What we do consistently is what we will become.
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Legacy
Set:
Maybe you’ve heard the statement, “Tradition never graduates.” One of the keys to leaving a legacy is to treasure the past and the memories of our “founding fathers” whose shoulders we have stood upon. We must appreciate the important role that others have played in our lives.
While drawing strength from our past, we must also stay focused on a vision for our future. If we want to stay on the cutting edge of fruitful kingdom living, we must constantly review our ministry commitments, learn from our past experiences, and seek the best advice from others—all while humbly praying for God’s Spirit to guide us. To become more effective, coaches must also skillfully balance time and resources while carefully planning for the future.
Honor
Set:
After 22 years of playing and coaching football, I won a championship ring while serving as team chaplain for the Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College football team. Under the leadership of Steve Campbell, that team finished number one in the national JUCO poll. They possessed a rare quality—honor. After every victory we gave God the glory. All year we honored our coaches, one another, our teachers, and parents. We made mistakes, but always came back to honor.
Courage
Discussion:
- Tell us about a time when you showed courage in competition.
- How have you seen other players demonstrate courage through sport?
- Why do some people think courage is an important factor in making someone a winner?
- Let’s read about a winner who showed great courage. Read I Samuel 17:20-24, 31-37, 39-51.
- What are to you the most striking features of David’s courage in this story?
- How much is your experience with courage like his?
- How can coaches and players inspire such courage in others?
Summary:
Lessons on the Field
Set:
A godly coach is a rare but valued blessing in American sports. Our son’s little league coach is one such blessing. His coaching overflows with life lessons that will bear fruit far beyond the baseball diamond. As I listen to his challenges, I know that I am hearing the wisdom of the Holy Spirit right along with the kids.
“There are no spectators here. Everyone has a job.” - Just as each member of a baseball team has a position, each individual has a role to play in life. Our words, our actions and our attitudes all have an impact on the hearts of the people around us. God has given each of us the job of sharing His love with others. There is no time to sit around watching others; our work is ongoing and has eternal consequences.
Attitudes - Chapel
Chapel – Attitudes
1 – I’ve been very pleased with the attitudes of this team thus far.
• Valuing the team over individualism
• Making sacrifices rather than demands
• Expressed on the field, between teammates, with coaches and even in the media
2 – This reminds me of Philippians 2:3-4 (read the text aloud).
• Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit.
o Don’t draw attention to yourself – deflect praise to others.
o Don’t take offense to trash talk or cheap shots – respect your team and the sport.
o Don’t overestimate your importance – there are other players ready to step into your spot.
Heart of a Coach: Kristy Curry
Texas Tech Head Women’s Basketball Coach Kristy Curry didn’t have to wait long for coaching success. Before taking over the program in Lubbock in 2006, Curry led the Purdue Boilermakers all the way to the 2001 NCAA National Championship game in her second season as a head coach and, in doing so, became only the second head coach in NCAA history to reach the title game so early in her career. Now 10 years later and five states to the south, Curry is pursuing more championships on the court while also investing in the spiritual lives of athletes via the school’s FCA Huddle.
King of the Road
Ben King remembers tasting nothing but salt. No surprise there. It’s normal when sweat pours out of an athlete’s body as he burns through energy like a wildfire consuming a forest.
Positions of Purpose
Wisdom for a Young Head Coach
Week 4
Week 4
I Timothy 2:1-7
Read the text aloud.
Discussion Questions:
Do Your Best Where God Has You
University of Oklahoma Women's Basketball Coach Sherri Coale talks about doing your best and working your hardest, wherever God has placed you.
The Leadership Secret
Set:
3 Reasons Why Competitors Need To Be Inadequate
In an age that is obsessed with leadership, it is hard to find someone willing to talk about leadership in an authentic, transparent way – especially in the world of sports. When is the last time you heard a coach or athlete say any of the following statements?
I don’t know.
I think I am going to need some help.
I have some weaknesses.
FCA Impact Profile: Jill McCormick
Anyone who has ever sat in the painfully uncomfortable job applicant’s seat knows there are a few simple rules that accompany a successful interview: be on time, dress the part, research the employer, ask questions and avoid taking a combative approach.
When Jill McCormick found herself interviewing at Santa Rosa Junior College (Calif.) for a job that included the head coaching position of the women’s water polo team and both the men’s and women’s swimming teams, she followed all of the typical interview protocols to a tee—except maybe that last one.
Drew Brees Study Series – Part 1
Set:
This weekend, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees will lead his team onto the field to take on the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl XLIV. In a recent interview with FCA’s Sharing the Victory magazine, Brees talked about faith lessons from the field.
Starting today, the daily Impact Play will run Sharing the Victory’s four-part video study series featuring clips from Brees. Click the video link below to watch the clip and then answer the questions. Finish by reading the related Scripture and asking God to work in your heart as a result of what you’ve learned.
