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December 16, 2004
Set:
Kobe Bryant said that Karl Malone was like a "big brother — a mentor," as well as a friend to him last year as he played alongside of him as part of the Los Angeles Lakers. This week, their relationship has blown up in front of the whole nation. In response to the fireworks, Charles Barkley said that these two "know better. They know to take care of these things in private and not let it out into the public."
In Matthew, Jesus says that we should approach those who have hurt us first and foremost in private — one on one. We should be honest and try to show them how they've upset us. Chances are we can work it out right then and there, as many conflicts between "brothers" are miscommunications and are readily forgiven.
April 01, 2005
Set:
Last weekend's dramatic NCAA Regional Championship games have many of us bursting with anticipation for Saturday night's Final Four match-ups. What started as 64 teams has become four. On Monday night, only one will remain above them all.
January 01, 2009
Set:
Cat Whitehill knows a little something about dynasties. She played for the University of North Carolina soccer program, which through 2007 has accumulated 18 of 26 NCAA titles—including championships in 2000 and 2003 (Whitehill’s freshman and senior seasons at Chapel Hill).
Since 2000, Whitehill has been a mainstay on the historically dominant U.S. National Team, which over the last 17 years has claimed two World Cup titles, 3 Olympic gold medals (Whitehill played on the 2004 team, but an injury kept her from contributing to the 2008 team), 3 Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) Championship titles and 3 CONCACAF Gold Cup championships.
February 04, 2010
Set:
This weekend, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees will lead his team onto the field to take on the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl XLIV. In a recent interview with FCA’s Sharing the Victory magazine, Brees talked about faith lessons from the field.
Today, the daily Impact Play will feature part three of Sharing the Victory’s four-part video study series based on the interview. Click the video link below to watch the clip and then answer the questions. Finish by reading the related Scripture and asking God to work in your heart as a result of what you’ve learned.
October 07, 2005
Set:
In the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games, sprinter Bob Hayes tied the Olympic record on his way to winning the gold medal in the 100-meter dash. Just a few months later, Hayes was dashing past defensive backs as a wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys. It was a radical idea at the time: taking a world-class sprinter and turning him into a football player. Hayes’s success altered defensive strategy and changed how football was played.
October 07, 2005
Set:
There are two sayings that I have heard hundreds of times in my life. One is “You can’t tell a book by its cover,” and the other is an advertising statement that assures us “It’s what’s up front that counts.” I would like to take a little liberty with those two statements and apply them to the world of sports. I think that anyone who has played baseball can attest to the fact that “You can’t tell a baseball by its cover” and “It’s what’s inside that counts.”
October 07, 2005
Set:
I once worked with a head football coach who had a large sign behind his desk that simply read “No Excuses.” What this meant to his staff and players was that he would not accept any explanations when something went wrong. He wanted them to be personally responsible and not put the blame on any other people or circumstances.
December 01, 2012
Set:
A Division I basketball school entered its conference tournament as the number eight seed, which meant a low probability of making it to the NCAA tournament. Despite the odds, they achieved that goal by knocking off the one-, two-, and four-seeded teams, thereby earning entry into the NCAA tournament. As one team member summarized, “We put it together when it counted most.” We all know that falling short of our expectations leads to disappointment both on and off the court. However, if we, like that eighth-seeded team, keep looking forward to even a small hope of success, we’ll often be glad we did.
January 06, 2012
Set:
When it comes to endurance, the power of the resurrection is necessary. As a triathlete who constantly goes through training cycles that push my limits, I often get skeptical about how far I can go or how much I can push myself. After a long race, I feel completely spent, like I’m older than the hills and will never fully recover. But given time and the fact that the body is a work of God—a miracle by all accounts—and in spite of personal human doubt, I spring back, stronger and better than before.
May 16, 2005
Set:
There is a beginning and an end to all things here on earth. After making the cut in 142 consecutive PGA tournaments over a seven-year period, Tiger Woods' streak came to an end at the 2005 Byron Nelson Championship. "I just had a tough day," Woods said after making a bogey on the final hole to miss the cut by one stroke. "Things I don't normally do, I did today."
After becoming a Christian, the Apostle Paul found himself entrenched in a war with the sin in his life. We sometimes think that after surrendering our lives to Christ the battle with sin will subside, but that's not the case. That is actually when the real struggle with sin begins because that is when we become more aware of our own sinful nature.
April 12, 2005
Set:
As the time winded down at the end of the Illinois/Louisville game in the 2005 NCAA Final Four, the celebration began. Players began to jump up and down, coaches started to walk towards each other to exchange pleasantries, and one player stood alone. Roger Powell, Jr. stood at the foul line focused on one thing.
Historically, as found throughout scripture, when victory was won in battle the people of God gave praise to the Lord. But many kings and warriors over the years also chose not to give proper praise to God for His goodness in battle. They chose to celebrate how great they were instead of how great God was in the victory. This is still a fault of many today.
May 06, 2013
Set:
Bobby turned the ball over for the fourth straight possession and the coach called time-out. As Bobby came to the bench his teammates were all over him. Bobby’s response was “Where’s the love guys?” At that moment there was very little love for Bobby or anyone on the team. They allowed the distraction of the turnovers to affect their attitudes toward their teammate.
The key ingredient of any relationship is love—agape love—a love that is self-sacrificing and cares more about the person than any situation. Every gift we have been given by God needs to be exercised in this kind of love—God’s genuine love. What do we do when evil sets in or when we go off on a teammate? We need to cling to what is good.
