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If you think about it, the idea of lifting weights seems like an odd concept. “You want me to do what to my body? Why would I intentionally hurt myself? That doesn’t make any sense.” But we all know that even though our bodies are initially torn up they rebuild themselves to become much stronger and tougher.
This Tryout Training session and all additional sessions require the Tryout Training Playbook. This printed book is a companion to the online sessions. You will also need 2 other books that serve as supplementary reading.
Please contact the FCA staff person you are working with to obtain the Tryout Training Playbook if you do not have a copy. The following questions and sessions will not "make sense" without it.
A Christian teen doesn’t want to take Jesus to a wild party, when invited. At first, he says no but he doesn’t resist the temptation. After making a poor decision to go to the party, he ends up regretting the decision when he realizes that Jesus is with him at the party because now that Jesus is in his life, He goes everywhere. At the end of the skit, a couple of his friends, who are obviously Christians are walking by and they see him and say, "Hey, let's get out of here. We really know how to have fun.”
What should we do when our friends repeatedly make the same sinful mistakes? Some would say, “I cannot change them.” Others would say, “That’s just who they are,” and even, “They will never listen to me.” However, if these friends are followers of Christ, we need to hold them to the commitments they made in Christ. They need to hold us to the same standard as well. We all need accountability. When someone feels he/she does not need it, that is the beginning of great trials ahead.
A Christian athlete speaks throughout the community about his faith and then gets arrested for drug use. A Christian coach prays with his team before every game and then it is discovered that he has been illegally recruiting players for years. A pastor builds a church from 200 to 2,000 members and then leaves his wife and children to run off with the church secretary.
Ever since Leslie Frazier was born on April 3, 1959, in the midst of many personal and social complexities in the segregated South, life has been a trade-off of big trials and big successes. But in each instance, the truth of Romans 8:28—Frazier’s favorite verse—has been validated. He knows that God truly does work for the good of those who love Him and have been called according to His purpose.
He knows because he is living proof.
I will never forget playing basketball my freshman year of college. I had just graduated from a Christian high school and was ready to impact all of my fellow teammates. While on road trips, I would have to stay in a room with two other teammates. During every trip, I would deliberately take out my Bible at night and do a quiet time, thinking that if my teammates saw me reading the Bible, they would ask questions. I thought by doing this, I was being a leader.
At the same time I was doing quiet times, I was struggling with sinful language. During practices, games, or just walking around campus with my teammates, profanity was always coming out of my mouth. I felt I had to be that way to get respect from my teammates and to be taken seriously.
If God’s will is a highway, Russ Ortiz doesn’t want to spend anymore time on the side roads.
After tearing through his first seven seasons in the majors with outstanding numbers, Ortiz found himself in unfamiliar territory in 2005. Not only did he make his first trip to the disabled list with a stress fracture in his ribs, he also experienced his first losing season at the major-league level. As a result, Ortiz, who came to Christ at an FCA Huddle meeting at the University of Oklahoma, found himself struggling with new challenges and frustrations. And what he learned was that God’s way is always better than man’s way.
Webb Simpson's U.S. Open Championship trophy may tarnish with time, but his Savior's offer of salvation will forever be secure.
There’s a scene in the Disney movie “Aladdin” in which Jasmine is out on the balcony of her palace and Aladdin is on his magic carpet trying to get her to come with him and go explore “A Whole New World.” The key line in the scene is when Aladdin says to Jasmine, “Do you trust me?” Jasmine agrees to trust Aladdin and is taken on the ride of her life!
That same type of trust is required from us as Christians when we decide to follow God. With God, belief alone is not enough; we must trust Him with our lives. Just believing in God is no good to us. We need to have faith in Him, and trust is the next step from faith.
Although Grace Johnson isn’t balancing on the beam anymore, the former All-American gymnast from the University of Georgia is as close to the sport as she’s ever been. Only now, instead of doing handsprings herself, she’s teaching others. The athletes she now coaches at the Oconee Gymnastics Center in Watkinsville, Georgia, are reaping the benefits of not only high-quality gymnastics training, but also many of the spiritual and life lessons that Johnson learned during her own time on the floor.
FCA encourages donors to consider other unique giving opportunities beyond cash as a means to impact the ministry. Much of the world’s wealth is tied up in assets rather than available in cash. Donors can be good stewards and leave a legacy through estate planning and the donation of non-cash assets.
