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It is hard to believe that David felt not one twinge of joy when Saul died; after all, Saul had made his life miserable for nearly twenty years. The sad truth is that neither Saul’s life nor his death glorified God. For that, David was sad, and in his lament of the bow, a song of sorrow, he chose to remember Saul’s accomplishments. David could have chosen to focus on the cruelty Saul inflicted upon him. Instead he chose to view Saul’s death from a national perspective rather than a personal one. God and Israel were David’s primary concerns, not himself, and he realized that he was merely one individual in an entire nation. It was largely this “kingdom” mentality, a teamminded approach, that allowed him to maintain proper perspective.
Young people today are commonly confused by discipline, seeing it as punishment rather than a virtue needed to train effectively. The will or discipline of a competitor can be seen in how he/she perseveres through tough times.
I don’t know if any of you saw the Jets/Dolphins game yesterday or if you caught the highlights on SportsCenter, but if you did, you probably saw the clip of Jets strength and conditioning coach Sal Alosi tripping Dolphins CB Nolan Carroll as he was running down the sideline. Alosi was quick to apologize and make amends with the offended parties, so I’m not by any means pointing fingers at him. It was probably just a very bad decision made in the heat of the moment during competition.
Throughout my years of training as a wheelchair athlete, I have found that memorizing and reciting Bible verses helps me in many ways. It helps me to stay focused, to get to sleep and to stay calm in anxious moments.
Prior to a race, I often recite a verse in my mind to calm my heart. I know that God is going with me as I race and that He will give me what I need on that particular day.
One of my strengths as a wheelchair racer is my endurance, but I’m usually slow off the start. I will never forget the time when one of my coaches shouted at me after a race about my slow start. “What were you thinking? Where was your mind, anyway?” she asked.
“Are you kidding me, Coach?” That was the thought running through my mind when my coach asked us to do some things I thought I’d never be able to do physically. Making the transition from a high school cross country runner to a NCAA Division II distance runner had been a challenge. There were more miles, more workouts and greater intensity mixed in with all the stresses of college life.
What started as a lump in my throat eventually worked its way down into my stomach as I read the ESPN.com headline. Something to the effect of, “Wainwright injures pitching elbow.”
“This can’t be good,” I thought.
Just a few weeks earlier, I had interviewed the Cardinals ace for our April cover story, and, as soon as I read the news, I knew we were going to have to make some adjustments to the magazine, which was already mid-production. But that internal knot wasn’t just the result of professional nerves; it was also the product of personal compassion.
Every once in awhile you find an athlete who has the right stuff. Talented on the field, in the classroom, with their friends, and everybody's All-American. Northwestern University has such a young man. His name is Jason Wright. I just watched Jason finish his football career the other night in the Motor City Bowl where he helped his team by gaining 336 all-purpose yards and was named Co-MVP of the game. His team came up short that night, but football is just what Jason does, it is not who he is. Jason learned a long time ago that his significance is found in Jesus Christ. His religion is not football, his truth is not his football playbook. He lives to serve Jesus Christ. His Bible is the ultimate "playbook" for his life.
Standing tall at 6’ 7”, Adam Wainwright is an intimidating figure — something that certainly plays to his advantage as a Major League pitcher. But get him talking about his daughter, and you’d never know that the 25-year-old makes a living paralyzing big-league sluggers with his breaking curveball. In fact, when talking about little Baylie Grace, Wainwright barely resembles the man who struck out Detroit’s Brandon Inge for the final out of the 2006 World Series, giving the St. Louis Cardinals their first World Championship since 1982.
We have all heard the statement “the writing is on the wall.” Coaches have felt the truth of this statement after a big loss, during a losing season or after their job was terminated. If you have gone through the “writing is on the wall” experience, share the heart issues you wrestled with during that difficult time.
Note: King Belshazzar experienced the writing on the wall because of pride and rebellion, but that may not be why you went through your experience. If it is, then confess it to God. If not, then know that God wants to use your trial and pain for His glory.
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