Game Day!

It's game day!  Those of you who know me, know that sports have always been an important part of my life.  I learned discipline on the football field, basketball court and baseball diamond.  The concept of teamwork was ingrained in me through participating in those sports and seeing that success always depended on the whole team. 

Today is both literally and figuratively GAME DAY!  Literally, it's game day, becasue Emmy's 7th grade basketball team, which I've coached through the "travel" season, is playing in a tournament this morning at 10:00.  The girls are excited and the competition will be tough.  These girls aren't as "game tested" as some I've coached in the past, but they have big hearts and are eager to get better.  Victory may not come on the scoreboard--or it may--but the key for today from my standpoint as a coach is that the girls come to understand that victory on the scoreboard is an outgrowth of just a few things--ability, coachability and perseverance.  Those three realities determine the long-term success of any sports team.  As followers of Jesus those traits serve us well, but we have one additional trait that makes victory certain--the presence of the Holy Spirit.  We can have all the ability, coachability and perseverance in the world and without the Holy Spirit we will "lose" the "game."  With the Holy Spirit in charge and in us "victory" is certain.  Every day is game day for those of us who follow Jesus and the victory at stake is eternal.  I hope the girls are ready for the level of competition they will face today, but far more than that I pray that each of us who wears the name "Christian" on our "jerseys" will live life fully today, relying on the Holy Spirit's guidance and empowerment, because victory for our "team" is the only option--the stakes are too high to accept defeat!