Overcoming Discouragement

Are you discouraged?  Often fight discouragement?This past week I spoke with two ministry leaders who were in very different ministry contexts with very different recent circumstances.  However, both were discouraged.As I talked with them, what became clear to me is that even though their situations were very different, the reason they were discouraged was very similar. 

They both lost sight of their progress.

 To show you what I mean, let me use one of those conversations.  . This leader told me some of what had been going on in the last couple of months:

• He envisioned a particular project for his church and delegated it another leader who carried it out very effectively. This leader confessed, “This is the first time I have ever done this successfully.” 

• The success of the initiatives around this project impacted several aspects of the church – women’s ministry, youth ministry, and men’s ministry.

• Several people, whom they had invested in for some time, made decisions to embrace the gospel and its Hero, Jesus, whom they are following up now.

 After he reviewed these items, he said, “My team is smoked and I am tired and disheartened.” As we talked further, he came up with this powerful and poignant image.  “I feel like I have given my all to climb this far up the mountain and make it to this ledge.  Feeling exhausted and somewhat satisfied, I looked up and I still had so far to go.  Totally discouraged me.” After validating his discouragement and how far he had to go, I asked him to reorient his perspective. 

“It isn’t time yet to look ahead.  Right now, you need to look back.” 

 I went back over the progress of the last couple of months with some additional words to weave this into a compelling story of all that God had done.  I wept as I recalled it to him (For those of you who know me, I know that is no surprise!). It was such a beautiful picture of the awesome works God had done. 

It was time to celebrate that progress!

 We went over Psalm 145:3-7 and discussed the call there to talk about the great works of God, to meditate on those that we hear from others, and finally to celebrate the goodness of God.  To not do so would keep others from joining that celebration and rob God of the glory of his greatness he deserves. So, we did just that.  We “sat on that ledge” together and looked back.  I went back over how far they had come in those several months and asked him, “If I would have told you a few months ago that this would all happen in the next several months, how would you have felt back then?”  He responded, “Ecstatic!” “Well then, let’s be ecstatic now.  Don’t look ahead.  Look back.  Take the next week and celebrate with God.  Tell your team of these works and encourage them to think about them and then tell you what else they see.” 

His heart got lighter and lighter as he changed his perspective –

from looking ahead to looking back.

 There would be a time to start looking ahead and addressing the challenges there.  But not yet.  Celebrating God’s goodness is designed to energize us for those challenges. However, like these two ministry leaders, most of us don’t seem to do a good job of celebrating God’s goodness.  We forget the progress in our frantic pace.  We get mired in the challenges and pain of the past.  We may focus on the future out of fear of getting caught up in that past.  Or we celebrate our “goodness” rather than God’s. Any of these keep us from being energized by celebrating the greatness of God’s works and his goodness in including us in them. My advice – the next time you get discouraged, sit "on the ledge" with our Hero and look back and remember.  Think back to where you used to be.  Do this with Jesus and some good friends.  If you can't look back to that place because of the "clouds" blocking your view, ask God to clear away the clouds.  Ask others to tell you what they see.  However you get there, remember where you used to be and put that perspective with where you are now.  See how far God has brought you.  Celebrate his goodness in giving you such progress.  It will energize you for the journey ahead, no matter how daunting it may appear.

The Miracle and Mystery of the Incarnation

Written by Bob Schindler, Executive Director of CEDE Partners – an Initiative of CEDE Sports

The Word Became Flesh

“The Word became flesh.” You are familiar with these words, but when was the last time you stopped to ponder the depth of their claims?Christmas is the season when we become more aware of the Incarnation, but it can also be a time that illustrates how cavalier our approach to that Incarnation is. We throw around phrases like:- Fully God, fully man- The Godhead- Trinity- Three in onewithout much reflection on their mystery. The result? We lose the sense of wonder and awe that should surround this amazing reality.

