Ben Zobrist has one of those stories. The ones that make kids play harder, dream bigger and aim higher. The ones that inspire even the most improbable of visions. The ones that seem to spotlight the magnitude and sovereignty of God. Undrafted and unscholarshipped out of high school, Zobrist thought his baseball days were over when he finished his senior season at Eureka High School in Eureka, Ill. Like a typical senior, he weighed his career options and college choices, and even looked into a Bible college in Kansas City. But midway through the summer, he still didn’t know where to go or what to do.
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God’s Word Is Perfect for Coaches
Set:Coaches have it tough. Let’s be honest. There’s a stigma that we are all ex-jocks and not very good classroom teachers. There are many stereotypes about coaches: “They are teachers who get all the breaks without really working hard in the classroom…They get to miss faculty meetings…They eat meals with their teams that are paid for by the school…They sit down all day and hand out worksheets to their students…They think winning ballgames is the most important thing in the world.” For some coaches, these stereotypes may be true, but I know many where that is not the case.
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God's Draft Picks
Set:Former University of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow had arguably the greatest college football career of any player. He was awarded the Heisman Trophy, set a record for most touchdowns scored in a career, and he led the Gators to two BCS National Championships. Tebow’s trademark look during his college days was the eye-black strips (used by athletes to fight the sun's glare in their eyes) he wore with Bible Scripture references written on them. He was never ashamed to talk about his faith in God, which oddly caused many to question his mental toughness.
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God’s Game Plan
Set:All coaches know that to give their athletes or their team the best chance at success or reaching their goals, three things are needed: discipline, training, and a game plan. The game plan simply means to use one’s strengths to exploit the opponent’s weakness. A good game plan is a must. Often, we fail because of the wrong game plan or simply a faulty one.
Life is a competition. We meet challenges every day that present opportunities to help us be successful. We also construct game plans for daily life. We must know our strengths and weaknesses, our opponent (Satan), listen to our coach (Jesus Christ), train hard, and have discipline to reach our goal of knowing Christ.
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Fear and Confidence
Set:It appears that our hearts are the repositories for both confidence and fear. When we feel overmatched by a seemingly superior opponent, it’s our heart that keeps us from fearing him. When it seems like everything is going badly, when all the momentum has swung to the other team’s bench, it’s our heart that brims with confidence in spite of it all. A coach’s heart is the key that enables his or her team to compete strongly.
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The Attitude of Winners
Set:There are times in baseball when it seems like nothing goes right. You drop a fly ball, you strike out, you ground into a double play, your team gives up a bunch of runs. . . None of those are very encouraging, and people usually get mad and throw fits in those cases. You see this in the pros all the time. Managers especially can throw some of the biggest fits if an umpire doesn't make the call that they want. You would think that adults wouldn't throw fits!Athletes and coaches often think that winning is everything, but truthfully, it is not. A person's attitude--win or lose--helps determine true winners and losers.
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God's Grace
Set: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.”
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The Best of Teams
Set:Most sports are made up of teams. And after playing on many different teams, athletes often remember the ones that were real joys to be a part of. For me, it was freshman year in football when everyone was enthusiastic. Everyone wanted the group to do well, and the seniors were just awesome guys--the kind of people who had a genuine interest in all of the underclassmen. They truly set an example for motivation and effort. We saw this in a lot of different forms: the lineman blocking especially hard for the quarterback, the amount of encouragement from the sidelines, the seniors who would talk to the freshman in the halls, and their all-around good attitudes. -
Success
Set:In today’s world it seems like every one defines success in numbers of wins and losses. Not everyone is going to win all the time so it is not a very good measure of success. With all the pressure put on players and coaches to put up the big win numbers we are all losing sight of why we really play the game.
John Wooden defines success as, “the peace of mind that is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become the best you are capable of becoming”. How many times have you seen people wanting success but not wanting to put the work in to achieving it? I like to work out on the stationary bike and treadmill.
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Tebow, McCoy Take Faith, Skills to NFL
What is left to write about Tim Tebow?
We all know his resume: a Heisman Trophy. Two Maxwell Awards. As a freshman backup quarterback, Tebow used his fullback-style runs and old school-style jump passes to be a complimentary part of Florida’s 2006 national championship team.
Two years later, Tebow was a “part” of Florida’s 2008 national champions the same way Michael Jordan was a “part” of the Chicago Bulls’ six NBA titles.
Tebow led the entire nation in passing efficiency during his senior year. He graduates with over 9,200 passing yards, almost 3,000 rushing yards and 145 touchdowns via his arm or his feet.
What is left to write about Tim Tebow?
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