Who Am I?

Who am I?  What a great question.  It is a question that only I can answer for myself.  Let me explain a little about myself, and tonight I am going to be as transparent as I can be.  Like you, I once was a teenager.  The difference being, I was a teenager attending a Catholic School.  We went to school every day, read the bible daily, had weekly mass, and we were even tested on our faith in the classroom.  I thought Jesus was my homeboy just because of the motions that I went through every day.  But I could not have been more incorrect.

So many times, I would put that face on of the good Catholic boy and people bought it.  I was the altar boy and Eucharistic minister at school masses and on Sunday masses as well.  People really believed that I was a good Catholic boy.  

Then it was time to choose a college.  Of course, the good Christian boy was going to a Christian school.  How many times do you think I attended service during my freshman year?  Wrong, I attended twice, and once was because a girl that I liked asked me to go.  Can anyone guess what my most skipped class was?  It was my class on the New Testament.  It was 8:00 am and I knew the stuff because I studied it in high school.  But people back home thought the same of me.  A good kid that has his faith in line.  

Man did I have those people snowed.  Rather than attending FCA events and services on the weekends, I was the social director (unofficial title) for fourth floor in Urness Tower.  You see, I was the go to guy on what was going on, other than faith-filled events or even weekend services.  I was the leader of mischief and knew where all of the cool people would be on the weekend.  It was more important to be popular than it was to be right at that time.  I couldn’t have been more wrong.  

Then I continued coasting through life.  I dropped out of school, bounced around from job to job, and really had no meaning in my life.  I made mistakes and I made positive choices.  Eventually, I went back to school and finished my degree.  Then in my mid-30s, it hit me like a rock, “I am not advancing.  I am not succeeding in the game called life.”  I started getting up early on Sunday mornings and watching online services.  I knew there had to be more.  

Then I started attending services regularly again on Sunday mornings.  That was it!  BAM!  Jesus reached out to me.  God wrapped his arms around me!  He threw a party for me because I was back.  My life started improving, my outlook started improving, and everything in my life seemed not to have life back in it.  It was the story of the Prodigal son.  Luke says in 15:32, “But we had to celebrate and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live, and was lost and has now been found.”  There was a celebration.  It felt to me like the world was rejoicing for me.

Was I perfect?  Did I make mistakes while I was searching?  I sure did.  I made plenty of mistakes, but you know what, God forgives those mistakes.  In Ephesians 2:8-9, we are told, “For it is by grace that you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.”  Grace is what takes away all those mistakes and makes you new again.  Grace is built on love and love is what God gave us.  In John 3:16 we are told, “For God so love the world that he gave His only begotten son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”  Is there a better love than that? Jesus died for us on that cross because of God’s love and to give us Grace.  Man that is unreal.  The sacrificing of a Son and the self-sacrifice by Jesus.  

We all have a do-over, a mulligan.  Once we accept Jesus Christ into our lives, we get that fresh start through grace.  All of our past transgressions, can be eliminated by accepting Christ and admitting our mistakes.  Now, my point here isn’t to tell all of you to be perfect, because there is only one that is perfect.  What I may ask of you is to learn from our mistakes and misfortunes.  Use those to help you grow.  Why repeat someone’s if it has already been proven a mistake?  

Now comes the hard part.  How do we get there?  It has to start with a relationship and that relationship has to be personal.  Michael Jackson once wrote the song “Man in the Mirror” and the truth of the chorus couldn’t be truer.  

I’m starting with the Man in the Mirror.

I’m asking him to change his ways.

And no message could have been any clearer.

If you wanna make the world a better place,

Take a look at yourself and make a change.

You see, it has to start with each and every one of you.  You are not going to change because of neighbor, your friend, or your girlfriend or boyfriend.  Each of us, needs to take a long, hard look at ourselves and determine what we want out of life.  Jesus tells us in John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth and the life.  No one comes to the father except through me.”  You see, the only way for us to reap the benefits, is through Jesus.  There is only One Way, One Truth, and One Life.  Learn from us that have wandered and struggled and don’t go through that.  Develop that relationship.  Dig deep.  

In order for you to be found, you must be lost.  In order for you to be saved, you have to be doing something that you need to be saved from.  God has a plan for you, for me, for all of us.  I believe that plan put you right here, right now.  Jeremiah 29:11.

To sum this up, being a Christian is a personal decision.  It has to start with you and you alone.  It revolves around a relationship, not a religion.  If you are the pitcher, he has to be your catcher calling your pitches.  Don’t wait to make your mistakes.  Don’t wait until you are in your thirties like me.  You can have the benefits and the glory now.  Trust me. Trust us leaders.   Whether we admit it or not, we have all been where you guys are today.  Life is so much better with Him in it.  Accomplishments are so much greater.  And smiles are so much more frequent.  

I am not going to single anyone out, or ask you to single yourselves out, but I would like to say a prayer of surrender right now.  If you are ready and willing, please repeat this prayer after me and reap the rewards.

Love

For years I have cast this day as a Hallmark holiday, a holiday started as a marketing ploy.  And for many years it worked.  The price of flowers, candy, and cards all increases around this date every year, and yet people keep falling for it.  I have declared that I should be showing my love every day, not on a date that initially started as a day honoring a saint, but then turned into a huge profit for companies everywhere.  Even restaurants join in the marketing scheme.  Saint Valentine was executed because he refused to denounce his faith.  Now that is love.

All my life, I have been brought up in a family and home surrounded by love.  I have been fortunate. There are many individuals that aren't necessarily surrounded by the love that I was.  One of the greatest bible verses tells us that Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others......  But what does all of this mean?  After all, the "Golden Rule" tells us to love our neighbors as ourselves.

