Devotional Archive - April 2011
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April 28, 2011
Set:
When you go into a game, athletes have to think they will win. They can’t think they might win. They have to think they will win. If that happens on both sides, it means that there will be two teams entering the game thinking the same thing, and only one will get to live it out. No matter how much we wish we could all win, in the end, one of us will lose. And a big determining factor in who comes out victorious is the infamous game clock.
No matter how much we wish we could, we can’t put more time on the clock in any game. Each game we play is set up to be played in a certain amount of time. Whether it is counted by seconds and minutes or by innings or sets, each game has a set time frame. What we do in this amount of time determines the outcome of the game.
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April 25, 2011
Set:
Several years ago, I received a letter from the American Honda Financial Corporation, the business from which I borrowed the money to pay for my car. The top line read, "OFFICIAL NOTICE THAT YOUR BALANCE HAS BEEN PAID IN FULL. " Since I had purchased this car just a few months prior, I knew there was no way that my last payment had payed for my car IN FULL.
I thought of my dad first, that he would be the only person who would do something like this. But when I called him, he said that he had not. I shared with another FCA staff member about the letter and asked him if he knew anything about it.
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April 21, 2011
Set:
You step to the free throw line and look at the rim. “Just put the ball through the hoop, and we go to overtime,” you say to yourself. You've done this thousands of times in practice. Bounce the ball three times, spin it in your hands, look up at the rim and let her fly. But just when you're about to shoot, you take your eyes off the rim and gaze through the glass backboard at what seems like a million fans yelling, screaming, waving things, and doing whatever they can to distract you from making this shot. A home crowd would never try to distract you, but this is enemy territory, and they will do whatever they can to make you miss this shot.
You try to refocus. You let the ball go. It heads toward the hoop, bounces off the rim, and out…
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April 20, 2011
Set:
Baseball fans may remember one of the most notable events of last season. It was on June 2, 2010. Pitcher Armando Galarraga was one out away from a perfect game: no hits, no walks, no errors. An easy ground ball was hit to the first baseman who tossed the ball to Galarraga, who was covering the first base bag. His catch clearly beat the runner to the bag for the final out of the game, but a veteran umpire called the runner safe, therefore ending Galarraga’s perfect game. This mistake showed that even the veteran umpire wasn’t perfect. And, in reality, none of us are.
Every one of us makes mistakes. We all make misjudgments, bad calls and show our imperfections in a variety of ways. But there was one Man who lived the only perfect life in history: Jesus Christ.
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April 19, 2011
Set:
While out on a run the other day, I thought to myself, "I need new running shoes." Not WANT new running shoes; NEED new running shoes. These things are terrible! They are several years old, have been worn down, used and abused. They are literally falling apart! Sometimes I think it would be healthier for me not to run instead of grinding it out with these things.
As the run went on, all I kept thinking about was the need for new running shoes, and soon I realized that there was a spiritual parallel here. Stay with me on this one.
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April 18, 2011
Set:
Johnny was a new student at his school. His parents had taken new jobs out in the suburbs far from his old home in the city. Johnny stood out in the crowd, and he was left alone more often than not. Johnny’s skin color was different than that of most of the students, and he also talked differently. He felt like he was in a foreign country even though he was only 50 miles from his old school. It wasn’t long before he started to despise going to school every day. “Everyone hates me there,” he would tell his folks. That certainly appeared to be true. Except for one boy…
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April 15, 2011
Set:
It’s called the “sweet spot.” Every batter in baseball knows where it is. They dream about the sound the bat makes when they find it. From 5-year-old T-ball players to 25-year-old Major League All-Stars, every one of them wants to find the sweet spot. But it’s not just for baseball. Have you ever seen the look on a basketball player’s face when they know their shot is going in? Watch highlights of Michael Jordan from back in the day or of LeBron James now, and you’ll see what I mean.
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April 14, 2011
Set:
Every time a track meet comes around, memories of my past throws (shot put and discus) come rushing back into my mind—all of the times I’ve choked or have failed to do my best. I’m so anxious about how I need to make up for my short comings of the last meet that I never truly enjoy competing. Shame of the past always seems to bring me down.
