Coaches are often heavily scrutinized by the fans… fans that make assumptions and draw conclusions about them that are based upon single seasons or single games or even single plays… all the while not knowing/seeing the end picture the coach is vying for… and thus being more than willing to give complaints and/or advice…
When I was coaching I found myself needing to make decisions that affected long term goals for the individual players and for the team. For instance, if a player made a bad play, I had to determine if it were better for the player to stay on the floor and play through it to learn, or come out of the game because of fatigue or to receive further instruction (or maybe a bit of a chewing out… when my wife hated seeing my “coach face.”) At times I felt the whole team play through a rough stretch, while other times they needed a timeout (or a substitution of a whole new 5 players)… at times I entered an entire season knowing it would be a rough time on the scoreboard/record, but excited to build a new culture.
All of those choices potentially caused confusion in the stands… with fans wondering what I was doing… some asking why I wasn’t benching the kid that messed up… or parents angry I benched their kid… folks curious why I wasn’t calling a timeout… folks wondering why we weren’t winning more.
My point this week is that none of the scenarios I mentioned, whether I took action or allowed it to go on, diminished my authority or control as the coach. The only thing each circumstance did, was allow each player and spectator to determine if they trusted my wisdom and my character as the coach.
I daily hear of folks debating God’s sovereignty… and what that means. I hear or read from theologians dissecting Scriptures to try to prove what they think God’s sovereignty means… preachers and counselors casting their views of sovereignty into their answers to life’s trials and tribulations…
I’m not going to try to solve all the deep theological debates here in a blog, but will offer a simple truth for us to remember as players and/or fans… God’s sovereignty is rooted in His AWARENESS (omniscience) and AUTHORITY, and is evidenced in either His ACTIVITY of His ALLOWANCE! You may wonder why He would ever allow bad things, yet, just like a coach, He knows that sometimes we get stronger/better by “playing through it,” BUT other times we may need “benched.” (Remember that ALLOWANCE and ACTIVITY (causation) are not the same thing…
I loved a line my pastor used yesterday: “Today’s difficulties may be preparing you for tomorrow’s opportunity.” (Matt Brooks)
Even if you don’t understand the circumstances, don’t question the wisdom and character of the Coach (God)!
Oh, the depths of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgements and His ways past finding out! “For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has become His counselor (in coach terms, who can give advice to God)?” (Romans 11:33-34)
Definitions matter… my definition of the sovereignty of
God (which I won’t debate online) is not that He is controlling… but that HE IS
IN CONTROL! Therefore, I trust His decisions!
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