June 15, 2011
Set:
After I had my blood cholesterol levels checked last week, I met with the doctor to discuss my results. Because I exercise regularly and eat well, I anticipated good results. As I expected, the doctor said my results were great and that he was very pleased. In fact, he said he wished that all of his patients had such positive results and that 90 percent of them didn’t.
May 28, 2010
Set:
In my four years of college basketball, one particular weekend stood out to me more than any other. My teammates and I traveled down to Cookson Hills, OK, in the school’s two vans and loaded our luggage into the house where we would be staying. When we got there, however, we realized that the family we would be staying with had been stricken with the flu. We had no choice but to stay there, as other families already had teams they were housing.
December 29, 2009
Set:
Fred was a very good player in my high school program. He could run, jump, dunk, and shoot. He had all the tools he needed in order to be successful. But Fred made a big mistake one day. He came out to practice late, and I did not see him until “it” happened. We were doing our warm-up drill involving lay-ups when Fred came down after a lay-up and turned his ankle badly. When I looked at his feet, I realized he was not prepared for the drill. Fred’s shoes were untied and not laced up tight for practice. He tripped over his laces, tore up his ankle, and missed the remainder of our season.
September 28, 2012
Set:
It was an ancient custom to shoot an arrow or cast a spear into the country which an army intended to invade. We see this in college football when the Florida State Seminole rider hurls the spear into the ground or when the USC Trojan warrior pierces the soil with his sword.
An open window in the pasage above symbolizes a variety of opportunities that come to us during the course of a competitive contest. The release of the arrow in this opportune moment is our ability to capitalize on the opportunity and turn into a surge of momentum for the team. The bow and arrow represent the strategic development of our talents and deployment of our assignments.
December 24, 2009
Set:
Elephants are some of the biggest, most powerful, and intelligent animals on the planet. And in certain parts of Asia, farmers still use elephants to do much of the heavy labor. Some countries even hold elephant festivals to
celebrate their strength and intelligence. These festivals always end with a tug-of-war between one elephant and
one hundred men—and you guessed it, the elephant always wins!
But amazingly, the only thing that elephant owners in Asia have to do to control an elephant is tie a rope to its right hind leg and a small wooden post in the ground. That’s it! The elephant won’t move, even though the wooden post and rope is like a toothpick and dental floss to you and me.
April 17, 2012
Set:
Anyone who knows sports knows that turnovers and missed opportunities, especially in the game of basketball, spell disaster. This was never more apparent than in the championship game of a recent tournament, when our starting point guard had 11 turnovers before halftime, and our team faced a 12-point deficit. The message for her was simple at halftime: “What could you do with 11 more possessions? Could you score the 12 points we need? Perhaps dish out 6 assists to overcome the deficit?”
December 05, 2012
Set:
After a game when one of my players did not follow my signal and steal second base, I went to talk with him: “I need second base; I don’t need a lead-off hitter to get to first. I need a lead-off hitter who can get to second. If you are telling me you can’t get to second, then I need to find another lead-off hitter.” “I’ll get you second base,” was the answer. “Good!”
February 28, 2005
Set:
With the 2005 spring training underway, the biggest issue facing Major League Baseball seems to be steroids. Who has used or is using them, what should be done about it, how can it be prevented, does it affect broken records, etc.? Unfortunately, baseball isn't the only sport battling steroid problems, and steroids are not the only drugs causing problems in the world of sports. There are many harmful substances that athletes are putting into their bodies -- some for performance, some for pleasure.
October 25, 2012
Set:
Every season, coaches and players alike try to figure out the “secret formula” for winning a championship. Throughout my years as a player and coach, I’ve learned that every championship team has one thing in common. That one thing is not talent, it’s not size and it’s not intelligence. Time and time again, the common denominator of a championship team is a servant heart. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to believers. Even Jesus, the King of Kings, spent His entire life serving others. Sometimes He served others by listening to them. Sometimes He encouraged them. Sometimes He washed their feet. Ultimately, He served us all by dying on the cross.
July 10, 2013
Set:
Following God even when you are in doubt is difficult. We often get caught up in the uncertainty of our future and forget Who is ultimately in charge. After Moses died Joshua was immediately made the Israelites’ “Commander in Chief,” and part of his responsibility was leading God's chosen people into the Promised Land.
When Joshua took his new position God instructed him three times to be “strong and courageous” as he led God's people into battle. Joshua had to boldly follow God despite the uncertainty of the future. And not only did he have to remain unwavering in his faith as the Israelites fought their adversaries, he also had to stay diligent to conquer the temptations that came along the way.
April 18, 2011
Set:
Johnny was a new student at his school. His parents had taken new jobs out in the suburbs far from his old home in the city. Johnny stood out in the crowd, and he was left alone more often than not. Johnny’s skin color was different than that of most of the students, and he also talked differently. He felt like he was in a foreign country even though he was only 50 miles from his old school. It wasn’t long before he started to despise going to school every day. “Everyone hates me there,” he would tell his folks. That certainly appeared to be true. Except for one boy…
August 02, 2010
Set:
The 2009-2010 Butler Bulldogs’ historic run to the NCAA Men’s Basketball National Championship was a Cinderella story that shocked America. They were overmatched in almost every game, yet they still persevered and defeated the odds. How did Butler accomplish what many national powerhouses failed to? Skill, determination, and school pride were factors in Butler’s success, but the true X-Factor was their coachability.
February 03, 2012
Set:
I was raised a coach’s son and have coached football for 16 years at the college and high school levels. In that time, I’ve learned that both levels have had one thing in common. I’m not talking about blocking and tackling, but the time between the third and fourth quarters. When everyone in the stadium holds up four fingers representing that their team is going to close the game out by winning the fourth quarter.
