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How to Make Miracles: Unifying the Body of Christ 

Growing up, one of my favorite movies was Miracle, which was about the 1980 US Men's Olympic Ice Hockey team.

Back then, the Olympic team was made of college players from various schools rather than professional players like today.

In the beginning of the season, the team wasn't gelling well:

• They couldn't mesh
• They had poor chemistry
• They weren't winning hockey games

During practice, the coach would pull the players aside individually and ask them who they played for.

They would say which schools they came from:

• University of Denver
• University of Boston
• University of Wisconsin

After one game which they got beat, the coach had the team do sprints on the ice before going to the locker room.

They'd do one sprint ... the coach would blow the whistle and say, "Again!"

Then another ... Then another ... Then another ...

Until finally, one of the players broke down ...

And said ...

"I play for the United States of America!"

And at that moment, a switch was flipped. 

They were no longer operating as separate, individual universities.

They were competing as a unified nation for the United States of America.

The rest is history.

They started to gel:

• They meshed well
• They had great chemistry
• They won hockey games and pulled off one of the greatest upsets of all-time against the Soviet Union and eventually brought home the gold medal

We Are Seeing the Same Thing in the Church Today

Often, the current Church is operating as separate, individual denominations.

Last I heard, we have well over 1,000 denominations operating independently.

If we continue to do this, we can't serve the Body of Christ to our highest potential.

But when we put aside our differences ...

And come together under the unified Body of Christ:

• Truth
• Love
• Life

We, too can serve at our Body of Christ ...

And the rest will be history!

A Reflection For You

Are you ready to put aside your differences?

Are you ready to come together as a unified Body of Christ?

Are you ready to serve at our highest potential together?

Athletes and coaches for Christ, I wish you well on your journey of putting aside your differences and operating as a unified Body of Christ, and I send love, gratitude, peace, and blessings to you!

May GOD inspire YOU every step of your way,

Kyle

Bible Verses:

• Matthew 18:20
• Psalm 133:1
• 1 Corinthians 12:12-13

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Are Hard Work and Passion Pushing You BACKWARDS? How to surrender and let Christ reroute your passion for impact

Have you ever been so passionate about something ...

And worked so hard to pursue it ...

But realized it was actually pushing you backwards???

I know I sure have.

And it turns out the apostle Paul had the same thing happen in the Bible.

Paul's Testimony

I was recently reading 1 Timothy where Paul shares his testimony with Timothy.

Paul was so passionate about the Jewish law and worked so hard to follow the Jewish law that he would persecute anyone who would not uphold the law ...

Which included killing Christians!

However, Jesus eventually made himself known to Paul.

He looked past Paul's shortcomings and saw Paul's passion and hard work, and used them to reroute Paul so he could become one of the most influential missionaries of all time.

My Story

When I read this passage, I couldn't help but relate with Paul's story, because mine was strikingly similar.

I was so passionate about basketball and worked so hard to one day be able to reach my dreams of playing pro.

As a result of my hard work, I severely overtrained myself, so severely that ...

I ended up in the hospital 3 times from exhaustion and on the brink of death.

And the third time this happened, it ended my competitive athletic career.

However, Jesus looked past my shortcomings. He saw my passion and hard work, and has enabled me to use my story to inspire and impact many athletes around the area.

Reflections For You

Today, I encourage you to reflect on those times in your life ...

Where your passion and hard work have actually seemingly pushed you backwards ...

But Christ has looked through your shortcomings and used your passion and hard work to make an impact on the Body of Christ.

And ...

What areas, perhaps, in your life today are you so passionate about and working so hard for, but may actually be pushing yourself backwards ...

And how can you surrender to allow Jesus to reroute you so you can more powerfully impact the Body of Christ.

Athletes and coaches for Christ, I wish you well on your journey of combining your passion and hard work with surrender to impact the Body of Christ, and I send love, gratitude, peace, and blessings to you!

May GOD inspire YOU every step of your way,

Kyle

Bible Verses:

• 1 Timothy 1:12-17

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Searching For Answers??? How to allow answers to find you and unleash your full potential

Do you seem to search for answers but can't seem to find them?

Or you know there's a ton of potential inside you but it seems to be repressed and doesn't surface like you want it to?

Today we're going to talk about:

How you can lay back in surrender and release the potential that's been in front of you the entire time.

I am reminded of this story from my childhood ...

