Football Coach Or Father, Which Is It?

The sport that Americans spend time watching live and also playing in virtual computer games is back for a new season. Fall is a unique time of year in the Midwest and especially in Ohio, as the sport of football dominates the schedules for many families. The image of football coaches stalking the sidelines and masterminding offensive and defensive schemes brings the names of many icons to mind. In fact, the tougher the exterior and the meaner the look of a coach is often associated with greater success. Demanding standards for performance on the field is non-negotiable!

Bill Glass (Cleveland Browns Circle of Honor Defensive lineman for those who don’t remember him) taught me a lesson at an important time in my development as a father. Bill has a ministry that reaches into prisons and continues to make an incredible difference in the lives of inmates. He compared the difference between those fathers who had invested in their children’s lives by granting them their blessing and encouragement with those who found mostly faults and were disparaging in their attitude toward them.

If you want to put on your game face for the new football season, I would encourage you to look at the people in your life who crave for your blessing. It doesn’t take much to be an encourager and a cheerleader compared to being a cold stone tough guy. Who is in need of your blessing today? Find them, call them, go up to them and tell them how blessed you are to know them and to see them do well. It just may be a comment that will last a lifetime for them and for you!

James 3:8-10 (RSV) “…but no human being can tame the tongue—a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brethren this ought not to be so.”

Monday Morning Message Sent 8/24/09

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