You Are Here > Alphabetical / Alphabetical
After a tough loss on Sunday, I really didn’t feel like being very positive. It took me awhile to get out of the locker room because I didn’t want to talk to anybody, let alone face people who would inevitably ask that question, “Did you win?” I shut myself up in my room and didn’t move for a few hours, feeling like not only was I a failure, but also the whole day was as well.
Recently I was in a rough part of the world leading girls basketball clinics. I traveled by myself to work with some local believers. The word spread about the clinics and soon there was a lot of media coverage, including the national television station. I began to worry, as I did not want the whole country to know I was there. The next day a suicide bomb killed 20 people in the city where I was. Then my picture showed up on the cover of their newspaper for the work I was doing. I received a phone call from staff in the States advising that I get on the next flight out, but first to talk with my hosts and pray.
I once talked with a gold medalist. She was a champion of champions, a record holder, a true finisher. As she described all the races she had won, I was most fascinated by the one she had lost. She had started this race much like all the rest, set in her lane waiting for the gun. She had asked the official where the finish line was, and he assured her that she would finish where she started. So the race began and she quickly moved into a position that would easily qualify her for the next round. However, as she approached the end, she eased up and coasted to the finish line, only to be suddenly overtaken by a lurking opponent.
After inheriting a team that had won only four games the previous two years, Ron Zook set out on a course to turn the University of Illinois football program around. While the record didn't change as quickly as Coach Zook would have liked, winning just two games in each of his first two years, the 2007 Illini have won eight games including wins against No. 5 ranked Wisconsin and No. 1 Ohio State. "If you believe in something, and you know you're doing the right thing, you've just got to stay the course," Zook said.
In last week’s NFL playoff game, Ryan Grant of the Green Bay Packers fumbled the ball away twice in the first few minutes of the game. Grant’s turnovers resulted in the Seattle Seahawks taking a commanding 14-point lead before the Packers, or Grant, knew what hit them. It would have been easy for Grant, a young player and first year starter for the Packers, to have his confidence shaken and to take himself out of the game psychologically. However, with focus and great intensity, he bounced back and ran like a veteran, racking up over 200 yards on the ground and helping the Packers to a victory over the Seahawks.
In cycling, riders will follow closely behind the cyclist in front of them to decrease the effects of wind resistance. This is called drafting. Drafting allows for faster speeds at an easier effort level. When drafting, you fix your eyes on the back tire of the cyclist in front of you. This requires you to have a great deal of trust in the rider in front of you to pick a straight line, keep a steady pace and to point out pot holes and debris on the street.
One of God’s greatest gifts to us is that he is willing to direct our paths. He has prepared a way for us, but we must be willing to follow it. It is easy to say we want to take God’s path, but it is just as easy to get off course.
The other day I decided to go on a new mountain bike trail. I began riding in the shade of the mountain and the trees until I came to a split in the road. On the left there was a trail called Creek Mouth and on the right was Sugar Island. I’d originally planned just to ride Sugar Island, but I looked on the map to see where Creek Mouth would put me out at. Unfortunately, it wasn't on the map. Still, the name sounded interesting and I knew I had to ride it.
“Coach, I couldn't make it to weight-lifting on time because I had to get my hair cut.”
Apparently there wasn't enough time in the day for this athlete to handle his busy schedule. It's not like there was any other time in the day he could have gotten a haircut. It must have been a life-or-death situation!
Ministry
Sport
Book of the Bible
FCA Bible Topic