I had an awesome Jango Fett toy that would shoot discs.

One day, I was playing with it outside and when I went to pick up the discs after I had shot them, I realized one was missing.

I kept trying to find it, but no matter how hard I searched for it, I couldn't see it.

And eventually, I gave up searching altogether.

And when I gave up searching ...

I found it!!!

And it had been right in front of me the entire time.

In Life

We see this situation play out all the time in our daily lives.

Perhaps we are looking for our keys and can't find them. Eventually, we realize that they were right there in front of us all along.

Or maybe we are searching hard for our glasses. Eventually, we realize that they were on our head all along.

In Sports

We see this situation play out all the time in our sports.

We can search hard for that ingredient that will unleash our full potential.

We may perform well in practice knocking down shots or making solid contact with the ball.

But in games ...

We don't perform well under pressure.

We choke under pressure.

We may miss our shots or strike out.

And we keep looking for a way to be confident and play at our highest potential.

But it's not until we stop searching for this missing ingredient and relax into the flow of the game that we finally unleash our full potential and realize it's been inside us all along, waiting for us to get out of our own way.

In Faith

Many times, we ask GOD to show signs of His Presence.

We ask, seek, and knock, but we don't seem to receive, find, and doors don't seem to open.

Until we finally surrender.

And when we do fall back in surrender, we realize GOD's Presence and answers have been there in front of us the entire time, waiting for us to get out of our own way.

And on top of that ...

Sometimes the answers have been so close to us, closer than we'd ever dare to look ...

Because GOD's answers may even be inside us.

A Reflection for You

What situations in your life are you perhaps so caught up in and can't seem to find answers?

See if you can release your grip and lay back in surrender, and see if this, paradoxically, enables the answers that were right in front of you the entire time to reveal themselves to you.

Athletes and coaches for Christ, I wish you well on your journey of allowing yourself the freedom to surrender so the answers that have been there all along may present themselves to you, and I send love, gratitude, peace, and blessings to you!

May GOD inspire YOU every step of your way,

Kyle

Bible Verses:

• Matthew 7:7-8
• Jeremiah 10:23

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Do You REALLY Feel Free? The key to freedom most people don't realize

Happy 4th of July!

In America, today we remember our independence as a nation ...

(And we love our independence)

However, seems to me this desire for freedom isn't just in Americans ...

Rather, it seems like there is an innate driving force within all human beings for them to be free.

The more I've reflected on it ...

It seems to me the highest levels of freedom aren't attained through being independent upon yourself.

Rather, it seems the highest levels of freedom are attained through falling back on a Higher Power beyond yourself.

Take food for example:

I'm assuming all of you experience the freedom to eat food without worrying about starvation.

However, I doubt you have this freedom because you prepare all the food yourself.

Instead, you fall back on a higher power beyond you to have the food:

• The farmers that grow the food
• The truck drivers that take the food to the market
• The workers at the market who enable you to buy the food

In Sports

We see this play out all the times in sports as well.

As athletes and coaches, we often have an independent mentality:

• We go the extra mile
• We show up early to practice
• We leave practice late

All in the hopes to have the freedom to play at our highest potential.

Athletes

It's not until you fall back on a higher power beyond yourself until you can experience the highest levels of freedom to play at your highest potential.

You need to rely on:

• Your teammates
• The strategy

Coaches

It's not until you fall back on a higher power beyond yourself until you can experience the highest levels of freedom to play at your highest potential.

You need to rely on:

• Your staff
• Your players

In Our Walks of Faith

Many of us act like it's all on us to live these righteous lives and have union with GOD:

• We'll say our prayers
• We'll go to church
• We'll do this and that

All in the hopes of being saved.

However, we all end up falling short:

• We may fall into temptation
• We may cheat on a test
• We may tell a lie

And it's not until we fall back on a Higher Power beyond us until we can experience the highest levels of freedom:

• An eternal unearned grace
• Jesus Christ our Savior
• The LOVE of Christ surging through us

May this not be a damper on your desire for freedom ...

May this be an invitation to see where you can fall back in dependency upon a Higher Power ...

And see how that, paradoxically, enables you to experience higher and higher levels of freedom.

Athletes and coaches for Christ, I wish you well on your journey of falling back in dependency upon a Higher Power beyond you and experiencing the highest levels of freedom, and I send love, gratitude, peace, and blessings to you.

