We all think about the fun and excitement of a big game, but we are at our best only if we have been committed to working hard in preparation beforehand. In baseball, we like to dream about getting the game-winning hit or throwing the rally-ending strike out, but that will likely only come true if we put sweat and practice into making ourselves better. Baseball success, like any other sport, comes when we do the behind-the-scenes work. This means that when we are at home, we need to be running, doing the exercises our coaches assign and getting enough sleep. And in practice, we must work on mechanics, think through game situations and do all the repetitions of batting, running the bases and backing up throws. All of this preparation gets us ready for game time.
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Building Your Temple
Set:I’ve been out of college for two years now. I haven’t changed much (at least I’d like to think), but there is one aspect of my life that I’ve let slip: my physical workouts. I did all right in the summer and fall, but once the winter months came, I wanted to stay inside where it was warm. After a long day at work I didn’t want to exert any more energy than I already had. Unfortunately, this way of thinking became a habit, and I could feel my body losing all the muscle and stamina I had worked so hard to gain. Still, I made excuses. “I’ve done my time,” I reasoned. I gave my body everything I had for eight years straight, pushing it through multiple sports in high school and college.
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Busted
Set:Hockey Chat: You’ve seen hockey players try to argue there way out of penalties saying that it was just a little hook or they just slashed at the puck not the opponent. They try to minimize the offense. Fact is, when they are called for penalty, it’s a penalty. If they say they just barely hit the guy with their stick, they still are called for slashing. If plead that they just nudged the guy head first into the boards, they still get called for boarding just as if they slammed him. When the ref sees a penalty, regardless of the degree, he calls it.
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Busted!
Set:BUSTED! You know what I mean. You're 3 years old, not quite tall enough to reach the cookie jar yet; but you want one! So, being the sneaky and bright little kid that you are, you push a chair up to the counter, climb up and reach as far as you can to pull the cookie jar closer. When you get it, you smile that accomplished little smirk just before removing the lid, happily glancing down into the jar and putting your little fingers down inside. Just as you find the PERFECT cookie, Mom walks in. Yep, you've just been caught!
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But I Thought...
Set:I just returned for a powerful FCA weekend retreat at the FCA National Conference Center in Marshall, Ind. God was alive and well and moved among the college students who attended. Kenn Kington did a great job of presenting the gospel and offered an invitation on Saturday night to accept the Lord for the first time. No show of hands. No "Just as I am." Just men and women making things right with their Creator during this special time. Kington encouraged all who made a decision to tell others about praying to invite Jesus into their hearts.
The next morning during our Huddle time, one of the young men shared how a teammate of his gave his life to the Lord, but he was surprised. He thought since this young man came to FCA that he was a believer.
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Buy In
Set:Sean Payton's first head coaching job in the NFL didn't appear to be all that promising. After all, he inherited a New Orleans Saints team that went 3-13 in 2005 and that doesn't exactly have a rich tradition of being an NFL powerhouse. Regardless, Payton came in and implemented his system, and the players bought in to it, leading to an improbable 10-6 record in 2006 and a division title. "Players putting the team ahead of everything else," Payton said. "I think that's the biggest thing that we've been able to do to date. That's what's most important." -
Buzzer Beater
Set:I spent the past two evenings watching a lot of high school basketball at the annual Vandalia Holiday Tournament. The South Central Cougars won the tourney, and in a most dramatic fashion, I might add. Monday night, one of the Cougars hit a 3-pointer just shy of half court with no time left, banking it in to help his team beat the hosting Vandals by one point. The very next night, the Cougars played in the championship against the No. 1 seed — the defending champions from Pana High School. The game went into overtime. The score was tied with 1.3 seconds left when, for the second night in a row, that same Cougar drained a baseline jumper. They won by two.
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C'mon, Blue!
Set:I love baseball! It is an individual sport that relies on a team for a successful outcome. It also is the only sport where, during a stoppage in play, a manager/coach can approach an umpire to dispute a rule or argue the umpire's judgment on a call. We all have seen the highlights of a manager throwing a tantrum, kicking dirt on the plate or verbally abusing an umpire. But we also have seen the umpire retaliating in anger and, in some cases, losing control. It's hard to have someone yell at you or challenge your character in any setting, but especially in front of peers and spectators. How are they to respond?
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Cabin Fever
Set:When the weather finally breaks after a long winter, everyone gets busy fertilizing the lawns, dusting off the golf clubs, cleaning up the patio furniture, and lighting up the grill. There is a genuine excitement in the air! If we stay in the house too long or if winter stays too long, we get cabin fever. Cabin fever is a condition of increased anxiety, tension, and boredom caused by living for some time in a confined space or an isolated area, especially in winter.
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California Kid
Depending on your perspective, 95 yards can be a long or a short distance. A car moving at 70 mph would cover that ground in 2.8 seconds. A competitive sprinter would take closer to 10. For a 19-year-old freshman quarterback leading his football team on a potential game-winning drive in one of college football’s most intimidating environments? Well, 95 yards might look more like 95 continents.
For USC quarterback Matt Barkley, those 95 yards were what he’d been waiting for since he was a kid dreaming of wearing the University of Southern California cardinal and gold.
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