Well Done, Coach

Well Done, Coach
Taken from FCA daily devotion

““For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.” ”
--Psalm 84:10

While talking with his son, John Wooden told him that he needed to shave because he was going to see his bride very soon. The basketball coaching legend knew his final breath was coming, and he wanted to be ready to meet his Maker and his wife. Going home to glory at the age of 99, Wooden left an example for all coaches, no matter what the sport, to follow. NBA great Jerry West said, “He did not have two sets of rules for his players…they all played under the same rules.” Wooden was true to his faith in Christ, true to his family, and true to his fundamentals of life, which had been taught to him by his parents back in Indiana so many years ago.

As great a coach as Wooden was on this earth, and as many titles and trophies he won, I have no doubt that he would have traded them for a single day in the presence of the Lord. I’m sure that even the greatest feeling of a national title was nothing compared to the moment when Wooden met Christ face-to-face. Coach knew that Heaven, not Westwood, was not his true home. He lived a simple life and passed it on to many. He held seven personal “keys to life,” and followed them closely. They included…

1. Be true to yourself.
2. Help others.
3. Make each day your masterpiece.
4. Drink deeply from good books, especially the Bible.
5. Make friendship a fine art.
6. Build a shelter against a rainy day.
7. Pray for guidance and give thanks for your blessings every day.

Coach Wooden is now in a better Hall of Fame—one with streets of gold. There, his championships mean nothing and he can sit with his bride and share the joy of Heaven with the saints of old. I thank the Lord for this man’s impact, influence and Christ-like example. I am sure he was greeted with the line we all want to hear when our time comes: “Well done, my good and faithful servant.” Coach Wooden, thank you for being a blessing to countless coaches, athletes and fans around the world.

Sports Spectrum Radio

Just had a great opportunity for a radio interview with Bill Houston. Bill hosts the national radio program for Sports Spectrum Radio out of Grand Rapids Michigan. Sports Spectrum Radio has been impacting our culture for over 20 years and airs over 200 stations. They are in partnership with RBC Ministries and produce devotionals such as Our Daily Bread.

The topic of discussion for this particular interview was sportsmanship. While sportsmanship is an ongoing teaching process for all people (kids to adults), it is part of the discipleship process we use in our Recreation Ministry. In the interview we discussed the role of a coach in teaching sportsmanship and the responsibility we have as a league to instill those principles. A key biblical verse we teach our participants is 1 Corinthians 10:31, "Whether you eat or drink, do all for the glory of God." In all our actions, our practices/games, in how we play (by the rules or cheat), we need to do so from God's perspective and His glory to others. Sportsmanship covers a variety of circumstances that occur naturally or by freak of circumstance. In either instance, our response needs to be consistent. See blog entitled Perfect Sportsmanship a few days back.

The interview will air on August 7th online at www.sport.org and also in various Virginia cities (Ashland and Chesapeake are included). Check out www.sport.org for a specific FM or AM station in your area to hear the interview.

Also, bookmark www.sport.org and www.sportsspectrum.com as a favorite sport website. They have great articles and interviews with local, collegiate, and professional athletes.

The Second Act

Starting this Sunday, my wife Kelly and I will be teaching with Scott/Karla Allen, Andy/Anji Lacatell, and Steve/Emily Jones in a new community called The Second Act.

This group will consist of those fresh out of High School, currently in college, young adults, and newly married couples. We are looking forward to connecting with them as they enter in or are currently in the second phase of their lives. Through lessons we have learned, it is our desire to walk with them and facilitate/create an environment that fosters community and spiritual growth.

We will look first at Acts 2 for what real community consists of and then proceed through the book of Galatians for an in depth study of Grace.

National Donut Day

It's National Donut Day! That's right, go to any Dunkin Donuts or Krispy Kreme and receive your free donut. As some of you may be learning, I love coffee and donuts! Go ahead....get a free donut!

Perfect Sportsmanship

The baseball nation was poised to witness history last night with the potential "perfect game" in sight for Detroit Tigers pitcher Armanda Gallaraga. After retiring 26 consecutive outs, the potential final out of the game was ruled safe at first by umpire Jim Joyce. What was clearly a missed called, and admitted missed after the game by Joyce, halted Gallarage from being the 21st pitcher in baseball history to record a perfect game. Though the Detroit Tigers would defeat the Cincinnati Reds 3-0, the spirit of loosing the perfect game was another blow to a struggling town.

In the midst of great disappointment for baseball fans (as well as Jim Joyce), one thing stood out to me as I watched the event unfold. From the one who should have been bothered the most, the pitcher, the nation witnessed sportsmanship at its best. Gallaraga, though I am sure disappointed, responded with respect for authority on the call that was made and refused to make any comment on the umpire in after game interviews. Sure, he could have rightfully blamed Jim Joyce for blowing history (as most of us did in the moment), but he made a choice to celebrate the great performance he had and accept the way in which the game was played.