May GOD inspire YOU every step of your way,

Kyle

Bible Verses:

• Romans 3:23
• John 8:36
• 2 Corinthians 3:17
• Galatians 5:1

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Spiritual Training Ground: 3 Big Takeaways From FCA Summer Camp 

I just got back from an electric week at FCA Summer Camp in Spring Arbor, so today we are going to talk about:

3 Big takeaways I had from this week at camp.

Release Your Agendas and Carry On with Faithful Action

I was planning on arriving to camp Sunday evening, but ...

My catalytic converter fell off my car!!!

With this, I had to drive back home and see a mechanic on Monday morning.

I was able to get to camp just in time for it to start, so I missed all my pre-camp training.

Rather than stress, I released my agendas and continued to move forward with faithful action, trusting I would be adaptable and GOD would guide my steps to still provide a great camp experience.

Many times we have agendas in life:

• As athletes we have training plans
• As coaches we have strategies
• As people we have to-do lists

Often when we plan ...

GOD LAUGHS ...

And throws us a curveball.

During these times, it can be helpful to release our agendas and move forward as GOD will use our faithful action to navigate a more profound path than we could have paved on our own.

Momentum Grows In Numbers

During our training sessions, one person would bring energy through clapping ...

Then another would join ... then another ... then another ...

Until soon the gym was electric with energy. 

During our worship sessions, one person would move to the front ...

Then another would join ... then another ... then another ...

Until soon almost everyone was at the front.

During our altar calls, one person would commit their life to Christ ...

Then another would join ... then another ... then another ...

Until soon many people devoted their life to Christ.  

See where you can build momentum in your life with others ...

And see how that momentum amplifies the more others join with you.

Sports are a Powerful Metaphor for Your Spiritual Journey

In sports, you realize there is a potential inside you.

You undergo countless unseen hours of practice and training to improve your body and your game.

You contribute your talents to a team that shares a unified vision of winning the game.

You execute with your team in the game and inspire those watching.

In your spiritual walk, you realize there is a potential inside you:

• The Holy Spirit, the LOVE of Christ deep inside you

You undergo countless unseen hours of devotion to improve your faith:

• Prayer
• Meditation
• Reading the Bible

You contribute your talents to a team that shares a unified vision of sharing the message of Jesus:

• Through worship
• Through church
• Through fellowship

You navigate the Game of Life and inspire those watching.

Athletes and coaches for Christ, I wish you well on your journey of:

• Releasing your agendas and proceeding with faithful action
• Building momentum with others
• Using sports as a metaphor for life

And I send love, gratitude, peace, and blessings to you!

May GOD inspire YOU every step of your way,

Kyle

Bible Verses:

• Proverbs 16:9
• Matthew 18:20
• 1 Corinthians 9:25

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How Do You Handle Challenges??? How to remain faithful through challenges and setbacks

How do you handle setbacks? 

Do you allow them to beat you down, or do you remain faithful and enable yourself to triumph, only to realize in hindsight that those seemingly insurmountable setbacks were only enabling you to have a larger platform to make a greater impact in service to those around you?

Today, we're going to look at one of the most powerful books of the Bible in my opinion, and how it can help you to remain resilient and persevere as an athlete and as a coach for Christ.

The Book of Job

Athletes and coaches for Christ, I was recently having a conversation with a friend about the book of Job and how it relates to us as athletes and coaches. 

For those of you that need a reminder about the book of Job, it's essentially a book about God allows Satan to do essentially whatever he wants to Job other than kill him, to see whether this man named Job will remain faithful to God or not.

And Job was this very prosperous and successful human being. 

He had a giant family, he had a lot of land, he had a lot of livestock, he had a lot of wealth. And essentially, Satan takes all of that from Job. 

But rather than being down on himself, Job remains faithful to God through all of it. And God ends up repaying Job many, many more times over, and he became much more successful and prosperous.

And we see similar situations play out in our lives as athletes and coaches.

Athletes

You may feel like you're at the height of your game, but then you suffer a season-ending injury. But how do you continue to persevere and remain resilient through this? How do you continue to remain faithful to your team and pour into your teammates in whatever way you can? As you continue to remain resilient, eventually there will be a day when you realize that God was using that setback to refine you and to help give you a larger platform to make a greater impact to those around you.

Coaches 

There have been many stories where coaches are inflicted by either a scandal that is not true, or they have problems with parents. But as you continue to remain resilient, as you continue to persevere through these times, you will realize that God was only using that to refine you and to give you a larger platform to make a greater impact to all of those around you.

