After losing every game during soccer season, I learned a lot about perseverance, or “doing the deal” in the face of great odds. We all like to win, but it becomes harder for a coach and her players to keep going during a losing streak. It’s not easy encouraging players to win when they realistically don’t have a chance. What we needed in our town was a recreational soccer league. Such a league would be instrumental in helping players develop their skills; however, those who could make the league happen didn’t believe it would be successful. Consequently, I wrestled in prayer about whether or not I was really called to coach; it didn’t appear that I was doing the players any good.

The 2003-04 college football season has ended. So who is the best team in the country? USC and LSU both ended the season with only one loss and ranked No. 1 in the AP and coaches polls, respectively. Should there be a playoff system for Division I college football? Because these two teams will not get a shot to decide the national championship on the field, these debates will go on for a long, long time.

We say it all the time. It has become part of our lingo, and we don’t realize we are saying it. Most church meetings begin with these words: Let’s have a quick word of prayer. I believe these seven words grieve God’s heart, because He desires a lasting conversation—not lip service.

The underlying message is, “Before we get to the important stuff, let’s rush through the God stuff.” It becomes a rote habit that bypasses our heart. It helps us look spiritual, but lacks power. Connecting with God can't be rushed. God must think, “There they go again! I wish they wouldn’t think of Me as a ritual or a rabbit’s foot that they can rub for good luck before they start their meeting.”

Paul “Bear” Bryant, born on September 11, 1913, once said, “It’s not the will to win that matters; everyone has that. It’s the will to prepare to win that matters.” September 11, 2001, will forever be remembered as one of our country’s worst tragedies; however, on September 11, 1983, I experienced my own tragedy. On that day, I suffered a spinal cord injury during a football game. I dislocated three vertebrae in my neck, and was told I would never walk again and could be permanently paralyzed from the neck down. Today, twenty-two years later, I am confined to a wheelchair.

Touchdown celebrations have reached a whole new level these days. High-fives from your teammates just don’t cut it anymore. After making a touchdown catch against the Giants in week 15 of the 2003 season, New Orleans Saints’ wide receiver Joe Horn pulled out his cell phone from the goalpost and made a call from the end zone. One NFL coach responded, “This is a team game. There was a quarterback that threw the ball, and there was an offensive line that protected for him. I just think that when you draw attention to yourself, it’s not necessary.”