The Coaching Box

(Revelation)

I was led this morning to repost the revelation from a decade ago.  It is still very releveant for players, coaches and parents.  Please read.

As a baseball coach I have fought many battles in the 3^rd base-coaching box.  When you are unable to play yourself you live and die with every pitch.  Over the years of coaching things began to change.  Following the Lord and imparting the things of God to my team started to transform my thinking.  I began to see the player’s personal needs at a higher level than the outcome of their performance.  

How Do You Pray!

Prayer is an amazing part of our relationship with God.  When we pray we connect with God in a personal manner and He is listening! 

Remember God wants us to share in a relationship with Him and wants us to talk to Him about our situations.  This requires us to grow just like any relationship so therefore a deeper understanding of God will make our relationship better.

In the early days of my prayer life I felt disconnected and somewhat unworthy to pray. It was a feeling of being alone or distant from God.  I also noticed that a lot of others would sound the same way that I was and I could feel them being uncertain of what to pray. For me I didn’t know enough about God to understand His plans for me, or His true nature.

VICTORY!

What is victory? It is success in a struggle against difficulties or an obstacle. Victory is the state of having triumphed. Victory refers especially to the FINAL defeat of an enemy or opponent.

Based on the definition of victory, we can conclude that there must be an enemy or opponent before there can be a battle. Therefore, if there is a battle that takes place, then someone will be victorious. If victory also tells us that the defeat is FINAL, then we can conclude that the battle will be finished once and for all!

Winning and the Search for Truth

After being blessed to coach thousands of games and winning many championships, I have discovered that sports provide a very unique look into the spiritual realm.

The ability to achieve goals based on hard work and rules in a short-term setting allows us to view a goal and plan and the completion of a plan in a short time frame. We therefore can evaluate the individual behavior as well as the social behavior of a group. The same plan could be evaluated for a bigger group or “life” in general.

Press On!

When we grow in Faith we begin to want more and more of God’s plan because we have discovered that it’s better than ours.  Some questions I began to ask are “What is important in Life”?  How can I obtain everything God created me to have?

Philippians 3:12-14 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.¹³ Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thingI do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Focused as a Bee!

We have all heard the term “Busy as a Bee”.  Through observation I am going to introduce another gift of the Bumble.

When watering my garden I noticed the Bumble Bees that were moving diligently from flower to flower.  It was not a random busyness that I saw, but rather intense focus upon their task at hand.  It seemed nothing would distract them from “Their” job!  Even when I began to spray water they quickly returned to task to accomplish their goal.

I was intrigued by their “Focus”.  The revelation I gained from watching them has to do with people. 

 A Heavenly Inheritance

We live in such a materialistic world that much of the focus is on our inheritance.  Examples of which include: land, money, stock, homes and automobiles. 

I believe we have learned to focus on material things so much that we discount the eternal inheritance that is available to us through Christ Jesus our Lord!

1 Peter 1:3-5 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴ to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, ⁵ who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

The Enemies Deception

As we go through life we must renew our mind to the Word of God so that we stay clear of deception.  We live in a corrupt world and we deal with relationships that are often rooted in deception.  We are all subject to the schemes and plans of the enemy and we must recognize these traps by staying clear of deception when possible.

Ephesians 6:12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

Jesus Prepares Our Way!

We have recently been talking about our direction and where we are going in life.  We will be guided by the Shepherd’s voice or the voice of the world.  The shepherd makes the way for His sheep.  The sheep trust that He will lead them to their destiny.

John 10:3-5 To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. ⁴ And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. ⁵ Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.”

GOD'S SAFETY

I was seeking the word “safety” in the scripture this morning and was led to Psalm 91.  As I began to read this passage looking for an ending point with which to pull from, I found myself unable to stop reading.  The fullness of this passage is the WORD for today. 

Do you desire “SAFETY” in your life?

The safety of the Lord is available when we ABIDE in His presence.  To abide we must seek him by prayer and communion with Him through His word.

The Perfect Game

Today’s Blog is from one of my favorite topics “baseball” and how it relates to life. This story came from my first book in 2008 called “The Perfect Game”.  

As the author of this book, it is my goal to send the message that at times we all fail. I have failed many times, sometimes miserably. By coaching the sport of baseball, I have been able to look at the substance of this game and what makes it special. “Special” is often a hard word to define. I believe the word “special,” when it comes to the sport of baseball, refers to the difficulties of the sport.

Life’s Lessons

When we talk about sports in the sense of its value we begin to gain perspective.  Team sport is the greatest teaching tool in America to teach our youth about life. 

As parents we can conclude that sports is a place to show acceptance for our children in the world.  It brings us pride for their success. This is good and bad, especially bad if our pride in our children outweighs the potential lessons that prepare them for life as adults.

Boldness in Jesus!

Reading the book of Acts this morning I was drawn to the prayer of boldness from the Disciples. 

Acts 4:29-31 Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, ³⁰ by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.”

³¹ And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.

Just Do It!

As the world tries to conform us to the normal standards of “Society” we are faced with decisions to do what’s normal or to make Godly choices based on spiritual things.

When Jesus performed miracles in the bible it required people to do what “He” said. 

John 2:1-5 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. ² Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding.³ And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.”

Comfort Each Other

Many times the stress of daily life keeps us focused on what we don’t have instead of what we have.  In times of trouble we need to remember our salvation and the hope we have in Jesus Christ as savior. 

1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.¹⁷ Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.¹⁸ Therefore comfort one another with these words.