Kurt Warner and the Arizona Cardinals will face the Pittsburgh Steelers tomorrow in Super Bowl 43. Sports reporters have talked about Kurt Warner’s story of going from a stock boy in a grocery store to 2 time MVP and Super Bowl quarterback. Then injuries, ineffective play, and other circumstances left Kurt Warner as an afterthought to professional football for 5 years. There were a lot of opportunities for Kurt to give up during this time and a lot of built in excuses including: 1) I’m too old, 2) I don’t have enough talent around me, 3) I don’t think people aren’t treating me fairly. Kurt chose to persevere during those tough years and was able to have a fantastic season (4,583 yards, 30 touchdowns) and led the Cardinals to their first Super Bowl ever.
Joseph is another example of how perseverance can lead to God being able to lead us through tough times and ultimately be exalted for conducting His work. Joseph was his father’s favorite son (Genesis 37:3). Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery in Egypt and told his father that he was dead (Genesis 37:23-33). One of Pharaoh’s officials bought Joseph’s services. He was so impressed by Joseph that he trusted Joseph to be in charge of everything in his house (Genesis 39:4-6). Joseph was thrown into prison after being falsely accused of rape, but God was still with Joseph. Ultimately God placed Joseph in charge of Egypt (Genesis 41:41) and allowed Joseph to save his family from the famine occurring in Israel.
What circumstance are you persevering through right now? Whatever it is, know that God is there for all who have trusted Christ as Lord and Savior. Just because things don’t seem to be working on our schedule doesn’t correlate into the fact God is not working. David asked “How long?” four different times in Psalm 13 before finally arriving at the conclusion that “I trust in your unfailing love” and that “He has been good to me”. Let’s remember what God has done, is doing, and will do in our lives and keep working for the His glory.
Showing posts with label perserverance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label perserverance. Show all posts
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Don't Give Up...Don't Ever Give Up
Some of you may have noticed that ESPN has been running events and promos highlighting the Jimmy V foundation during the past couple of weeks. Jim Valvano, or Jimmy V as he is more affectionately called, was the head coach of the NC State team that pulled a miraculous upset over Hakeem Olajwon and the University of Houston to win the 1983 national championship in basketball. The jubilation and excitement was evident as Jimmy V danced across the court. This normally would be the thought of as the greatest moment in a head coach's career. Jimmy V was not your normal basketball coach. His last mission after being diagnosed with cancer was to start a foundation to help save lives by helping find cures for cancer. His speech from the 1993 ESPY awards program still plays 15 years later on national TV and has millions of hits on YouTube. Cancer didn't defeat Jimmy V....it gave him focus for his passion and his perseverance created a lasting legacy.
Hearing Jimmy V's famous speech, my thoughts can't help but to turn to Philippians 3:13-14 "...Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead. I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Acts 20:24 teaches us a similar lesson in regards to focus "However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me – the task of testifying to God's grace." If we can stay passionate in our focus for sharing God's grace, then we can say like Paul at the end of his life "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith" (2 Timothy 4:7).
So, what can we do to press on and finish the race strong? Well, we can be prepared through: 1) staying in constant communication with God through prayer, 2) reading the playbook (Bible), 3) spending time in the video room (remembering what God has done in our own lives), and 4) having a group of mentors/friends that provide God-guided counsel. Utilizing these tools to be solidly prepared, we can more fully understand God's love and grace and share why no one should ever want to be separate from God. As we are in the midst of the Christmas season, do you know of someone who needs to know God's love more? What good words will you have for them?
Hearing Jimmy V's famous speech, my thoughts can't help but to turn to Philippians 3:13-14 "...Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead. I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Acts 20:24 teaches us a similar lesson in regards to focus "However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me – the task of testifying to God's grace." If we can stay passionate in our focus for sharing God's grace, then we can say like Paul at the end of his life "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith" (2 Timothy 4:7).
So, what can we do to press on and finish the race strong? Well, we can be prepared through: 1) staying in constant communication with God through prayer, 2) reading the playbook (Bible), 3) spending time in the video room (remembering what God has done in our own lives), and 4) having a group of mentors/friends that provide God-guided counsel. Utilizing these tools to be solidly prepared, we can more fully understand God's love and grace and share why no one should ever want to be separate from God. As we are in the midst of the Christmas season, do you know of someone who needs to know God's love more? What good words will you have for them?
Monday, November 17, 2008
Are You Playing Not to Lose?
If you watch many football games, you will likely hear a commentator discuss the perils of a prevent defense (a defense where the team with the lead is willing to give up chunks of yards because they think it gives them the best chance of winning). Some commentators will go so far as to say that the only thing a prevent defense does is prevent a team from winning. While one can certainly debate the relative strengths and limitations of the prevent defense in football, I believe God is firmly against us living life in a “prevent defense” type of mode.
