I so enjoy going to Huddles to share about Christ. Recently, I visited Northwestern University and spoke to their group. As I was praying and waiting to speak, a football player came in and sat down. Now, I used to attend many practices, and I had seen this player in competition. And I’m sorry to say, but I had thought only an act of God would bring this young man to the Lord. He had been a player who used foul language, seemed angry all the time and was the first to rumble when the occasion was presented. So I was surprised to see him at FCA, but thankful.

Fourth and five, with less than a minute in the game, and Peyton Manning had one more play to make something happen. He took the snap, rolled to his right, lofted a pass to Dallas Clark and…it was dropped. The Colts will not defend their Super Bowl Champion title. Immediate disappointment set in for players, coaches and fans. There were questions asked, but not many answers.

Hockey Chat:  There are so many terrible players that we skate with.  They miss the open net.  They bobble the pass that was right to them.  They can’t skate fast enough to make the play.  And one more thing…….they are just like you and me.  Give them a break when they goof and maybe they’ll cut you some slack next time it’s your man you should’ve been defending that scores or you shoot wide of the pipes.  NOTE: The worst thing about wanting to be on a perfect team is that they will only take perfect players.  Where would that leave you?

“Back in ’82, I used to be able to throw a pigskin a quarter mile. How much you want to make a bet I can throw a football over them mountains? Yeah. If coach would've put me in fourth quarter... We'd have been state champions, no doubt. No doubt in my mind. You better believe things would have been different. I'd have gone pro...in a heartbeat. I'd be makin' millions of dollars and...livin' in a... big ol' mansion somewhere.” - Uncle Rico, “Napoleon Dynamite”

Years ago when I first started coaching high school players, I made the mistake of throwing far too much at them in a short period of time.  After just getting out of college, I tried to install things my players were not even close to being able to implement, but concepts that seem familiar and easy to me.  

I am hooked on a TV show. When I first heard of it, I wondered why anyone would watch a show about people who are uncool by the world’s standards. I was wrong. “The Biggest Loser” is about people who want to change, to transform how they live. The change these folks make in a short amount of time is truly remarkable.

Ken Keys, Jr. once said, “A loving person lives in a loving world. A hostile person lives in a hostile world. Everyone you meet is your mirror.”

Well, that’s a sobering thought! When I am in a group with bad attitudes and negative thought, I am only seeing my reflection? Then I had better get some better skin care! I guess that’s called a change of attitude.

You know, attitudes are catching. As a coach or teacher, we should always be sure to set a good attitude for our teams to catch. We should develop a habit of looking for the good in everyone.

I was getting ready this morning, minding my own business when I heard a proclamation from outside my house. It was loud. It was proud. It was my 4-year-old son singing at the top of his voice, “I’m in the Lord’s Army. Yes, sir!” He was sitting with his light saber in hand singing his praise to the General of the Heavenly Host. When we play sports, we go into battle. Sides are drawn, boundaries set, and the battle begins. No matter what the sport, we choose whom we will compete for and against. It is no different in our walk with Christ. Every day we battle against evil. We are in a war for our souls. God wants us to choose a side.

All athletes need to go through this, but most would probably rather skip it if it were possible. It’s probably the part of sports that is the least fun. Yet this is also the part that separates average athletes from top athletes.

Have you figured it out yet? It’s training. Athletic training involves many different things. Proper eating, weight training and practicing are all necessary in order to get into top playing condition.

As Christians, we need to be training ourselves spiritually. This involves getting sin out of our lives and removing those things that may not be sin but are a hindrance in our respective walks with Christ. An example of this is when sports in your life begin to take away from time that you need to be devoting to God.