Words, like toothpaste, come out easily but can’t be put back in once they’ve come out. University of Oklahoma baseball coach Larry Cochell learned this firsthand. He was forced to resign from his coaching position for making insensitive remarks. “I am deeply sorry for any pain or embarrassment I have caused any individual or the university,” Cochell said. The individual on the receiving end of Coach Cochell’s words forgave him for the incident and did not want him to resign. “We all say things that we don’t mean,” this person said. “He made a mistake.”

The 2009-2010 Butler Bulldogs’ historic run to the NCAA Men’s Basketball National Championship was a Cinderella story that shocked America. They were overmatched in almost every game, yet they still persevered and defeated the odds. How did Butler accomplish what many national powerhouses failed to? Skill, determination, and school pride were factors in Butler’s success, but the true X-Factor was their coachability.

As the quarterback drops back and throws, the receiver hesitantly extends his arms toward to the ball. Sensing a defensive player closing in, he’s not eager to complete the catch. His focus is more on protecting himself from the defense’s attack. In situations like this, when a receiver demonstrates partial effort in catching a ball, it can be said he has “alligator arms.” And likewise, our faith can be like having “alligator arms.” At times, we fail to take full advantage of our opportunities to grow in our relationship with Christ or share our faith with others because we are afraid of what the costs may be. We let fear of circumstances control us, because we prefer to stay safe in our “comfort zone” rather than stretching ourselves and trusting in God.

As Christian competitors, we realize that God has called us to serve. But do we understand that we should be consumed to serve? Is there a consuming fire that burns in us to serve others around us who are hurting and to help those who need to experience the love of Christ through us?

In some ways it was an uncharacteristic win for Tiger Woods at the 2005 Masters. While entering the final 27 holes four shots behind Chris DiMarco, Woods stormed back with four straight birdies to turn the deficit into a two-shot lead. And just when it looked like he might run away with a big victory, DiMarco showed resolve by sticking with Tiger and sinking his par putt on the final hole to force a playoff. "This was one fun victory, but also a lot of work because I was playing with one heck of a competitor," Woods said. "He put up a heck of a fight."

There are two sayings that I have heard hundreds of times in my life. One is “You can’t tell a book by its cover,” and the other is an advertising statement that assures us “It’s what’s up front that counts.” I would like to take a little liberty with those two statements and apply them to the world of sports. I think that anyone who has played baseball can attest to the fact that “You can’t tell a baseball by its cover” and “It’s what’s inside that counts.”

I was in graduate school when the dean from a Christian college where I was working asked me to coach the women’s field hockey team (the team’s head coach had fallen ill). Although I loved playing field hockey, I had never considered coaching. But the players were due to arrive in two days, the dean looked desperate, and I didn’t have the heart to say no. I knew the game like a close friend—how hard could it be?

The day before last year’s Kansas City marathon, I was meeting with Chris Anderson, our National Director of FCA’s Endurance Ministry. I was fired up for the race but a bit anxious about trying to run a PR. As I was reflecting back on my training leading up to the race, I mentioned to him that I wished I’d done more long runs, more speed work, more conditioning, more everything. I was feeling the pressure. He smiled real big, leaned across the table and said, “Dan, at this point, the hay is in the barn. The race is tomorrow.

Elephants are some of the biggest, most powerful, and intelligent animals on the planet. And in certain parts of Asia, farmers still use elephants to do much of the heavy labor. Some countries even hold elephant festivals to
celebrate their strength and intelligence. These festivals always end with a tug-of-war between one elephant and
one hundred men—and you guessed it, the elephant always wins!

But amazingly, the only thing that elephant owners in Asia have to do to control an elephant is tie a rope to its right hind leg and a small wooden post in the ground. That’s it! The elephant won’t move, even though the wooden post and rope is like a toothpick and dental floss to you and me.

A Division I basketball school entered its conference tournament as the number eight seed, which meant a low probability of making it to the NCAA tournament. Despite the odds, they achieved that goal by knocking off the one-, two-, and four-seeded teams, thereby earning entry into the NCAA tournament. As one team member summarized, “We put it together when it counted most.” We all know that falling short of our expectations leads to disappointment both on and off the court. However, if we, like that eighth-seeded team, keep looking forward to even a small hope of success, we’ll often be glad we did.