All through the NFL playoffs, I spent much time scanning the various channels and listening to the experts’ analytical approaches to each matchup: who was going to win, who should win, who won't win and why it was important to win at all. When it comes to what is truly important, I think of the FCA Coaches Mandate, which offers a different take on importance.

After reading this, the concept takes on a different meaning, depending on where you are in your life and your faith. Read it here.

Ask any athlete who has ever won a championship game if they regret the time and effort they spent developing as a player. In the middle of the season, they may have been frustrated or tired, but when the end result is being a champion, no one wishes they had put in less effort or spent less time practicing.

In Mark 8 Jesus was confronted by a blind man with a pretty direct request: he wanted to see. Jesus touched the man and asked if he saw anything. He could see, but not clearly. Did Jesus make a mistake? Or did He want the man to learn something about the way He works?

Living in full view of the microscopic public eye can test the will of even the strongest of characters. Tony Dungy can certainly attest to that brutal truth. As the celebrated head coach of the Indianapolis Colts, he’s experienced the pinnacle of success, the most tragic of personal losses and everything in between.

For the average Joe, experiencing a few highs and lows with plenty of non-descript days in between is simply called “life.” But for Dungy—when every detail is reported, discussed, prognosticated and opined—life is something completely different and looks more like a virtual three-ring circus in which triumphs and defeats are fodder for the masses.

Perhaps more than anyone else, we coaches can appreciate the athletic imagery used in the Bible. The writer of Hebrews encourages his readers to “run the race” that is set before them, and from his words we can draw four encouragements as we run the spiritual race of faith set before us.