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Building Perseverance in Sports: How Christian Athletes and Coaches can Build Resilience and Overcome Obstacles

What do you do when trials come your way???

Do you succumb to them???

Or do you rise triumphant and persevere???

Today, we’ll talk about:

How you can use your trials to build perseverance as an athlete and a coach for Christ.

The verse James 1:2-4 says:

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

I remember a time in my life when many trials were coming my way.

It felt like life was handing me blow after blow.

I felt beaten by all the challenges I was facing, and I went one night to pray.

During that moment, all the major trials I had endured flashed before me:

• My dreams of being an athlete shattered
• My health sucked away from me
• A business dissolving
• And on and on …

However, this verse popped into my mind as well, and I knew …

Every trial I had faced was testing my faith, building my perseverance, and helping me become more mature and complete.

And the same is true for you!

Athletes

You may go through trials:

• Feeling dead on the last few reps in the gym or wind sprints
• Slumps that sap your confidence
• Derailing injuries

Know these are testing your faith, building your perseverance, and making you more mature and complete.

Coaches

You may go through trials:

• Challenging seasons
• Off the court issues with players and/or parents
• A referee who may make a bad call every once in a while

Know these are testing your faith, building your perseverance, and making you more mature and complete.

Athletes and Coaches for Christ

In life, you may go through trials:

• Emotional heartbreaks
• Painful transitions in your development
• Struggles and confusions about discovering your purpose

Know these are testing your faith, building your perseverance, and making you more mature and complete.

And when you are able to consider these trials pure joy …

You see them from a higher perspective and know GOD is facilitating a refining process within you, to mold you into the person you were born to be.

Athletes and coaches for Christ, I wish you well on your journey of persevering through your trials and becoming more mature and complete, and I send love, gratitude, peace, and blessings to you!

May GOD inspire YOU every step of your way,

Kyle

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What is Real Love??? How Christian Athletes and Coaches can Experience Christ’s Love

Are athletes and coaches supposed to feel love???

We’ll talk about this and a lot more to see how:

You can experience real love as an athlete and a coach for Christ.

This past Friday was Valentine's Day.

During this time of the year, many people throw around the topic of LOVE.

The Bible also talks a lot about love.

We are told that GOD is love and we should love our neighbor as ourself.

However, the world of sports tells us something else.

In sports, we are told if we show love and affection, we can be viewed as weak or soft.

If our opponents sense signs of weakness or softness, they will be more likely to take advantage of us.

We are told we need to hide our emotions and put on a game face.

After going through this environment for some time, I decided I wanted to experience what love felt like to me.

Around this time, I also heard someone say if you wanted to understand what love feels like ...

Look yourself in the eyes in the mirror every morning and tell yourself you love yourself.

I made this part of my morning routine.

Every morning I'd wake up, go to the mirror, look myself in the eyes, and tell myself I loved myself.

Day 1, nothing happened ...

Day 2, nothing happened ...

I repeated the same process for over a year, but still nothing happened.

I grew discouraged:

• Maybe I wasn't meant to feel love in this phase of my life
• Maybe my heart had become hardened from a life of sports
• Maybe there was some subconscious blockage preventing me from experiencing love

And I gave up!

I stopped this part of my morning routine.

However, a few weeks later, I was going through a challenging and demanding part of my life where I was working on many long and difficult projects.

One night, after a long day, I went to brush my teeth before bed, and I was so exhausted that I just stood there, staring at myself in the mirror.

I seemed to stare through myself:

• I looked through my eyes
• I looked through my face
• I looked through my body

And connected with my core.

When that happened, I experienced an emotion I had never felt before, and realized what love felt like to me.

It was not a fluffy, romantic emotion.

Rather ...

It was a deep, intense, burning emotion:

• I could see a heart of perseverance
• I could see a heart of resilience
• I could see a heart of service

And I was willing to do anything to bring that heart out to share with others.

I also realized ...

If this was how uncontrollable and uncontainable this love felt in myself ...

How much more was Christ's infinite Love for everyone!!!

And there was no doubt in my mind ...

He would be willing to do anything for you and me:

• He would be willing to carry the weight of the world on His shoulders
• He would be willing to take the sins of the world on His back
• He would be willing to suffer on a cross to save all

Athletes and coaches for Christ, I wish you well on your journey of experiencing what love feels like for yourself, and I send love, gratitude, peace, and blessings to you!

