If you’re running to win but you have only earthly goals in mind, it will be short-lived. It will be a withering type of thing. You have to have spiritual goals in mind. Things do get in the way of being excellent. Some of those things are pride and self-centeredness but you still have to do everything as unto the Lord. You have to try to keep those types of thoughts out. You have to understand what’s spiritual and what’s long lasting. I’m reminded of the Scripture passage about the guy who had the barns, was very blessed, and said he was going to build bigger barns and store all of his wares. But God said to him, “You’re a fool because all these things will be taken from you this very night.” Where is your soul?

As coaches, our jobs do not end with the final game of the season. Even out of season we are recruiting, reviewing game films, and developing a plan for the next year. We set goals and requirements for our athletes—all to prepare them for competition.

God instructed Moses to receive the Ten Commandments, “Cut two stone tablets…be prepared by morning. Come up Mount Sinai in the morning and stand before Me on the mountaintop” (Ex 34:1). Throughout the Old Testament, God gave instructions on preparing sacrifices, being prepared for battle, preparing food, and preparing to build the temple.

Last summer at FCA Captain’s Camp, high school athletes were pushed to their mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual limits. Thankfully, my job was simple – I was the “Waterboy”. When I was a high school athlete, waterboys were often treated as the “least” important part of the team. They did the job no one else wanted to do.

But Jesus never views those who play a seemingly “small” role as unimportant. He never looked down on those who served behind the scenes or did the jobs nobody else wanted. In fact, Jesus flips that concept on its head. He says the least among us will be the greatest. Those we consider great – the best players, the best coaches – will only be considered great in God’s eyes if they serve like the Waterboy serves.

When I was playing professional lacrosse, I was the only Christian on my team (as far as I knew). I was outspoken about my faith during my four years of playing, and I never had another player share with me about their faith in Jesus. I felt God had placed me on the team to be a light. As the token Christian player, my teammates selected me to do the team prayer. Usually, if it was a big game, I would have a player say something like, “Pray a GOOD one Dan. This is a huge game!” The mentality was that a “good” prayer would lead us to victory; a “bad” prayer would lead to defeat.

I love baseball! It is an individual sport that relies on a team for a successful outcome. It also is the only American sport in which, during a stoppage in play, a manager or coach can approach an umpire to dispute a rule or argue a call. Unfortunately, we’ve all seen a manager throwing a tantrum, kicking dirt on the plate or verbally abusing an umpire. And we’ve also seen the umpire retaliating in anger and, sometimes, losing control. It’s hard to have someone yell at us or challenge our character in any setting, but especially in front of peers and spectators in a stadium.

Southside High had a good baseball team. They were one of the top teams in their conference and area. They had great hitting, fielding and pitching. The Stars (Southside's nickname) were playing in the area tournament. In their first two games they fell behind, caught up, took the lead, and in both games with bases loaded, Coach brought in their closer, Mark, whom everyone called Flick. In both games, Flick came in and brought his team from near defeat to the championship game with his flawless pitching.

As athletes, we all want to win the big game. We all want to win the championship. We all want to hang a banner on the wall of the gym. But when it comes to being champions of a different kind—champions for Christ—only those of us who truly understand and “get” Exodus 14:14 have the chance to do that.