So, with all this information, who should we love, what should we love, how do we love?

These are all tough questions with even tougher answers.  If we all live a life of love, then we will love all.  We will love our family.  We will love our friends.  We will love our acquaintances, and even those we dislike.  That's when it gets tough, we are suppose to love those we dislike.  Many of us love money and what it can do for us.  But we are also told not to love false gods, which is exactly what  the love of money and power is.  Some people are blessed with wealth, but what are they doing with that wealth.  Are they blessing others or are they hoarding to themselves.

How do we love?  Will Smith said it best, "10 ways to love: listen, speak, give, pray, answer, share, enjoy, trust, forgive, promise."  These are great.  Some are a challenge.  Take listen for example.  Sometimes all it takes to show love is simply listening to what someone has to say.  Of all these, I put pray at the top.  Think of the love that Jesus had for all of us.  He sacrificed his own life, so that we may have ours.  Man, that is love.

So tomorrow, when you feel yourself getting angry, choose love.  When you feel greedy, choose love. When you feel jealousy, choose love.  In every circumstance, choose to love and I guarantee the rewards will be bountiful.

Momma's boy

Thirteen years ago, I lost one of my best friend's.  I lost the person that even through her illness, called to "just check in" every day.  I can still see her and her Pepsi sitting there calling to see how her grandchildren are.  I can only imagine her social media pages to keep up with what was going on with her and her family. Gretchen will never be forgotten.

This used to be a very sad, emotional day for me.  I would wake up, make my tribute post to her before I went to work, shed a tear, and think about her all day. Every tribute was heart felt and honest about missing my time with my mom. I can still see her take her last breath.

Since then, something changed in me.  I don't miss her any less, but this day became easier.  I focused on the memories that I have of her.  I look at the pictures and smile.  Being able to remember those times makes me smile.

But still, that's not the reason that it became a little easier.  This day became a little easier because I have faith that eventually, there will be a reunion.  I will get to see her smile, I don't have to remember her when she was sick.  There is no sickness in heaven.  I can only imagine that she will be in the middle of all of my loved ones that have passed, and she will be sipping her Pepsi and hoot and hollering at people.

So today, don't feel sorry for me.  Don't feel sorry for yourself that you are missing someone.  Have the faith that you will be reunited with the loved ones that you have lost and when you do that, they will be the most beautiful version of them.  I can only imagine that my eyes will see exactly the person that makes me smile.  Yes I miss her tremendously, but my faith and anticipation is so much greater than sad feelings.  I don't have time to feel sad, because I have to continue her contagious ways of making other's smile.

So, whether you are dieting or not drinking soda, stop today, and drink a Pepsi.  When you drink that Pepsi, think of Gretchen and you will be sure to smile.

The Hill

reprinted from 4/17/14

He personally carried our sins 

in his body on the cross

so that we can be dead to sin

and live for what is right.

By His wounds

you are healed.

1 Peter 2:24

After coaching over 20 years in various sports, at different levels, I have not experienced what I have experienced with my team in the last week.  This story is not about me, it is about something much greater.  It is so much bigger than me and it is a clear example of the power of God.  If it is in His will, things can happen for the greater.  

Our team had been struggling through their first three games and bringing their record to 0-3.  Kids were skipping the weightroom and then making excuses to get out of conditioning for missing the weight room.  Kids were late for practice and skipping practice with no reason at all.  When approached about doing conditioning to make up for practices, they were quick to point figures or make excuses about not attending.

I started to question what I could do to turn it around.  I was at wits end and frustrated.  I went to Good Friday service and then it dawned on me during Easter Sunday service.  Jesus suffered and sacrificed so that we may be freed.  All of our past transgressions were removed from us and we could live without bearing the weight of those sins.

So Monday came and we were going to take batting practice before we left for our game.  I arrived at the school about 1/2 hour early.  Rather than going in the school right away, I walked to the hill that led to our baseball field.  This is no small hill and is used by our football team as a means for conditioning.  I stood at the bottom of the hill and looked up intimidated at the mere presence of the hill.  You see, I am no small man and knew this was not going to be easy.  But step by step, I ran up and down that hill for twenty minutes.  As you can imagine, it was a difficult task and attempted to conquer me.  But I felt a strength come over me.  With each time I ran up that hill, something was lifted off of me and it became easier.

When I had completed running, I went into the school and proceeded to finish batting practice.  After we concluded with BP, I gathered the varsity players around me.  We talked about all of the things holding us back.  The finger-pointing, the missed practices, the late arrivals, etc.  I then told the players that they have all been forgotten and we are moving forward.  I told the players that for the twenty minutes prior to batting practice I was running conditioning for them.  I beared their sufferings so they could be freed.  I coach at a public school so this kind of message isn't always the easiest to discuss.  I told them that over the weekend, it came to me that I needed to do something.  I needed to suffer for my team.  Because it being in a public school, I told them that if they wanted the specifics of what I had learned over the weekend that I would share on an individual basis.  At first, many of the boys looked confused.  Then you could see a couple figure out that the past weekend had been Easter and made the correlation.

The Medford Varsity team went on to win their next three games.  Still a mid-point of the season, this team has learned and matured already quite a bit.  We are hoping that this continues.

But this story really isn't about the Medford Tigers.  It is not about me, the overweight coach that suffered to prove a point to his players.  This story is about the love and the power that God has.  Jesus suffered something much more than what I suffered for my team.  Jesus suffered so that we all may live free of sin.  He paid the debts for his team, all of us.  God chose to free all of us through Jesus' suffering.  The power of God is so much bigger than any of us could imagine.  Through His example, I would never have been able to suffer for the likes of my team.  It was His example that guides me.