Good for the Heart

What does it take to be thankful?  In a world that focuses on negative, an attitude of thankfulness requires us to be intentional.

On a recent flight, Pastor Lane Skoglund-Anderson, Campus Pastor for the Avinity Assisted Living, sat next to a psychologist who specializes in thankfulness.  The psychologist explained that being intentionally thankful changes the patterns in the brain leading to health benefits.  Specifically, being thankful is good for our heart.  To improve your health, the psychologist suggested to think of three different things each morning to be thankful for and journal them.  Ironically, Pastor Lane previously had heart surgery and his doctor gave him one word of advice after the surgery: “When you wake up each day, think of three things you can be grateful for.  It is good for your heart.”

The Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 12:2:   Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing, and perfect will.

The pattern of this world is to look for the worst in people and to be quick to criticize people who do not think or look like us.  As officials, we are surrounded by negativity from coaches, players, fans, and tv/radio broadcast announcers.  Even when we are evaluated as officials, evaluators tend to focus on what we should have done—the negative.  We can get consumed both mentally and physically with negativity.  We must be intentionally thankful.

As officials, listed below are three things for which we can be thankful:

·         Thankful for family that supports us.

·         Thankful for opportunities to have positive interactions with people we encounter.

·         Thankful for the physical, mental, and emotional ability to officiate.

Ask yourself, what additional things are you thankful for as an official?

As Paul instructed, let’s not be conformed to the pattern of the world.  Let our minds be renewed daily with an attitude of thankfulness to help us positively impact the world around us.

“A thankful attitude will contribute to a youthful spirit”

Credit to Pastor Lane Skoglund-Anderson

https://avinityseniorliving.org/Blog/The-Renewed-Mind?gclid=CjwKCAiApvebBhAvEiwAe7mHSJIVUa9qHBG_QfpcSvtZKWc7kErVyRkP6JzCALkkDc61bUNWv3imcRoCeIQQAvD_BwE

Line of Smoke

 

We have all seen the line of smoke a plane leaves behind high in the sky.  Really, though, what is often mistaken as smoke is actually contrails--clouds formed when water vapor condenses and freezes around small particles in an aircraft’s exhaust. This is similar to seeing your breath when you breathe warm air on a cold day.

Altitude, temperature, humidity, and engine type determine if a contrail is formed.  Some aspects of contrails are shared:

·         All curtails are made up of the same materials and formed in the exact same manner but exist for different lengths of time. Some are short-lived, some lasts for hours as a straight line, and others last for hours and spread to be several miles wide.

·         Curtails cannot be hidden even though they are high in the sky.

·         Curtails show direction. It’s easy to spot where the plane has been and where it is headed.

How does this relate to officiating?  Let’s examine the aspects of officiating compared to those of contrails:

·         Officials have similar make-up.  Sure, we are different, but we all have common aspects such as uniform, rule books, mechanics.  But we all have different periods of influence in officiating—some short-lived while others have others a long-standing.  At a game site, we may make contact with one person, one time.  At the same time, we can be on a crew with an official for numerous years.

·         Once we put the uniform on, we can’t hide.  Are we confident in our ability to officiate the game in front of us?  Do we positively influence those people we come in contact with?

·         Direction—are we heading in the right direction as an official and/or as a crew?  What things do we continue to do and/or what are the things we need to change to improve?

Think about the trail we leave behind as officials. Even if it is short-lived, is our influence a positive one?  If it is long-standing, how well are we using our influence and resources to improve and positively impact the people and game around us?  In Matthew 28: 16-20, Jesus demanded His Disciples to go and influence the world:

“Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’” - Matthew 28:16-20 (NIV)

Be a positive influence on those around us, especially our crewmates.  When someone looks at the trail we leave behind, will it be looked at as positive or negative?

"Our chief want is someone who will inspire us to be what we know we could be." Ralph Waldo Emerson

Credit:  https://fcaresources.com/devotional/contrails

Competitive Greatness

John Wooden, former UCLA basketball coach, was known for the phrase “competitive greatness”—striving to be the best we can.  Coach Wooden was not looking for the best, but for the best of each individual player.  Coach Wooden defined Competitive Greatness as “real love for hard battle, knowing it offers the opportunity to be at our best when our best is required.”