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April 13, 2011
Set:
A while ago, our baseball team played an opponent we should have probably defeated, but we made some costly errors. The following day I was doing my devotion from “The Daily Light Journal” by Anne Graham Lotz. The title was “The Fruit of the Spirit Is…Joy.” That prompted me to think about the joys that had come through even in our team’s struggles: the salvation of a teammate, the development of many young players, the ability to lose and continue to practice hard. The list goes on and on.
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April 13, 2011
Set:
What is the treasure of your life? After March Madness, hopefully your treasure wasn’t in a perfect NCAA tournament bracket. But if, for example, our relationship with Jesus Christ is truly of utmost importance, then our time, energies, and day-to-day lifestyles should reflect that. Does it?
In Philippians 3, Paul communicates that what he once considered “gain” (when he was a Pharisee) he now considers “loss.” Just before those verses above, Paul stated in verses 5-6 that he had a great family heritage, social status, biblical knowledge, and even led a moral lifestyle. But when he came into a relationship with Christ, he realized that apart from the Lord, all of it was "loss."
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April 11, 2011
Set:
When I was a freshman in college, I heard this a lot. It was a one-sided conversation from my coach, and it went something like this: “If you want to get in the game, don’t leave my side. Stay right next to me. When I need a defensive lineman, I’m only going to yell once.”
This was a great coaching technique. In fact, I liked it so much that I used it myself when I became a coach, and it usually resulted in one or two players following me around like lost puppies. Recently, when I read James 4:8, I was reminded of these days. This verse tells us that when we come near to God, He will come near to us.
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April 08, 2011
Set:
Have you ever noticed how we tend to judge ourselves based on our intentions? Even if our actions were wrong or the outcome was bad, we still give ourselves the benefit of the doubt. Why is that? I think it is because we know that our intentions were good. Most of the time, we were trying to help others or trying to do the “right thing,” so even if it didn’t turn out right, we still encourage ourselves.
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April 07, 2011
Set:
Their comes a point in life where nothing just seems to go right. We get bad grades, we have to deal with injuries while we play a sport, we're not fitting in with the right crowd, or something just as simple like "I don't belong here." Trust me. I've been through my fair shares of these plenty of times. But no matter how dull life may seem, or how unlikely your luck is to turn around, you can't lose your Faith. Even when you think that everything seems impossible, it's not. Luke 1:37 states that NOTHING is impossible with God. More people need to believe this saying, because with all of the difficulties we face in the world everyday, I don't see how any of us could get through life without Christ.
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April 06, 2011
Set:
Nike sold a lot of shoes with their slogan “Just Do It.” Now, I’m not a Bible scholar or professional minister, but I think Nike should give some church somewhere a little compensation because I think they were probably the ones who came up with the phrase.
Last night, in the NCAA women’s national championship game, the Texas A&M Aggies took that quote to heart in their victory over Notre Dame. According to the post-game interviews, their coach had to “coach hard” during the game in order for the team to be successful. And the women responded well, topping the Irish 76-70.
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April 06, 2011
Set:
As competitors, we all know that in order to better yourself on the field, it is vital that you put out the effort in practice. Whether you’re running that last sprint, focusing on the details of a jump shot, or working the finer points of your throwing motion, it is necessary that you train, and push yourself to get better.
And just as weightlifting strengthens the body, we all need to take the time to get closer to God in order to strengthen our spirits. As Apostle Paul told Timothy, godliness has value for all things. Not just meaning value for this life, but also for the life we get to spend in heaven. (1Timothy 4:8) For that reason it is imperative that we live our lives as sacrifices, both holy and pleasing to God.
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April 05, 2011
Set:
Last night, at the age of 68, University of Connecticut men’s basketball coach Jim Calhoun became the oldest basketball coach to ever win an NCAA men’s basketball championship. In his team’s 53-41 win over the Butler Bulldogs, Calhoun earned his third title in his 39-year coaching career.
Calhoun’s milestone reminded me this morning about a man in Scripture whose age also made history. His name was Abraham, and, at the age of 100, he and his wife, Sarah, who was only 10 years younger, gave birth to their son, Isaac. While Abraham and Sarah had known for many years that God promised them a child, they couldn’t see how that would happen in their old ages.
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April 01, 2011
Set:
Many discussions about this year’s men’s Final Four have been filled with a number of main storylines: VCU and their improbable run, Butler’s incredible two-year dominance, UConn’s amazing post-season string, and Kentucky’s resilience. As story after story emerges about each team and their journey, members of each squad are discussing their season’s defining moments.
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