This was my first year ever as a football coach. I was unsure of what to expect, but I went into the season with one goal: being satisfied not with producing a winning record, but with producing winning athletes.

Billy Graham once stated that one coach would influence more people in one year than the average person would in a lifetime. This was an idea I took to heart. At the beginning of the season, I had no idea who my players were or what their backgrounds were like, but I did know one thing: while they were on my team they were going to learn not only about football, but about life and God.

Perhaps more than anyone else, we coaches can appreciate the athletic imagery used in the Bible. The writer of Hebrews encourages his readers to “run the race” that is set before them, and from his words we can draw four encouragements as we run the spiritual race of faith set before us.

Sam is a promising, young basketball player. He has all the skills necessary in order to play varsity at his school, but recent injuries and other setbacks have gotten in the way of his hoop dreams. In fact, he just found out he has a stress fracture in his shin, which is news that, at 16, can be heartbreaking. Even though Sam has an unbelievable support system at home, this setback has been incredibly difficult for him to handle.

In life, there aren’t many guarantees. We may have the best game of our life today and then have the worst tomorrow. The only thing we can do is obey our calling to be faithful and do our best for God’s glory.