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There is nothing that compares to the feeling of walking on to the field or court with the stands full of people cheering for one’s team. There is energy in the air and a sense of adrenaline pumping through everyone’s veins. The atmosphere is full of excitement and enthusiasm. As coaches, we rarey think about the people who are watching us from the sidelines. Our attention is focused on the players. We want them to be ready, prepared, and in place.
As I approached the third hurdle, I knew that I was a little too far away to take it with my right leg. So in a split second, I decided to alternate and go over with my left foot leading. I had done this a thousand times in my career, but this time when I landed I felt my knee shift out of the socket. I had hyperextended my knee, and I knew my running days were over.
Surrounded by my teammates, I was faced with a choice. My team knew me as the person who had led them in Bible studies and professed Christ, and now they waited expectantly to see what was going to proceed out of my mouth. In a split second their anxious eyes received the answer when I screamed, “Hallelujah!” I yelled it from the sheer pain I was feeling.
Last month I was in San Antonio with one of my board members working the FCA ministry events at the men’s Final Four. One night after the great FCA meeting, we were heading back to our hotel and decided to get a bite to eat at the street fair. Once we received our food and had started making our way through the crowd, we realized we were suddenly fighting a mob moving in the opposite direction. As we fought our way through, we heard a band start to play and suddenly realized why we were fighting the crowd. Rock star Kid Rock was taking the stage nearby. Everyone around us—young and old—was rushing to see and hear him, hoping he would acknowledge them. My friend Dave and I struggled to get through the crowd back to our hotel.
The first race I ever ran was a marathon, an incredible experience my body will never forget. I learned there are four key aspects to a race, and they all relate to our spiritual life.
We race against competition. There were thousands of runners I wanted to beat and who wanted to beat me. When we run the race for Christ, we compete against the world, the flesh, and the Devil. We race against the clock. Every mile a clock declared I was nearing the end. People say since we only go around once, live it up. Christ says since we only go around once, make it count.
We race for a prize. I received a medal for completing the marathon. As Christians, our prize is heaven and eternity with God!
Hockey Chat: A goalie’s skill is part physical and part mental. The better physical shape they are, the better they can make quick moves to cover the net. But the most important thing to do is to keep focused. They keep in control and keep their mind clear of all the commotion going on all around them. If they give into it, they’ll be off their game and out of place.
I would not be telling the truth if I said I didn’t crave the spotlight when I was playing football. I thought my big problem was that I was an offensive lineman. I don’t want to upset any running backs with this next statement, but those little fellars always got the spotlight! In my entire career I only gave one interview.
Jesus chose to serve His disciples and followers rather than to be served. He displayed an example for them to follow and called them to a purpose beyond themselves. Servant leadership can be defined as guiding and directing through submission and acknowledging the value of others. A coach holds a position to lead and has an opportunity to teach players, through example, what it means to serve like Christ.
Which is a better description of our frame of mind in competition: joy and peace or anxiety and rage? I’ve known competitors from both camps; and I know which ones were more successful and better teammates.
Though many coaches pursue their sport in anger, full of anxiety and rage, this Scripture presents another alternative. If we go out in joy and are led in peace, we find the course of life more pleasant and we receive great favor from those around us. Joy, or more simply emotional stability, is important during competition as we experience the inevitable swings of momentum from one team to the other. If we go out in joy, we have the emotional stability to react appropriately to each situation that arises.
Wicked people live life with their heads on a swivel—looking for anybody or anything that might be after them. They might even sleep with one eye open! They live restlessly and peace is a foreign object. On the outside, these people may look like they have it all together, but inside their lives are complete messes. They only know wickedness, so they suspect everybody is just like them. Hence, they run even when no one is pursuing them.
A pastor once told me about his job on a Navy ship in Europe—to stand night duty at port side. Sounds easy, right? But his job was to stand in the darkness from
midnight until 5:00 a.m. staring into the vast nothingness. His job was to watch for anything out of the ordinary. He would stand guard for hours in the black silence, watching for change.
Habakkuk stood guard. He was in turmoil over his land, so he decided to stand guard and wait for a voice from the Lord. He was looking for change. I wonder how long or how often Habakkuk stood guard, staring into the vast darkness, waiting on the Lord. I wonder what kind of determination it took to stand still in the midst of turmoil, waiting for a message from the Lord.
There is a great Peanuts comic strip that shows Lucy about to catch a fly ball. At the last minute, she loses sight of the ball and misses it. Lucy turns to Charlie Brown and says that she is sorry, but the “past” got in her eyes.