Sportsmanship is and should be the standard by which we participate in any recreational or professional sporting event. Sportsmanship involves the following:

• respecting the game - rules, coaches, umpires, fans, and others participating
• playing by the rules - removing any cheating or shortcuts
• playing your best - do the best you can despite what occurs during the contest, it's not whether you win or lose, but how you play the game
  
• being proactive and not reactive - doing your part to represent sportsmanship in light of circumstantial issues within a contest
  
• demonstrating a healthy competitive spirit with self restraint - play hard with self control, refusing silly fouls, penalties, and self promotion

While we were all anxiously cheering for the perfect game, what we witnessed was perfect sportsmanship. Gallaraga applied each of these points in the moment of controversy and pressed on to complete the game with a one hitter in 9 complete innings. Which is still a great performance.

Take Your Best Shot

I just finished the book entitled Take Your Best Shot by Austin Gutwen. In 2004 Austin was nine years old and set out on a journey that would touch the lives of children throughout the world. His passionate desire to raise funds for AIDS victims living in Africa was achieved through 2,057 free throw shots on a local basketball court. Austin took one simple video, a round ball, and turned it into what is now known as "Hoops of Hope" with events held in over seventeen countries and over one million dollars raised to impact kids through basketball each year on World AIDS Awareness Day.

Austin's message to the reader: "God wants to use you."

Throughout each chapter, Austin lays out some great truths of God and God's desire to use each person for His kingdom while on earth. This book is not only applicable to the teenager who may be struggling with a purpose and passion, but it is a great reminder to adults that God desires us to be challenged and stretched in our Christian work.

A couple of key points I picked up:
* A passion for someone always begins with a broken heart. It was a broken heart and a sacrificed son that provided us salvation through Christ. It was a broken heart for kids living in Africa with AIDS that led to the dream and vision of "Hoops of Hope."
* Maggie Moments are critical. For Austin, Maggie was the first person introduced to him that created a moment of concern and passion. Can we see a face in need? Are we experiencing Maggie Moments in our lives for people or places in desperation?
*Everybody lives for something and dies someday. What are we living for? What if we would give to others as much as we give to ourselves.
*It's all a matter of focus. If we focus on what we do, it becomes all about us. If we focus on who we are, then it suddenly becomes about God.
*It depends how available we are if we make a difference or not. Choosing to be available will allow for God to work through you in greater ways.
*Key to Life: Loving God, ourselves, and others will open the door to life as God intends (Matthew 22:37-38).
*Discover your passion and live in it.
*Making a difference in contagious.

Check out www.hoopsofhope.org for more info.

Thanks to a good friend and fellow laborer in recreation ministry Ed Berenson for giving me this book to read and explore. Ed lives in passion for making a difference. If you don't know him..watch out..his contagious.

Extraodinary with the Ordinary

Just returned from our basketball trip to Halifax, Nova Scotia. And I am simply amazed.

Once again God was faithful in our travels, our camp work, and to Himself. After arriving safely in Halifax and getting settled with a fresh lobster meal ($5 a pound!), we started off with some praise and worship for the week. Then it was preparation time Monday morning for what would be ahead of us in terms of opportunity and basketball camp details.

Our desire throughout the week was to be able to connect with the local community while we were out and about (mainly at Tim Horton's coffee shop - it's where all the locals go. And no I am not addicted, just committed) and to provide a basketball camp atmosphere that fostered fundamentals, positive reinforcement, and spiritual truth through team huddles and building blocks of character as represented in the scriptures. We also hosted a class for parents discussing the culture of sports and their child's involvement in it.

I must admit the response we received from the camp was somewhat shocking. Last year after the camp we received some negative feedback in terms of sharing the gospel. This year we found more parents and children receptive to the love reflected through our coaches and the verbal witness of Christ. I believe this change occurred over the past year due to the effort in which Living Hope Community put forth in hosting a winter basketball league and building relationships. The people of Halifax have now seen and heard the message of Christ. And because of that love they have opened up to a new trust level that allowed for us to return and go deeper with a different response. The reminder of this in terms of a missions perspective is that it's about relationships! It's about partnering and working together with a commitment to a community for more than one "trip."

Another moment of shock for me was that despite the fact that Living Hope only has 40 active members, they actually pulled off hosting and developing a league that was affective for their community. Within this group of folks there is not athletic directors, former college or high school basketball players, and even recreation ministers. They are just different people from different backgrounds with a desire to be different in their community. From a biblical view, they are ordinary people doing extraordinary things because they yielded themselves to a God sized challenge. All I could do was sit back and chuckle at how God works.

As I return and reflect on this trip and how it has impacted my life, there are two key points:

1. Make and continue to build relationships. Have a genuine interest in people and what makes their world go round.
2. God uses ordinary people for extraordinary purposes.