Seven Ways To Glorify God Through Sports

My dad gave me my first soccer ball when I was six while we lived in São José dos Campos, Brazil. As a high schooler, I traveled to numerous states and several European countries with my club team and played on two teams in Puerto Rico. Later, I would coach five high school soccer programs and participate in competitive adult leagues in South Korea, China, and right here in good ol' Indiana. I've been blessed to coach my daughters and son in the beautiful game and served as a middle school wrestling and track coach for a few years in the 90s and early 2000s. I even coached middle school volleyball and basketball teams before coming to ECS. I could see myself coaching soccer again, but I'll be shocked if God leads this 5-foot-5 man back to coaching court sports! 

God has blessed me massively in the world of sports, and I'm thankful sports have been such a significant part of the lives of my three kiddos. I'm grateful I have children who like to run, kick a ball, hit a pickleball, and/or shoot hoops. Josiah Lee and I also enJOY attending sporting events, talking about the latest March Madness scores, watching our Colts and Pacers on TV, and competing against each other in basketball, football, and soccer games on the Xbox. Josiah Lee can't stand losing to me, but I must show him who the Big Poppa is! Sports have provided me with countless wonderful memories. Unfortunately, I also have sports memories that I'm ashamed of. For much of my playing and coaching career, soccer was my identity. There is much I would like to do over, but that's simply not possible. What I can do is share my mistakes and provide ways we can glorify God through sports. 

Below are seven things you can do to honor God when competing or cheering in sports. Through the Spirit, we can do it. Let's do it! Let's be different and develop a radical reputation so individuals and communities are transformed for the glory of God!

1. Cheer for ALL hard-nosed play at competitions. Don't just cheer when your kid or the team they play on does well. When the competition does something impressive, say something nice. Imagine what this world would be like if we were kind and tenderhearted to our opposition (Ephesians 4:32). 

2. Congratulate your opponents when they play well. When the opposing player plays great D on your daughter, or the crosstown rival pulls the upset and defeats your ranked team, tell them good job. Be a Barnabas and encourage them after the game.

3. Correct your kids when they boast and brag. Don't allow your kids to do a muscle pose after they hit a bucket or gesture they're number one after they score a goal. We are to humble ourselves in the sight of the Lord (James 4:10) and remember that apart from Christ, we can do nothing (John 15:5). 

4. Teach your kids to help their opponents up when they knock them down. I want my kids to be the toughest on the field and court, but I also want them to be the kindest. Teach and train them to be like the Lion of Judah AND the Lamb of God.

5. Don't complain about the officiating. You're sinning (Philippians 2:14). Being a ref or umpire can be tough. They're going to make mistakes. They might show some bias. Bite your tongue and meditate on Scripture. Let your speech be seasoned with salt (Colossians 4:6).  

6. Thank the coaches for instructing your kiddos, and get your kids to do it after every practice and game. The men and women instructing your kids are likely spending a ton of time coaching and getting paid little or nothing. Saying thanks can go a long way.

7. End your day praising God, and let's not allow ourselves or our children to play the victim. Stop listening to your heart so much and go to Scripture. Thank God for the bodies He gave your kids, the finances that allow your kids to participate in sports, and the ability to pass the tests He gives.

So what do you think? Tall order, I know. It will require a lot of prayer - perhaps before every practice and game. But it's worth it. I would love to hear other ways we can glorify God through sports. Post a comment, email me, or give me a call. To God be the glory! 

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews 12:1-2

Seven Ways I Disciple My 7th Grader

Over the years, I've had the honor to disciple men from different walks of life - pastors, masons, and salesmen. I disciple men because God expects Christians to disciple Christians (Matthew 28:19). I'm thankful for the men who have poured into my life, and I want to pray for my younger brothers and help them in this short life. Life can be beautiful, but it can also be downright mean. We need all the help we can get in our marriages, parenting, work, finances, and more. I love it when men want to be discipled, and I love how the men I disciple draw me closer to Christ and help me in my walk with God. 

True disciples grow in Christlikeness by following Jesus' teachings. Jesus is the key to life, and the key to understanding Him is found in the Scriptures. God's Word tells us Jesus discipled ordinary men from diverse backgrounds - fishermen, a tax collector, and perhaps tradesmen. Jesus taught and trained these men to follow Him and live lives that would bring God glory. When I meet with men, it might be individually or in small groups. Sometimes I meet with men for years, and sometimes it's for a shorter season of life. Although we may not have the same occupations and interests, Jesus brings us together. We're adopted sons of God, united in Christ, and living in the Spirit.

As much as I enJOY meeting with different men and speaking truth into their lives, there is one guy I love to disciple more than anyone else - my seventh-grade boy, Josiah Lee. He's my number one disciple. He's my John, the disciple whom I'm closest to and spend the most time with. My greatest desire for Josiah Lee is that he loves Jesus more than anything and shares Jesus with others through his words AND actions. I love watching Josiah Lee drain a three on the court or when he brings home a report card with high marks, but what matters most to me is that he thinks, speaks, and acts like Christ. 

I will stand before God on Judgment Day, and I need Him to say, "Well done, good and faithful servant." I need my Heavenly Father to say that I discipled my son well. I am Josiah Lee's #1 teacher, so it's crucial that I set a Christlike example for him in all that I think, say, and do. Josiah Lee is watching me, learning from me, and copying me. I must do all I can to point Josiah Lee to Jesus so he can live life in the right way and bring God the glory. Below are seven ways I disciple Josiah Lee that hopefully can help you in your walk and when you disciple others. 

1. I've taught Josiah Lee to feed his soul before he feeds his face. When he hops in our family-friendly minivan with me for our five-minute drive to school, we typically talk about what we read in our Bibles that morning. 

2. When I pick up Josiah Lee from school, I ask him about his school day. Was there anything eventful about the day? Who did you sit with at lunch, and what did you all talk about? I often ask Josiah Lee what he learned in Bible class and chapel.

3. Josiah Lee serves on the tech team and helps with the three-year-olds at our church. When he doesn't have those responsibilities, he might answer sermon questions I provide him on paper during the service. We might also talk about the sermon after church and how we can apply the message in our lives.

4. Typically, Josiah Lee goes to youth group on Wednesdays and Sunday school before the Sunday morning service. He needs other people speaking truth into his life. I trust his teachers, but Josiah Lee and I must talk about the lessons he's learning. Sometimes he teaches me a thing or two. :-)

5. Before and during sporting events, I remind Josiah Lee that complaining is a sin and to be thankful that he gets to use his God-given body to compete and have fun. I remind Josiah Lee about the pain Jesus suffered on the cross and to give God the glory regardless of his playing time, the officiating, and what the opposition and crowd say and do.

6. I regularly talk with Josiah Lee about Jesus, and sometimes we have family devotions in the evenings. Two nights ago at dinnertime, we watched a four-minute video about family and ministry, talked about it, and then prayed.

7. Josiah Lee and I enJOY watching Instagram and TikTok videos on my iPhone. The social media videos we watch can be super serious (e.g., a Christian teacher answering worldview questions on a college campus) or absolutely silly (e.g., a baby eating bacon for the first time), but whatever we watch, we do so from a biblical lens. We enJOY the life God has given us and talk and laugh in a way that honors Him.

So, how do you disciple your children and others? I would love to hear what has worked for you. And let me know if you have questions or if there is anything I can do to help you. To God be the glory!

Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6