May GOD inspire YOU every step of your way,

Kyle

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The Super Bowl and Jesus??? How to demonstrate Christ’s Love at the highest levels and on the biggest stage

What does the Super Bowl have to do with Jesus???

Well, a lot actually …

And today we are going to talk about:

How you can play on the highest stage to help you in your walk of faith

Athletes and coaches for Christ,

We are minutes away from the kickoff between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl, which is the largest sporting spectacle in America.

These players are on the biggest stage.

There will be thousands of fans in the stands …

And millions more from across the world watching on TV.

I remember when I was a kid and I used to dream of playing on the biggest stage:

• At the highest levels
• Underneath the lights
• In front of a roaring crowd

And throughout most of my life, I worked hard day in and day out to pursue that dream …

Until one day, I realized …

This dream wasn’t meant to be.

I was doing a heavy squat workout one day and tweaked my back in the middle of one of my sets.

Instantly, a shriek of fear radiated throughout my body.

Not only was I in physical pain …

But I was in emotional turmoil …

Because I realized my competitive athletic career was over.

I no longer was the athlete, I no longer knew what I was supposed to do.

I thought I had let everyone down:

• Myself for not living up to my dream
• My parents who had invested so much in me
• My teammates, coaches, and future people who would watch me
• GOD who had placed this uncontainable passion deep in my heart

Then GOD freed me to realize …

I didn’t want to play pro for the fame, for the fans, or for the bright lights.

The reason I wanted to play pro was to have a platform to:

• Inspire others
• Make an impact
• Demonstrate Christ’s Love flowing through me

And GOD also freed me to realize …

He had been preparing me for that platform every step of the way:

• As an athlete, I inspired others as the smallest guy on the floor was so competitive
• As a coach, I made an impact as my passion and enthusiasm rubbed onto all the players
• In my relationships, I demonstrated Christ’s Love flowing through me with my presence and heart

The question I want to ask you is …

What platform has GOD already given you???

• To inspire others
• To make an impact
• To demonstrate Christ’s Love flowing through you

And …

How are you making the most of that platform???

Athletes and coaches for Christ, I wish you well on your journey of realizing the platform GOD has given you to inspire, make an impact, and demonstrate Christ’s Love, and I send love, gratitude, peace, and blessings to you!

May GOD inspire YOU every step of your way,

Kyle

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Want to Win BIG GAMES??? How to win close games in the trenches like the Kansas City Chiefs

Did you catch the AFC Championship Game last week?

The Kansas City Chiefs found a way to win again, and today we will talk about:

How you can pull out the big games like the Kansas City Chiefs do

Last Sunday, the Kansas City Chiefs found a way to pull out another win against the Buffalo Bills to make it to their third straight Super Bowl.

Additionally, this win made them 12-0 in games decided by one score or less this season and 17 straight wins decided by one score or less dating back to last season.

Obviously the Chiefs have a way of winning the big close games!!!

There are two reasons I want to highlight today that you can add to your life to help you win in the trenches like the Chiefs do.

1. They Expect to Win

The Kansas City Chiefs expect to win these close games because they’ve been in that situation time and time again.

When you expose yourself to difficult situations, you will gain confidence in your ability to handle them.

Each day, find a little win that you can execute on, and when you execute on these little wins day after day, eventually they will add up to big changes in your perception about how much you can win.

• Take a cold shower
• Complete an early morning workout
• Do extra wind sprints
• Follow through on your word

Over time, as these little wins pile up, you will expect to win in the trenches like the Chiefs do.

2. They Play for a Greater Whole

The Kansas City Chiefs have many great players:

• Future hall of famers
• Pro bowlers
• A lot of Super Bowl champions

The Kansas City Chiefs have one of the greatest coaches to ever live.

But, when you ask them what makes them so special, they won’t point to any one individual.

Rather, they will point to the rest of the team.

The team and city is a whole that is far more powerful than the sum of its individual components …

And when they lean on this greater whole …

It helps them pull out tough wins!

What Greater Power are you leaning on???

If you don’t know, I invite you to lean on GOD.

Lean on the Creator of the Universe!

GOD will uplift you in the trenches and enable you to rise victorious and realize by His Power, you have far more potential than you realize.

Athletes and coaches for Christ, I wish you well on your journey of finding a way to pull out those close games in the trenches, and I send love, gratitude, peace, and blessings to you!

May GOD inspire YOU every step of your way,

Kyle

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