If we made a list of hindrances to athletes today, what would it include? Drugs? Violence? Selfishness? Anger? Cheating? What if I said laziness was one of the top three hindrances to athletes? Some may disagree because of the intense training and conditioning of today’s athletes. I agree they are conditioned, ripped, and seem to be more physically conditioned than ever before, but I’m not talking about physical laziness.

Hebrews 6:12 describes “lazy” as something dull, unexciting; something that is slow or has lost its momentum. In other words, not moving with the same velocity and aggressiveness it once had. This is a picture of someone who has lost his drive—like sitting in a sports car and only shifting the gear into neutral.

Glory – it is such a simple word. It is what all of us play the game for. We want the glory associated with being an athlete. We want to be recognized for our skill. Who doesn’t want to win a championship this year? How many times have you put your goals for the season down and listed “To NOT be remembered”?

At first glance, we have it all messed up. We should not want to get the entire spotlight. We should want to be a team player. We should not want to be so focused that we “win at all costs.” It’s in the nature of a competitor to “go for it.” Shouldn’t we want to be that focused?

The NFL Draft is coming up in April. This year, the experts say that the number one pick will be either Arkansas' Darren McFadden or LSU’s Glenn Dorsey. Could you imagine being the number one pick? Well, surprise… You are!

You are a top recruit! God is recruiting you for His team, but the enemy is trying his best to keep you from joining "TEAM JESUS." Psalm 51:5 says that we were born in sin and shaped in iniquity (or evil). That means that we have to make a decision to join God's team. If we leave this world without accepting Christ, we cannot enter His Kingdom.

Caleb, a small quiet boy who was new to his school, was invited to an FCA game night. The time came to pick teams for basketball and two of the school’s top athletes chose sides. Bryan, a great athlete, looked for people just like him. Josh was a great athlete as well, but had another plan.

Jesus chose all kinds of people—not always the biggest, best looking, and strongest—to carry out His work. One such man was Zacchaeus. The Bible tells us he was a little man, so small he had to climb a tree to see Jesus. As the Lord passed by Zacchaeus, He stopped and chose him to spend time with. Jesus did not just say He loved others; He showed it every day.

In the first three rounds of this year’s NCAA Tournament, Davidson’s Stephen Curry absolutely torched teams, averaging 34.3 points per game and leading his team to their first Regional Championship since 1969. Though Kansas defeated Curry and the tenacious Davidson team in the Elite Eight, the Wildcats will still go down as the Cinderella team of 2008.

It was only two years ago that Curry was overlooked by several other schools whose seasons ended long before Davidson’s. Curry was a scrawny, 6-1, 155-pound senior, considered too small and frail to handle the physical play of the AAC and SEC. Many major Division I coaches could not get past his physique. But one coach, Bob McKillop, looked beneath the physical appearance and saw the heart of a champion.