Daily Diary February 22nd, 2019

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.

In life, whether we know it or not, we are seeking for the “truth.” As we grow with the Word of God, the truth in every situation reveals itself to us. The times I have won championships and viewed others winning championships, I have learned one common denominator: An overwhelming “love” comes over the “victory” group. Every other selfish emotion and fleshly plan or desire disappears for a short time and all involved “rest” together through love.

Psalm 133:1 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity!

I began to analyze this pattern. What it tells us is that we are searching for something – something that is bigger than winning a game. We are searching for the “truth.”

Every team that has fought a tough battle and won a great victory has players that must come to the conclusion that everyone else on the team is more important than they are. Reaching this goal must “outweigh” everything else.

I have seen many players sacrifice everything and humble themselves to achieve a team victory. This act of humility for others is “selfless.” When Christ went to the cross for us, He became the ultimate Sacrifice, a complete selfless act to give it all for us. What happened after that is a complete understanding of one word – LOVE. This type of love is repeated on the field of play at almost every hard-fought sporting championship across America each year.

As I began to analyze it even deeper, I have come to another conclusion: To share in this type of love after a victory, the players must be yoked or united by something larger than themselves. Emotions alone cannot create this overwhelming, unified experience of love. Only spiritual connection between the team can create it.

I tell you the truth through the Word of God. We desire to find ourselves better than what we have here on earth. The deception of the enemy clouds our thinking that “we” are what’s important. When we understand that “everyone else” is most important and our sacrifice is for someone else and something else, we yoke up with the Holy Spirit. Then we find something more special than life itself. We desire God through Jesus Christ our Savior.

We desire to win so badly that we fool ourselves into thinking that a trophy or being able to say we are better than others is why we do it, why we sacrifice, and why we suffer for a goal. We do it for complete “acceptance”. Everyone realizes that the sin in their lives makes them feel unsatisfied and even insecure. When we win a championship, for a short time, under the given rules, we feel accepted or worthy. The root is love and can be found on a regular basis when we know Christ as our Savior.

For most youth, winning on a team becomes their first and maybe only experience of this kind of love and acceptance. As Christians and as leaders, we need to be in position to explain that winning really is an example of unity and acceptance, through love, by achieving in a selfless manner for others.

1 John 3:16 By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.