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As an NHL player, I’ve never been quick to admit my fears, but I’ve definitely had them. When facing Edmonton in game seven of the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals, I was more nervous than I’d ever been in my athletic career. Leaning on God during that game helped me find strength to face my fears head on. We ended up winning the game and the Stanley Cup, a first for the Carolina Hurricanes.
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Often times we are faced with adversity or obstacles in our path in life. Everyone’s trials, although similar in many ways, are unique to that person. We can never look at someone else’s suffering and how he or she handles it and lay judgment of the strength of their faith. Each one of us deals with our challenges in our own distinctive way as God deals with us in His unique manner.
Let’s consider who has had the biggest influence on our athletic careers. Has there been more than one person who has made a significant impact on our abilities as athletes? First Corinthians 3:6 speaks about compounded influence.
In Paul’s first letter to his friends in Corinth, he used a familiar farming illustration. Let’s turn Paul’s farming comparison into a sports analogy.
Growing an athlete is like growing crops. There’s obvious collaboration among those who plant, cultivate, irrigate, and harvest. In the same way, growing a champion involves the compounding influences of parents, coaches, teammates, opponents, and so on.
As athletes, we play with the abilities God has given us. But what really drives us to play the game? For some it’s the praise of parents, coaches, and friends, or awards and medals. Often our self-worth and dedication to the game is driven purely on the thoughts, praises, and criticisms of others.
As a young coach I had a sign on my office door: “Rules for Our Program. Rule 1. The Coach is always right. Rule 2. If you think the coach is wrong, see Rule 1.” My players always thought that was funny and, remarkably, true most days. Throughout athletics, rules govern the game. Our lives are no different.
Question: Would you rather have one incredible sports season filled with recognition and awards, or five average seasons filled with good, solid consistent performances? How we answer that challenging question reveals how we are wired as competitors. Are you the type of competitor who looks for the next big opportunity or who digs in right where you are? In the sports world today, we see players jump teams mid-season, coaches leave great programs for bigger paychecks, and even entire teams change cities. The grass always looks greener on the other side of the fence, doesn’t it? That is why we are quick to pursue the next big, great opportunity.
I’ll admit it . . . I love to watch NASCAR. I am fascinated by the speed of the cars and the drivers who work all week to prepare for a race every Sunday. What would happen if they just came to the track on Sunday without doing anything to their cars all week? Or what if they let some other carmaker try to use outside parts on their car? They would do poorly and probably wouldn’t finish the race. These cars are high-maintenance, bought and conditioned as finely-tuned machines to perform at peak abilities when it is time to go.
There are some things that just set a coach off. Together those things make up what I call my "Hot List"--things that made me mad fast!
1. A lazy player.
2. Someone who is constantly late.
3. Those who would rather complain than try harder.
4. Those who blame everyone else and never take responsibility for their own actions.
These players really pushed me to the limit as a coach. Was there redeeming value in them? Absolutely. But rarely did they see it in themselves.
How many times, as athletes or coaches, have we been nervous before a big game? Maybe we were getting ready to play the big school rivalry game. Maybe it was a playoff game. Maybe a boyfriend or girlfriend was in the stands. Maybe we just get nervous in front of big crowds. We all handle these situations differently. Some of us get sick to our stomachs. Some cannot stop talking or moving around. Others come across as unfazed. These athletes seem to know the secret to remaining calm under pressure.
Jesus chose the disciples as His team—all twelve of them—and all twelve failed! When Jesus was betrayed by Judas and arrested, the disciples ran away into hiding. They started out wanting to defend Jesus, but fear took over. Jesus predicted this would happen, yet still wanted these men on His team.
We all fail. As athletes we will blow an assignment, strike out, or miss a shot. When this happens will the coach still want us on the team? Truthfully, sometimes yes and sometimes no. But if we keep trying and do not give up, we are more likely to keep our spot on the team.
I once read about a basketball coach who told a player who received four Fs and one D on his report card, “Son, looks like you’re spending too much time on one subject.” That kind of wisdom is trouble. Too often wisdom is considered to be just “smarts,” but it is much more than that. Knowledge is knowing, but wisdom is knowing when to use it.
