The Hall of Fame football coach of the Green Bay Packers once said, “Once a man has made a commitment to a way of life, he puts the greatest strength in the world behind him. It’s something we call heart power. Once a man has made this commitment, nothing will stop him short of success.” Many times I have looked at overwhelming obstacles in my life and have felt like there was no chance of victory. However, I have learned that no matter how big an obstacle is, I serve a God who gives me victory in spite of overwhelming odds. Caleb and Joshua wanted to conquer the people of Jericho when the rest of Israel was afraid.

How do you prepare for a game? For a season? For a test? Do you spend time making a game plan that will work, or do you just hope for the best? Watching teams play over the years in many different sports, you begin to wonder. You see some teams work their plans to perfection, and you wonder if others just roll the balls out in practice while the coach takes a nap. Now, we know that never happens, but in preparing for a contest or upcoming season, much time is devoted to the details it takes to make sure you are ready to compete. Then it comes — the final day before the games begin. Will the team be able to put into practice what they worked so hard at perfecting? Physically they may be ready, but what about mentally, or better yet, spiritually? Spiritually prepared?

I love ESPN’s Top 10 Plays of the Day. There’s something about sports highlights that makes me want to lace up the shoes and put on the jersey again! Even though ESPN’s is my favorite Top 10 list, there are many others out there. Certainly, David Letterman made it famous with his comical late-night list. But did you know that God created the original Top 10 list a long time ago? It’s called the Ten Commandments.

An imprint is a permanent mark. To leave a mark means to engrave, etch, impress or inscribe. When I was 8 years old, I had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to ride my older brother's motorcycle. I wanted to show him how "big" I was, so I took off with reckless abandon. About 100 yards down the dirt road, my front tire hit a hole that I hadn’t seen. As I flew through the air, my life passed before my eyes! I landed in a ditch, and the motorcycle landed on my back. Ouch! Thankfully, as a result of being in the ditch, the only part of the motorcycle that was touching my back was the muffler. As the muffler burned through my shirt and my flesh, I experienced a great deal of pain. My brother rescued me, and I was forbidden to ride his bike ever again.

Not long ago, I stopped in a nearby town for coffee. When I went to wash my hands, I noticed the shiny new hand dryer on the restroom wall with the words “Feel the Power” printed on it. I pushed the button and got a blast of hot air! It was like one of those huge dryers from the car wash had been compacted into a tiny hand dryer. Now, whenever someone mentions that town, I think of that hand dryer, a silly reminder of my experience there!

Sometimes I wonder how I’ll be remembered as a coach. When someone mentions my coaching career, will they note the wins and losses, the calls I made or failed to make? Or will they remember how I served and acted as a coach?

There had not been an undefeated winner in the Kentucky Derby since Seattle Slew did it in 1977. Fans watching the 2004 Derby saw a Pennsylvania-bred horse named Smarty Jones, with a trainer and a jockey who were both Derby rookies, end the 27-year drought by running his record to 7-0. Jockey Stewart Elliott said, "At the three-eighths pole I was biding my time. I knew I had a loaded gun beneath me. He straightened up, switched leads, and I figured it was time to go."