Pain
Set:
I'm sure you can remember some part of your physical training program that you thought was surely designed to kill you. Maybe it was a set of "gassers," or running the lines on the court, or a 10-minute run. These torturous drills were always at the end of a hard practice. My least favorite was a timed quarter-mile run at the end of a season-starting football practice. Coming around the last turn my legs would burn like they were on fire, and it would feel like someone had stabbed me in the side with a knife. I was certain the coach's goal was to kill us. But those coaches weren't overly interested in how much we hurt that day. They were looking ahead to the season and were getting us ready for not just our first game, but our last game, as well.
Working Wholeheartedly
Set:
Why do we do what we do? And how are we to do it? These questions arose while I was painting lines on FCA’s nine summer camp football fields. My initial answers were, I’m doing this because it has to be done—and as quickly as possible. When finished, I was disappointed in both my attitude and the poor quality of my work. My wife suggested I line the fields as if God were going to play on them. So, three days later I set off to line the fields for God. However, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t paint a perfectly straight line. I grew angrier with each mistake while practically screaming that I was doing this for God. After seven fields of beating myself up, God intervened and I realized I had missed the point.
Dig In
Set:
Question: Would you rather have one incredible sports season filled with recognition and awards, or five average seasons filled with good, solid consistent performances? How we answer that challenging question reveals how we are wired as competitors. Are you the type of competitor who looks for the next big opportunity or who digs in right where you are? In the sports world today, we see players jump teams mid-season, coaches leave great programs for bigger paychecks, and even entire teams change cities. The grass always looks greener on the other side of the fence, doesn’t it? That is why we are quick to pursue the next big, great opportunity.
Home Stretch: Denard Span
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” – Philippians 4:13 (NKJV)
My story began in Tampa, Fla., where my mother, Wanda, raised my older brother, Ray, and I by herself. Like most boys, Ray and I both loved sports, especially football, basketball and baseball. He was four years older than me, and, being typical brothers, we were always competing with each other. While he won most of our driveway basketball games, he was no match for me on the Super Nintendo.
Fit4Ever: Stir It Up
“When Jesus saw him lying there and knew he had already been there a long time, He said to him, ‘Do you want to get well?’” – John 5:6
I have to be honest. As Americans, most of us are like stagnant ponds: We don’t move very much, and our health stinks.
It’s sad, but true, and it’s a lifestyle that goes against the one God intended for us. Instead of putrid ponds, I believe He created us to resemble lively, running rivers.
Heart of a Coach: Scott Drew
When Scott Drew took over as the head men’s basketball coach at Baylor in 2003, the program was mired in controversy. But Drew didn’t shy away from the rebuilding process. Instead, he put into action the basketball and spiritual lessons he’d learned from his father, respected Valparaiso University Head Coach, Homer Drew. Now eight seasons into the job and the turmoil a distant memory, the oldest of the Drew children is looking to lead the Bears to another NCAA Tournament run and develop excellent men of faith in the process.
Fired
There is a general rule in coaching circles that states, "There are two kinds of coaches in the world: those who have been fired, and those who will be fired."
If you are a coach, are related to a coach or simply know a coach, this article is for you. Coaching isn't easy, and sooner or later, if the rule rings true, you're going to have to face an uncertain professional future. In order to help you handle this situation, we asked several coaches to share some tips they picked up from their own unemployment experiences. Let their words help you or someone you know find God in the middle of one of life's most difficult situations.
Confidence and Conceit
Set:
Two quick ways to ruin a team—create a culture of conceit and envy. Conceit is not confidence and envy kills unity.
Be Prepared
Set:
To be winners, we must first prepare and develop a plan of action that will work, for proper preparation prevents poor performance. We must make sure our plans are God-directed by including two important offensive weapons—the Bible and prayer.
Back to the Fields
Nate Lewis, FCA area representative for Western Nebraska, was riding in a school bus full of high school students headed to an FCA event last year when he glanced back to see what the kids were up to.
As his eyes scanned the seats filled with laughing, talking teenagers, one stood out. “He was sitting there on the bus, reading his Bible with his FCA Bible reading plan in his lap,” Lewis said. “I didn’t say a word. I just shook my head and praised the Lord for the work He does in lives.”
Debtor’s Prison
Set:
I sat with a coach whom I had known for years, discussing how to help someone in the midst of crisis. He desperately wanted to help, but, almost in tears, he revealed he could not because of his own finances. He was enslaved to debt. I wish I could say his story is the exception to the rule, but sadly it is not today. We live in an age of credit. An entire industry is built on encouraging us to incur large amounts of debt. Many companies earn more from interest than from the products they sell. Debt service takes a huge part of people’s income. Proverbs 22:7 clearly warns us about debt: “The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is a slave to the lender.” Debt causes us to shift our allegiance to those we owe and away from God.
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