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In the previous devo "My Strength" I talked about how the dog (enemy) came out of nowhere at an angle and speed in which Abbie only had a few split seconds to react to the attacking dog. Ephesians 6:16 talks about “taking the shield of faith, and with it you will be able to extinguish the flaming arrows of the evil one.” But a shield is only as effective as the soldier who is trained properly to use it. And even the greatest skilled soldier after numerous years of training and preparation can still be struck by the enemy’s flaming arrows if it is shot by a highly skilled enemy just like Abbie was attacked by the dog.
We have all had bad days—days when we wondered what we were doing with our lives. For me, a bad day is when I feel I don’t want to be principal any more…a day when I say to God, “Remember me? I’m one of your boys—the coach. I’m the guy who wrote the books—the devotionals. Lord, is this supposed to be happening?” We’ve all wondered why Christians have to go through the storms of life. If we’re honest, we have a tendency to think that maybe some other folks in the world deserve tough times more than we do.
One mission, one focus, one man carrying out a plan for one purpose: Gary Brasher is that man! On November 20-22, 2009, Gary will do what is seemingly unthinkable by completing back-to-back-to-back Iron-distance triathlons to raise funds for student-athletes to go to FCA Camps. During those three grueling days, he will cover 422.6 miles. So, why would he do this? Why would he put his body through such suffering and pain? Because he is a man on a mission.
There is a lot of information to be digested in this lesson. Take your time to discuss the points where needed. Let the Spirit of God speak to your heart. Practically, it may be best to read the chapter first. Then, use the bullet points for clarification and discussion.
God Provides an Answer to the Vision
Read Daniel 11:2-12:13. The prophecy in this chapter is very detailed about events in the future. The accuracy and fulfillment of these events have led many skeptics to believe that this portion of Daniel was written by someone else after all the events occurred, but I am not a skeptic!
Here are some thoughts on the historical fulfillment of this vision:
In sports, you hear a lot about two very different kinds of athlete. One is labeled an “underachiever”—an athlete who has a ton of talent but gets by putting out the minimal effort. The other is referred to as an “overachiever”— someone who makes up for a lack of physical giftedness and athletic prowess with an abundance of hard work, determination, and drive.
Every time I hear about a coach who has been fired after a year or two at a school, it breaks my heart. I once told an athletic director that it would take four years to turn a program around to contend for a league championship. That was not what he wanted to hear, so I did not get the job.
In our society we want everything right now. Actually, we wanted it yesterday. A great example is in the fact that we actually drive through places to get our food. At most fast food places they don’t even hold the cup to fill your drink anymore; they put it on a belt, it goes under a fountain, they push a button, and the drink comes out. I suppose it’s faster. I’m not sure it’s better, but it’s faster.
Following the commonly traveled player-turned-coach path, Lebanon Valley women’s lacrosse coach Jackie Dando has gone from executing game plans to creating them. In her first year as head coach, the West Chester, Pa., native is drawing from her past experiences—and her faith—to lead the Dutchmen lacrosse program and help athletes develop as self-confident women away from the game.
Last December, STV asked Leah Rush, starting power forward of the nationally ranked University of Oklahoma women’s basketball team, to give readers a peek into her daily routine by logging a game-day journal.
Rush agreed and kept a dairy on Dec. 20, the day of the Sooners’ homecourt showdown with Ohio State, which was then a match-up between the third- and eighth-ranked teams in the country. To that point, the Sooners were undefeated on the season, but the Buckeyes stunned OU that night with a 74-67 upset. Certainly this journal looks different than Rush expected, but that’s life — a day in the life of a college athlete.
One of my favorite urban legends is about a young man who was training to become an Olympic diver. He wasn’t a Christian man, and really, the only religious influence in his life came from one of his outspoken Christian friends. The young diver never really paid much attention to his friend’s “frequent sermons” and preferred not to think about the matter.
One night, however, the diver was feeling very troubled by the cares of the world so he went to the indoor pool at his college thinking that making a few dives would help him relax. The lights were off, but as the pool had big skylights and the moon was bright, there was enough natural light for him to practice.
On a brisk Saturday morning a while ago, I hit the running trail with my FCA Endurance teammates for an 18-mile training run. The trail was desolate, and over time my fatigued mind began to drift back to my warm car waiting in the parking lot. We were more than 15 miles into the run, and the thought of less than a 5K left begged me to push harder and finish strong, but still I just didn’t feel like giving it my all.
It was about that time that I heard a sound—one that meant more to me than it did to my running buddies. It was the sound of an approaching train, and its noise drowned out the heavy breathing of our tiring pack.
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