“MAKING THE TEAM”

“MAKING THE TEAM”

Prayer:God of eternal grace

You who holds us daily in the palm of your hand, whose voice comes to us through the wind of the Holy Spirit, who surrounds us daily with those we love, and who cherish us;

 We come to you quieted by the stillness of the morning air, our racing thoughts stilled by your presence, our actions inspired by the saints who live among us and who have gone on before.  For we seek a purpose for the living of these days, a vision that sustains us in the dark of night, the chaos of a world we don’t fully understand.

We respond today to the claim of the cross on our lives, the call to love one another, to be a part of one another no matter what our human condition.  Help us to be inspired by Your cloud of witnesses, those saints who surround us this morning in our time of prayer.  Be with us as we throw off the obstacles of our lives that keep us from turning towards you.  For we would be your servants, and in Your eternal presence sit at Your right hand.

For we ask this in the Name of Your Son, Jesus, in whose name we dedicate our lives.

Amen.

Hebrews 12:1-2 1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Introduction

ARE YOU COACHABLE?

Are you capable of being taught and trained to do something better?

The difference between being a coachable player and being an uncoachable player has nothing to do with your ability to play the game, but it has everything to do with your mindset. Being coachable is determined by how you think, how you view the world, and how well you accept others’ opinions about your shortcomings.

➢ Uncoachable players take everything personally. ➢ Uncoachable players don’t apply what they’re being taught. ➢ Uncoachable players become defensive when they’re coached and critiqued.

➢ Coachable players are open & willing to make changes. ➢ Coachable players don’t take criticism personally. ➢ Coachable players want to be coached & push themselves.

Main Focus: There are a lot of people making teams but they aren’t COACHABLE!

1.Coachable players Strip down, start running — and never quit! 1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.

Coachable players 1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses. Their faithfulness is a constant encouragement to us. We do not struggle alone, and we are not the first to struggle with the problems we face. Others have run the race and won, and their witness stirs us to run and win also. What an inspiring heritage we have!

Strip down- 1b let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. To run the race that God has set before us. We must also strip off the excess weight that slows us down. How can we do that?

(1) Choose friends who are also committed to the race. Wrong friends will have values and activities that may deter you from the course. Much of your own weight may result from the crowd you run with. Make wise choices.

(2) Drop certain activities. That is, for you at this time these may be weight. Try dropping them for a while; then check the results in your life.

(3) Get help for addictions that disable you. If you have a secret “weight” such as gambling, or alcohol, admit your need and get help today.

start running — and never quit! 1c And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Long-distance runners work hard to build endurance and strength. On race day , their clothes are lightweight and their bodies lean.

PEOPLE want salvation but don’t want to put in the time to be strong disciples of Jesus Christ. What many Christians want to do is to audit the Christian life. An audit is where a person goes to class to get information, but is not required to do any of the work. They don’t have to take a test or do any homework. They are only attending for informational purposes. They want the data without responsibility. That’ an audit. That’s what some folks do every Sunday. They audit Jesus.

1.Coachable players Strip down, start running — and never quit!

2. Coachable players Keep your eyes on Jesus. 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. To live effectively, we must keep our eyes on Jesus. We will stumble if we look away from him to stare at ourselves or at the circumstances surrounding us. We should be running for Christ, not ourselves, and we must always keep him in sight.

MOST of us are looking to our own human resources to be victorious, successful, and righteous, and we’re really looking hard. Newsflash: We are looking at the wrong thing.

No one goes out to the doughnut shop just to look at the doughnuts. You go to the doughnuts store to EAT donuts! One thing is guaranteed though-if you do go to the doughnut shop to look at donuts, you will end up eating them. Why? Because the more you stare at it, the more you are going to want it.

Satan’s goal is to get us focused on our sin, but focusing on our sin can’t help us. We have to focus on something else, someone else, who can help us overcome that sin.

1.Coachable players Strip down, start running — and never quit!

2. Coachable players Keep your eyes on Jesus.

3. Coachable players Study how He did it. 2bFor the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. The Christian life involves hard work. It requires us to give up whatever endangers our relationship with God, to run with endurance, and to struggle against sin with the power of the Holy Spirit.

In conclusion,

Do you see what this means — all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It means we’d better get on with it. Strip down, start running — and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed — that exhilarating finish in and with God — he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!

1.Coachable players Strip down, start running — and never quit!

2. Coachable players Keep your eyes on Jesus.

3. Coachable players Study how He did it.

IN THE Olympics, one of the games involves a bunch of guys who row boats. They row their boats with their backs to the finish line. But at the front of the boat is the cockswain, a guy with a horn. He sits at the front of the boat, shouting instructions. “Pull, Pull! Row, Row!”

The guys in the boat keep their eyes fixed on the cockswain while they row. While they can’t see where they are going he can. So, they fix their eyes on him. The cockswain gives them a cadence and keeps them on track.

If you don’t know where you’re headed, put your eyes on Jesus because He knows where your finish line is. He knows how to get you in the start of the race and take you to the finish line.