God promised the Israelites that He would rescue them from Egypt and give them a “...good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey...” (Exodus 3:8). That being said, God didn't want the Israelites to just be on cruise control seeking comfort and actively demonstrating their faith in God. God gave the Israelites opportunities to grow and reveal their faith in Him. Likewise, David was anointed the future king of Israel as a young shepherd boy (1st Samuel 16:1-13), but still hat to face Goliath (1st Samuel 17) and be harassed by King Saul. Another example is Jesus' calling of Peter to be fishers of men (Matthew 4:18-20). Peter and the disciples were certainly not on a vacation cruise of the Mediterranean just listening to Jesus talk about how wonderful heaven is going to be one of these days....in fact Peter and the disciples were in for all sorts of persecution including being arrested and killed for proclaiming that Jesus is the resurrected Messiah.
While the eternal destination of all people who have accepted Christ as their Lord and Saviour is known and not in doubt, this knowledge doesn't mean that we should just live the rest of our lives seeking comfort. We are to be like John, preparing the way for Christ's return to Earth....telling all who will listen “...I am the voice of one calling in the desert, ' Make straight the way for the Lord'” (John 1:23). Let's go about life swinging for the fences and not just limping to the finish line with a prevent defense to gain temporary comfort.
God promised the Israelites that He would rescue them from Egypt and give them a “...good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey...” (Exodus 3:8). That being said, God didn't want the Israelites to just be on cruise control seeking comfort and actively demonstrating their faith in God. God gave the Israelites opportunities to grow and reveal their faith in Him. Likewise, David was anointed the future king of Israel as a young shepherd boy (1st Samuel 16:1-13), but still hat to face Goliath (1st Samuel 17) and be harassed by King Saul. Another example is Jesus' calling of Peter to be fishers of men (Matthew 4:18-20). Peter and the disciples were certainly not on a vacation cruise of the Mediterranean just listening to Jesus talk about how wonderful heaven is going to be one of these days....in fact Peter and the disciples were in for all sorts of persecution including being arrested and killed for proclaiming that Jesus is the resurrected Messiah.
While the eternal destination of all people who have accepted Christ as their Lord and Saviour is known and not in doubt, this knowledge doesn't mean that we should just live the rest of our lives seeking comfort. We are to be like John, preparing the way for Christ's return to Earth....telling all who will listen “...I am the voice of one calling in the desert, ' Make straight the way for the Lord'” (John 1:23). Let's go about life swinging for the fences and not just limping to the finish line with a prevent defense to gain temporary comfort.
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Performance Enhancement
The words "performance enhancement" probably don't sit well with most folks these day. Those words likely bring to mind the steroid and human growth hormone scandals in professional sports…possibly even tarnishing baseball's greatest record. Others used these substances to get a chance to play in professional sports that they might not have had otherwise.
Christians need to be in favor of performance enhancement. I don't mean taking steroids or human growth hormone, but instead enhancing their relationship with almighty God. We go to great lengths to succeed in our careers, family life, and social circles…but how much effort do we place into having a closer fellowship with God. Trust me, the problem isn't on God's end…as my grandpa often told me, "We walk away from God, He doesn't walk away from us".
So, what can we do to enhance our performance? Well, we could just do the things that point toward success (reading the Bible, praying, attending to church) and look like we should be doing ok…but this doesn't guarantee success. Someone can go the batting cages or the weight room every day and not improve for at least three reasons: 1) they aren't trying to start with…they are just there to be seen; 2) they are satisfied with their current performance; or 3) they don't have goals set for themselves. Before you accuse me of being a Pharisee, I am not saying to read 6 chapters a day and pray 7 times each day come hell or high water just to do it. What I am saying is that success usually doesn't come without some type of a plan and the perseverance to follow through with it. The actual number of verses we read or how much time we spend on the "prayer clock" isn't what God wants…He wants us to allow Him to rule our lives. That's sounds really scary…because we like to be in control…but wouldn't you rather have almighty God, the greatest guide ever, to direct your steps?
Christians need to be in favor of performance enhancement. I don't mean taking steroids or human growth hormone, but instead enhancing their relationship with almighty God. We go to great lengths to succeed in our careers, family life, and social circles…but how much effort do we place into having a closer fellowship with God. Trust me, the problem isn't on God's end…as my grandpa often told me, "We walk away from God, He doesn't walk away from us".
So, what can we do to enhance our performance? Well, we could just do the things that point toward success (reading the Bible, praying, attending to church) and look like we should be doing ok…but this doesn't guarantee success. Someone can go the batting cages or the weight room every day and not improve for at least three reasons: 1) they aren't trying to start with…they are just there to be seen; 2) they are satisfied with their current performance; or 3) they don't have goals set for themselves. Before you accuse me of being a Pharisee, I am not saying to read 6 chapters a day and pray 7 times each day come hell or high water just to do it. What I am saying is that success usually doesn't come without some type of a plan and the perseverance to follow through with it. The actual number of verses we read or how much time we spend on the "prayer clock" isn't what God wants…He wants us to allow Him to rule our lives. That's sounds really scary…because we like to be in control…but wouldn't you rather have almighty God, the greatest guide ever, to direct your steps?
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