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Most would agree that character is vital for success in any organization, team, or family, yet today’s news is filled with examples of bad character. Nehemiah was in the process of building a wall, but he recognized that if some character issues were not addressed, the completion of the wall would be insignificant. Rebuilding a physical wall was not all that God had called Nehemiah to do. God called Nehemiah to a much greater ministry—a ministry to the heart.
As a coach have you ever had a bad day, bad week, or bad year? Many of us would answer “yes.” At one point, Moses could have said he was having a “bad life.” Most of his life had been a lie. He committed murder, Pharaoh tried to kill him, and, in fear, he ran from his problems to the desert. Then came his defining moment in life—the burning bush.
For four years I watched my little girl, Julianna, walk, run, and twirl her way through our church. For thirteen years I watched another girl in our church, Kindra, live her entire life confined to a wheelchair. One Sunday, Kindra’s mom brought her to church with a new spring outfit. I noticed that there were new shoes, but they sat in Kindra’s lap. After the service, Kindra’s mother gave the shoes to my wife with the request that our daughter wear them. For the next few services, I observed the mom watching Julianna move about the church property in the shoes that Kindra could not wear.
Almost every week this summer, I have been working with junior high boys trying to help them improve their basketball skills. The range of ability between sixth and eighth graders is pretty wide, and their physical size can be an even bigger gap. But we have one boy, Max, who doesn’t let his size bother him at all. In every drill and scrimmage, he uses what the Lord has given him to the best of his ability and tries to improve. It is such a joy to watch him play because he wears out his opponents with his speed and quickness. As an athlete, Max refuses to let what he can’t do get in the way of what he can do.
Hockey Chat: When a goalie is said to “Stand on his head” that means he’s making great saves for the team. This may have been derived after NHL President Frank Calder, referencing the 1918 rules change that allowed goalies to fall down to make a save, remarked, "They could stand on their head, if they wanted to." Basically it means they are giving their all to stop pucks.
The desire of every high school athlete is a full scholarship to college. I was speaking to a local softball team yesterday. I asked them to imagine that I could give them a full scholarship. The only thing I needed them to do was to try out. The terms of the scholarship state that if every "at bat" is a home run; if every ball is fielded cleanly; if every throw is on line; and every pitch a strike, then you will get the scholarship.
I asked them if they could achieve that. "No" was the unanimous answer. Of course you can't because no one is perfect.
Hockey Chat: In the Stanley Cup Finals 2004, Calgary’s Ville Nieminen's hit on Tampa BayVincent Lecavalier in Game 4 of the was definitely a cheap shot, taking a run at him from behind and smashing his head into the glass. As a result the Flames’ top defenseman had to sit the next game out on suspension, hurting his team this time and not the opposition. Many would say that ugly hit deserved revenge. Rather than take a cheap shot in return, the biggest retaliation a team can have is winning the game by playing hard-nosed, fair hockey. That is exactly what the Lightning did by taking the series and winning the Stanley Cup.
Glen is a high school football coach. He's not much different than other coaches. He's driven, tough, motivated and strong-willed. However, like many coaches, Glen developed two different lifestyles: a good coaching lifestyle and that of a struggling alcoholic. As these two lifestyles ran their courses, they eventually came crashing together. He continued to coach, but the drinking took its toll. Several DWIs mounted up, and eventually the alcoholism caused more issues. Glen came to the end of his rope.
At the college that I attended, we referred to long-distance runners as “jar heads.” We figured that each day they would unscrew their heads, take out their brains, and then run an unbelievable amount of miles before returning and putting their brains back in their heads.
I say this all in good fun, obviously. I have always admired distance runners and think that distance running is an amazing ability. When these runners race, they set their minds on finishing the race. Lap after lap they strain through sore muscles and tough conditions to finish what they started.
Most students often have to answer questions about their future plans. Whether we are asked about our plans for school, the weekend, or even just the afternoon, it generally isn't that hard to answer. "Oh, I'm going to [this university] and participating in [this sport]." Or, "I'm going to chill with some friends." Etc. One day though, I found myself answering a question that was a little more serious: “What are your plans for your life?”
If we were to count on our hands the number of times someone has let us down or the number of times we’ve disappointed someone else, we’d definitely run out of fingers! Because we are human, we fail all the time, whether in relationships, careers, or daily disciplines. In fact, our life on earth seems full of opportunities to learn from our mistakes. So it’s a good thing we have promises like Psalm 103:12, “As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.”
The night before a football game, our team has a gathering at the house of one of the seniors. His parents supply the food, and we have had these team dinners since before I can remember.
I went to three high schools in four years, so you'd think I'd enjoy three homecomings. Truth is, having gone to so many schools, I never really got to know anyone all that well, and now—years later—I really don't feel like I have a high school to come home to.
Homecoming and Halloween often coincide. My favorite costumed-kiddos are the aliens. Whether it's Roswell-green or tin-canned space beings... they all remind me that—as a follower of Jesus—that's what I am: an alien... this isn't my home. Christians are here for a season... learning to love and calling out to other aliens to get ready for the home-coming.
My brother Judd stopped by to visit the other night. It’s always great to see him. He is in the process of transforming his life and is now a triathlete. So far, he’s competed in two triathlons, and I’m so proud of him. While this kind of competition is not uncommon for many former athletes, Judd’s situation is a little different.
We all have seen the ads about the “Easy” button. Just hit the Easy button and things become easy. I actually have an Easy button on my desk that doesn’t work anymore, because I used it so much. I think the batteries died.
I love the “easy “button,” but I think a better button would be a “New” button — one that gives us a fresh start. We could hit it at the beginning of a year (or month or day) and start over with a clean slate. Wouldn’t that be great? We could hit the New button for lots of things: diet, workout routine, pets, schools, sports teams, coaches, friends or jobs. The list could go on and on.
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