It is easy to let past mistakes get in the way of a good performance. We remember what we have done wrong at the worst time in our lives and end up making the same mistakes again. Then we begin the cycle of rehearsing that mishap over and over in our mind.
As a Christian, instead of letting the past get in your eyes, turn your eyes to the present and to the possibility of doing things the right way. Remember, you are a new creation in Christ and you don’t have to keep making the same mistakes.
NASCAR racing isn’t necessarily thought of as a team sport by most people. But ask any driver and he will tell you that without a good pit crew, his chances of winning are slim.
Jeff Gordon credited his team for putting him in a position to win the 2005 Daytona 500, which he did by holding off Kurt Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr. over the last two laps. “I knew over 500 miles, with that pit crew, that team, that hopefully some patience would pay off there at the end.”
"Out for the season." It was the tough phrase of the week used by most sports broadcasters and repeatedly scrolled across ESPN's Bottom Line. It also was an unexpected and harsh reality for NFL stars Tom Brady, Shawne Merriman and Nate Burleson.
Some of the League's best, done in a moment. You've probably heard the frustrations of the Fantasy Footballers (I think that's actually a real title) in your office or school, just like I have in mine. "With Brady out, my team's done!"
Anyone who has been either a player or a coach knows the value of encouragement, yet all too often we are quick to point out the mistakes and failures of others rather than their successes and the things they do well. Barnabas, whose name means “Son of Encouragement,” was a person who grasped the enormous value of blessing others with words. He came alongside believers in the midst of trials and troubles of all kinds, and he encouraged them to press on and to be all that God had called them to be.
Hockey Chat: There is a term in hockey known as being “back on your heels”. It means to be playing lazily and timidly. Hockey is not a game for the weak hearted because it takes desire to want the puck, strength to work and win board battles, and clear mindedness to know the right plays to make.
We all know the story. It has been fantasized in the minds of aspiring athletes everywhere. It has been replayed continuously on driveways and vacant lots all over the world. Whether it’s one second left on the clock, the bottom of the ninth inning, or the last ten meters of a race, somehow the unlikely hero snatches victory from the jaws of defeat and basks in the adoration of the make-believe crowd.
When I exercise or warm up for a sports game, I love to blast contemporary Christian music through my headphones locked in my iPod. The music works as an energizer and motivates me to keep practicing. It makes me want to dance and sing. The great thing about music is that there are so many different styles of songs that there is something for everyone. For me, listening always lifts my heart and leaves me with a smile and a desire to get out there.
Hockey Chat: There is a technique play in hockey know as “cycling”. It’s a matter of one guy skating with the puck then passing it off to another player, moving the puck in the same way while the first guy takes the second guy’s position. Sounds confusing? It’s much harder to defend than to understand. The premise is to skate until you get in trouble and then pass the puck back. When that guy skates and gets in trouble, you’ll have skated back to be open so he can pass it to you. The constant helping out the guy in trouble becomes a “cycle” that draws the defense and helps keep control of the puck.
Many of us know the exciting story of Moses and the major events that occurred during the time of his leadership. We think of the miracles such as the burning bush and the parting of the Red Sea, and we recall the awesome wonder of the Ten Commandments. What we tend to ingore is the beginning of the story when God came and commissioned Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. When the call came, Moses questioned his ability not once but five times (see Ex 3–4). God reassured Moses, and eventually Moses stepped up to the plate.
In the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games, sprinter Bob Hayes tied the Olympic record on his way to winning the gold medal in the 100-meter dash. Just a few months later, Hayes was dashing past defensive backs as a wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys. Turning a world-class sprinter into a football player was a radical concept at the time, yet Hayes’s success altered defensive strategy and changed how football is played.
Ever notice how easy it is to stop a treadmill? All you have to do is press the “stop” button. It’s right there in the center of the panel in bright red. It’s genius! But that simple red button is also a glaring source of temptation. It begs to be pushed when the run gets too long, the legs get heavy, or the mind gets bored. In fact, that tiny button can do major damage to a training program if we give in to the temptation to push it.
Every day, we as Christians face temptations from the enemy. Generally, he doesn’t waste time hiding them from us. He throws them right in our faces—kind of like red stop buttons in the middle of our running path with Christ.
We, as athletes do not wish for weakness, nor want anyone to see weakness in us. But weaknesses are instruments that can be used to make us stronger, if we have the courage to face them. In dealing with weaknesses, we must learn to surrender—to admit we have a shortcoming, then be willing to work on it. Sometimes it can be corrected; sometimes it must be accepted. Either way, surrendering will lead to the success of our team and produce maturity in us.
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