Most students who find themselves in situations or places that they hoped they’d never be do so because of tiny compromises that they made early in their life journey. I have never met a student who has ever identified alcoholism as a career goal. Neither have I met an ambitious student whose “Top 10 Things to Do Before Graduation” included becoming a parent prematurely, getting kicked off the team, or losing the trust and respect of their parents.
Although most students would want to avoid these misfortunes like the plague, many engage in behaviors that increase the probability of them experiencing these situations. These compromises are common among all teens, black or white, rich or poor, and regardless of whether they live in the city or suburbs.
As a coach, it’s hard to make athletes understand that improvement takes place in the off-season. I would always get the same excuse about needing time off after a hard season. Work ethic is a big deal to a coach. Athletes who put in the work are always better off in the end.
In athletics we do a good job of misusing the verb need. We need a win. We need new uniforms. We need this player to play well. We need to raise this much with our fund-raiser. We need to have everyone at workouts.
The only problem is we are not looking at the verb need right. When we use need, we use it to mean something we would like to have. All of the situations above are things any coach or athlete would like to have. Who would not like new uniforms every season? We should use need a little differently.
Following God even when you are in doubt is difficult. Oftentimes we get caught up in the uncertainty of our future forgetting who is ultimately in charge. After Moses died Joshua was immediately made Commander in Chief of all the Israelites. A responsibility that required leading God's chosen people to the Promised Land.
When Joshua takes his new position God immediately instructs him three times to "Be strong and courageous," as he leads God's people into battle. Joshua must blindly follow God despite the uncertainty of his future. Not only must Joshua remain unwavering in his faith as the Israelites fight their adversaries, but also he must stay diligent in conquering the temptations that come along the way--after-all he is looked upon as their leader.
Athletes must strive to get better every day. No matter how talented we are, there is always room for improvement. We may be the best in our school or sport, but if we get satisfied, we will not become all God wants us to be.
Following God even when you are in doubt is difficult. We often get caught up in the uncertainty of our future and forget Who is ultimately in charge. After Moses died Joshua was immediately made the Israelites’ “Commander in Chief,” and part of his responsibility was leading God's chosen people into the Promised Land.
When Joshua took his new position God instructed him three times to be “strong and courageous” as he led God's people into battle. Joshua had to boldly follow God despite the uncertainty of the future. And not only did he have to remain unwavering in his faith as the Israelites fought their adversaries, he also had to stay diligent to conquer the temptations that came along the way.
Hall of Fame basketball coach John Wooden once said, “A leader’s most powerful ally is his or her own example. There is hypocrisy to the phrase ‘Do as I say, not as I do.’ I refused to make demands on my boys that I wasn’t willing to live out in my own life.”
Too often as athletes and coaches, we desire to live a life we know we cannot live. What I mean is that we desire for our external life (the life everyone sees—wins and accomplishments) to be greater than our internal life (our thoughts and desires).
As the Competitor’s Creed states, your desire as an athlete is to “compete for the pleasure of [your] Heavenly Father, the honor of Christ and the reputation of the Holy Spirit.” That is truly competing with a spiritual focus, not a physical focus.
I recently saw my old coach whom I love and respect. He seemed even closer to Christ and his faith more vibrant than the last time I saw him. He is 67 and still desires to be transformed into the likeness of Christ. It gives me great optimism. My coach will never change. For him to change would be to stop moving forward, to stop desiring God. He knows he is on a journey, he knows where his citizenship rests.
Can we grasp how hard it is, and yet how fundamental it is to progress? Our brains, bodies, and even friends resist our transformation. Habit, routine, and a planned agenda give a sense of security. The older we get, the harder change becomes. It is much easier to transplant a sapling than a mature tree.
Henry Ford used to dress incognito and walk throughout his factories, randomly giving $100 bills to those working hard and staying on task, even though their managers were far out of sight. As word spread about this “mystery money man,” production sales skyrocketed. By 1914, Ford held roughly 48% of the automobile industry.
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