Setbacks in Daily Faith

And then athletes and coaches for Christ, in our daily walks of faith, there may be many times that we are inflicted with setbacks. Whether that's loss of loved ones, whether that's ending of relationships, whether that's emotional turmoil, whether that's external events such as natural disasters, which seem to push us down into the depths and into the ground.

As you remain faithful, as you continue to be resilient and continue to persevere, there will be a day when you realize that God was using all of this to continue to refine you, to continue to strengthen your faith, and one day you will have a larger platform to make a greater impact, to serve all of those around you many more times over than you ever could have before.

Athletes and coaches for Christ, I wish you well on your journey of remaining faithful even amidst all of life's setbacks, and I send love, gratitude, peace, and blessings to you!

May GOD inspire YOU every step of your way,

Kyle

Bible Verses:

• Book of Job

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Our Fathers, Who Art on Earth: 3 Ways My Father Impacted Me as a Christian Athlete and Coach

Happy Father's Day to all, whether you're a father, a wife, a son, a daughter, or whatever else you are. Today, we're going to explore three important ways that my father impacted me growing up and how that helped shape me as an athlete and as a coach for Christ.

Ground Zero: The Gift of Life

Before diving into the three ways, I have to acknowledge ground zero - my father is responsible for giving me life. While I won't get into the nuts and bolts of this subject, I'm aware that my father is 50% responsible for why I'm here today. And although I'd like to brag about being some kind of immaculate conception, I think God had someone else in mind for that!

1. Being a Rock

The first way my father impacted me was by being a rock in my life - a model of stability and dependability. Not only did he maintain a solid job that provided for me and my family, but he was always there whenever I needed him. Whether I was in the hospital going through medical challenges, participating in school sports, or dealing with life in general, my dad was consistently present.

This shaped me as an athlete and coach by teaching me to be that same rock and model of stability for my team. Instead of getting caught up in the emotional highs and lows of the game, I learned to stay steady and execute precisely when needed.

2. Teaching Different Thinking

When I needed help with homework problems, my father wouldn't simply give me the answers or show me how to solve them. Instead, he would find similar problems with different numbers and teach me the processes so I could figure things out independently. Even after preschool, when I'd recite Bible verses, he'd ask, "All right, that's what the verse says, but what does it actually mean?"

My father never just hired others to fix things - he would research solutions online and do it himself. This approach helped me shape my own beliefs and values, see what was true for me inside, and learn on the fly - skills that proved invaluable in creating an online business and raising funds for ministry.

3. Freedom to Discover

The third way my father impacted me was by giving me the freedom to discover who I really am. Rather than pushing me toward chemical engineering, he supported my desire to pursue exercise science, psychology, and nutrition. Instead of forcing baseball to be my favorite sport, he let me discover my natural gravitation toward basketball.

As a kid, he encouraged me to try many different activities - from water skiing to hiking, cooking to playing guitar. This freedom helped me discover what truly gave me passion in life and allowed me to find who I was on the basketball court, as a coach, and as a child of God.

Our Heavenly Father

While I'm deeply grateful for how my father impacted me in these ways, I'm even more thankful for my heavenly Father who has done the same for all of us. God gave us life even before our earthly parents existed, even before the world itself. We were a thought in the mind of God, and He is responsible for creating us - there is divinity in our DNA.

God is our ultimate rock - a source of stability, dependable and unchanging, the same yesterday, today, and forever. He is the alpha and omega, the first and last, always has been and always will be, a refuge whenever we need it.

Just as my earthly father taught me to think differently, God gives us a wonderful mind to solve problems and guides us to think through the spirit. Where the world tells us to think about power or greed, God directs us toward unity, upliftment, and abundance for all. Where the world speaks of fear, God teaches us about love.

Finally, like my father's gift of freedom to discover myself, God gives us the freedom to discover who we truly are, to choose our path, and to enter into a conscious relationship with Him. He gives us the choice to remove ourselves from the external noise of this world and tune into our true identity as lights and children of God.

Athletes and coaches for Christ, have a happy Father’s Day, and I send love, gratitude, peace, and blessings to you!

May GOD inspire YOU every step of your way,

Kyle

Bible Verses:

• Revelation 22:13
• Hebrews 13:8
• John 8:58
• Ephesians 1:4