Want to Feel Small?

If you think you are a big deal, check out this video by Francis Chan.  It is called the Awe Factor of God.  It starts with you/us at earth level and keeps pulling back further and further until you can understand how small and insignificant we are....and yet we are all specially created.

You can youtube Francis Chan's sermons, but if you want to read a couple of good books, check out Crazy Love or Forgotten God.

Only 5 More Days Until Christmas Day

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men. Luke 2:14

Are They Getting It?

One thing each year that I struggle with is getting our players to understand what we are trying to do.  You would think after 7 years as a head coach and doing the drills we do every day for 4 years that they would get "it".  No matter what we do during the summer or how often we work on things, they have to get "it" during games once the season begins.

The easiest thing that players do, and really what we all do in life, is to rely or fall back on what you know.  To rely on that which makes you comfortable.  No matter how successful or not it makes you, you still do it because it is easy.

Last night, I attended a high school basketball game in Louisville, KY.  The game starts and one of the people I was sitting by made a comment about 3 minutes into the game.  One team had raced to a huge lead and the team behind called timeout.  This gentleman said "wow, that team is just getting out coached".  Now, that kind of thing doesn't sit too well with me especially when I am tired.  I told him that it wasn't coaching that one team came out hitting shots and the other did not.  His comment was "they are shooting too many 3's" (the team behind).  My response...I am sure he didn't tell them to shoot and miss them and I bet that is what the timeout is about.

The teams come back out on the court and wouldn't you know....the team that was behind came back causing the team who once was ahead to now be behind.  Timeout....and of course behing who I am, I then said...."I guess the coaching got better after his timeout".  The gentleman smiled.

To me this story shows if the guys on any team get "it".  What is "it"?  It is what the coaching staff is trying to convey to the individuals and team overall.  It is trying to fight against everything that is out there going against what the individual and team needs according to the coach.

I sat with Mike Burris, head coach at Olney Junior College, and we talked about that in depth.  Him being a JUCO coach, he has his players for two years and their mentality is farther along than my guys, but having them for two years it is hard to teach a "system".  That's another word I love; system.

What is a system?   Here is my system: 1. get kids to play hard and compete. 2. get my best offensive players in a position to take great shots, and 3. come up with some way to make it hard for the other team to get great shots.  That's it.

Maybe that is why my guys take so long to get it.  Maybe they actually get it much better than I comprehend because often others have a higher opinion on our team than I do and vice versa.  Call it the "competitor" in us as coaches, always looking for ways to make our teams better.  But this weekend was the first time this season that I felt like our guys were getting it on the offensive end.  If we can maintain that and then start getting it defensively, we should improve greatly as the season progresses.

Lasting Effects

Many times coaches are praised or critisized about their ability or inability to motivate basketball players.  Sometimes it may be a fair assessment, but I have found that the only motivation that has lasting effects is self-motivation.  No other motivation lasts very long.  I was asked recently before a game by a radio guy if last year's loss to a certain team would have any positive effects on our guys.  I told him that I believe that if I used that kind of thing that it would be fake motivation.  It is a kind of motivation that gets a kid up during pre game and at the jump ball.  Two minutes into the game....all that hype is gone and you are playing the game.

Self motivation...it's that thing that gets you up and gets you back to work every day whether the day is sunny or overcast.  I read recently in Hebrews chapter 12 about endurance and I thought it was insightful about how you are individually in life.  In a nutshell: The key to persistence is passion.  The key to passion is purpose.  The key to purpose is perspective.  With proper perspective you will define your purpose.  Once you have that purpose it will be something that you will be passionate about.  Once you have that passion, you will become persistent.  Passion is the key to persistence!

Christian Music is Boring

If you think that Christian music is boring, check out this latest single from Switchfoot; Dark Horses. 

Movie: It's a Wonderful Life

During my more formative years (early 20's) was the first time that I watched this movie, It's a Wonderful Life all the way through.  I had seen parts when I was younger as it was on about 30 times or more per Christmas season, but I had never sat down and watched it from the beginning to the end.

It is a pretty long movie in comparison to today's movies, but it takes a while for the story to unfold.  If you can stick with the first half of the film, the second half is moving.  A traditional Christmas movie that shows George Bailey, the main character, what life would be like without him.  At the point that an angel comes down from heaven to show him, he has decided through a set of negative events that maybe he his worth more dead than alive.

By the end of the movie and the final scene, if you are invested in this movie, you will be moved.  It is interesting because many of us, if not most, have those feelings of what am I doing here?  Why am I here?  Am I doing anything to make a difference?  I wonder would it be like if you could see the world without you ever having been born.  My guess is that each of you reading this has done many things that if it weren't for you negative things would have occurred to individuals that you stepped in to help. 

That help may not be a huge, hit over the head incident, it may just be a small word of encouragment that you gave and didn't think any more of but that person was motivated to do more.  It may not have been your words and just the way you live your life.  When you feel that you aren't doing anything to help or to make a difference, we could always do more, but I bet you have done more than you realize.