In his FCA Resources Devotion “Be the Best”, Dan Britton shared three concepts of competitive greatness:

1.       Be Prepared! Many have heard the story that Coach Wooden would spend 30 minutes teaching his players how to put on socks. Why?  Coach Wooden explained “I derived great satisfaction from identifying and perfecting those ‘trivial’ and often troublesome details, because I knew . . . that each one brought UCLA a bit closer to our goal: competitive greatness.”

2.       Be Disciplined! Integrity is doing the right thing when no one is watching. Similar, Competitive Greatness is achieved by working hard when no one is watching.  

3.    Be Focused! Competitive Greatness seeks clear vision without being distracted by all things vying for your attention.

As officials, we should strive to be the best we can.  Sure, we look to other officials for advice and guidance, but we must as individual officials strive for Competitive Greatness.  Are we prepared before the season, during the season, and each game?  Are we disciplined to improve our officiating even if no one knows how or what we are doing to prepare?  Are we able to maintain our focus for the entire season—week-by-week and play-by-play.

"Finally, be strengthened by the Lord and by His vast strength." –Ephesians 6:10

Where does our best come from?  In Ephesians 6:10, Paul calls us to be faithful to Christ, entrusting in His power for all our needs in life.  Our strength comes from the Lord because of His “vast” strength.  As sinful humans, we operate in weakness.  But God demonstrates His power where human strength is lacking.

At the beginning of this football season, our first devotion was “Do What We Do”.  Most “things” officials do to prepare for games are unseen.  The “things” we do to be our best would probably be seen as trivial by those outside officiating. For example, is it really that important to take a weekly quiz, clean my shoes, or watch training videos?

Martin Luther wrote about things that seem trivial….“The maid who sweeps her kitchen is doing the will of God just as much as the monk who prays—not because she may sing a Christian hymn as she sweeps but because God loves clean floors. The Christian shoemaker does his Christian duty not by putting little crosses on the shoes, but by making good shoes, because God is interested in good craftsmanship.”

 ****Having a passion to prepare will help us face the battle without fear.****

Just the Right Amount

One of the biggest fears of coaches is a big win.  Why would any coach fear a big win?  The answer—Overconfidence.  Often, teams that play great one game have a “let down” the next game.  Why?  Players lose their edge--practice and play with less urgency.  A team with confidence is good, but overconfidence invites vulnerability.

Confidence is the feeling of having little doubt about yourself and your abilities, or a feeling of trust in someone or something.  Overconfidence is excessively or unjustifiably confident.

In officiating, confidence is one of the keys to successfully performing our responsibilities before, during and after a game.  Confidence doesn’t come by chance.  How do officials build confidence in ourselves and as crews:

Ø  rules study

Ø  video review

Ø  pregame meetings

Ø  post game review

Ø  analysis of grader comments

Our confidence happens by consistently preparing for each week’s assignment. Just as a team loses it edge when it plays a great game, officials can become overconfident (lose our edge) when we successfully officiate a game--when we avoid the training tape.

In our spiritual lives, God warns us of becoming overconfident. When we appear to be our strongest, we become the most vulnerable and tend to let down our guard, relying on our own strength instead of on Christ.  What are ways to guard against Spiritual letdown:

·         Reading and studying the Bible

·         Talking to God in prayer

·         Admit our need for His grace/forgiveness on a daily basis.

Luke 9: 23:  Then He said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me.

Jesus wants His followers to get “geared up” consistently. The key word in these verses to help us gain and maintain confidence is “daily”.  If we take a day or two off, if we don’t focus on a play and become overconfident, we become vulnerable to mistakes. Always seek God’s grace and strength to keep from falling, or falling too far, regardless of what has occurred in the past.

Never be afraid to fail. Failure is just a stepping stone to progress. Never be overconfident because it will hinder your progress. – Tony Jaa

Credit:  https://fcaresources.com/devotional/danger-overconfidence