idea of who your teammates are…

This is not a call to ignore unbelievers/the unfaithful, but instead to not partner or team with them. I think of some of the friends I have from the past that I love dearly, yet do not spend a lot of time with… this is because I find myself thinking about or even wanting to “run old plays” with them. It changes my game perspective.

I mentioned George Strait who philosophized that “all my exes live in TX, and that’s why I hang my hat in TN.” In the song he even mentioned that “it has been rumored that I died, but I’m alive and well in TN.”

He understood in this song that he needed some separation and a new start… he died to the old and was alive with the new...

A new team… new way of thinking… and thus a new way of playing… involves the right kind of teammates!

Ephesians 4:22-24 That you PUT OFF, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you PUT ON the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.

1 Corinthians 15:33 Be not deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits.”

May 2, 2022 - Where do I fit? Am I good enough?

Have you ever felt like you didn’t fit? Maybe you got onto a team and just never seemed to find your place… or maybe, like happened to me on more than one occasion, you tried out for a squad only to find they were looking for a different type of player than you… or possibly you just weren’t good enough… I’m 55 yrs. old and still have days when I wonder where I belong… I no longer can physically cut it on the floor, and even as a coach/trainer often feel the game has passed me by… so I question. 

The reason this intro is on my mind is because of a question in Scripture and the observation of my pastor. In John 4, which I have taught on many times, we find Jesus and His encounter with the Samaritan woman. I always point out the fact that she is drawing water during the heat of the day as proof that she was an outcast (due to here lifestyle) even with her own people, and that she for sure would have felt an outcast when talking with a Jewish man. You wanna talk about feeling like a misfit… out of place… not good enough…

Let’s pick up at a point where she makes an observation about Jesus and asks a very curious question:

John 4:19-20 The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.”

Matt, my pastor, pointed out something here about the woman… in the midst of recognizing how different/special Jesus is, she also recognized a need to worship… YET, where could she go to do that? The Jews didn’t like the Samaritans, so Jerusalem was out of the question; and the Samaritans didn’t like her, so that mountain wasn’t an option.

Let’s make sure that our attitudes toward others are not creating a hindrance for them in approaching God… and make sure they know they can approach Him right where they are at!

Anyone ready to sing a few stanzas of “Just As I Am”? The “altar call” is to make sure folks know the heart of “spirit and truth” based upon what Jesus has done for us is what grants us access to the throne!