Mystery and Wonder

Recently, I have been studying and thinking about the early church’s grappling with the Incarnation and the Godhead. These folks had no background or language to describe what they had just seen and were now experiencing. They worked hard, at great cost, for several centuries to come up with that language to accurately and faithfully describe this miracle. Most of us, like me, are not aware of this challenge, this struggle. We end up with an attitude toward these words that feels like we are using precious gems as paper weights – we have lost the special nature of their character.However, through my study God has restored some of this wonder at this mystery. As I have wrestled with the concepts the early church did such as- What is the difference between the Son being housed in flesh and the Word becoming flesh?- What is the difference between mixture and union?- What is the difference between substance and essence?- What is the difference between being and person?- And most importantly, what are the implications of these answers on our salvation?

God's Plan, His One Begotten Son

One thing has become abundantly clear. Jesus Christ had to be all God and all man. Anything less corrupts the salvation we claim. If he is mostly God but not all man, then his death isn’t human enough to pay the debt each of us owes to God. If he is mostly man and not all God, then his death and resurrection are sufficient enough to spread that payment to whoever believes in him for life. Only someone who is fully God and fully man could say and deliver on such a claim as "I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world." (John 6:51)

One final thing. As I have grappled with these concepts not only in the light of the first century but also the whole story of the Gospel, I have become more deeply convinced than ever that this was God’s plan from the beginning. He told about it throughout the story and then brought it to pass with the virgin birth through a humble teenage girl in Nazareth. For truly only God, this wonderful three-in-one God, the Godhead, could pull of such a miracle, move in and accomplish such a mystery.I write today so that you also might ponder this miracle and mystery anew and watch God move you to greater wonder this season.Merry Christmas.

Christmas is Disturbing

A few years ago I read a though provoking article by C.J. Mahaney. That blog is no longer available but here is the excerpt that really stuck out to me. I hope it challenges your thinking this Christmas season."Why aren’t people disturbed by Christmas? One reason is our tendency to sanitize the birth narratives. We romanticize the story of Mary and Joseph rather than deal with the painful dilemma they faced when the Lord chose Mary to be the virgin who would conceive her child by the power of the Holy Spirit. We beautify the birth scene, not coming to terms with the stench of the stable, the poverty of the parents, the hostility of Herod. Don’t miss my point. There is something truly comforting and warming about the Christmas story, but it comes from understanding the reality, not from denying it.Most of us also have not come to terms with the baby in the manger. We sing, “Glory to the newborn King.” But do we truly recognize that the baby lying in the manger is appointed by God to be the King, to be either the Savior or Judge of all people? He is a most threatening person.Malachi foresaw his coming and said, “But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap.” As long as we can keep him in the manger, and feel the sentimental feelings we have for babies, Jesus doesn’t disturb us. But once we understand that his coming means for every one of us either salvation or condemnation, he disturbs us deeply.What should be just as disturbing is the awful work Christ had to do to accomplish the salvation of his people. Yet his very name, Jesus, testifies to us of that work."

Who is the Gospel for?

Written by Bob Schindler, Executive Director of CEDE Partners – an Initiative of CEDE SportsMy answer to that question today is different than it would have been 20 years ago.At that time, we were in the midst of planting a church that had as one of its desires to see half of the growth in the church coming from the conversion of non-believers. (We were young and naive, not realizing at the time what an radical desire that was.) In the face of that desire, we were intentional and relational in our approach to outreach. While we didn’t say it explicitly, we said by our actions – “The gospel is for non-believers.” – in answer to the question.This implicit answer impacted us in ways we didn’t realize then but do more now. For instance, when I read Romans 1:16 – “For I am not of the gospel because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes; first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.” I only saw this verse in the context of evangelism. That means the salvation that the verse speaks of related only to the salvation from one’s sin that unbelievers experience when they believe. I actually read the verse without realizing it like this – “it (the gospel) is the power of God that brings salvation to every one who believed (past tense).” I even memorized this verse to help compel me to share the gospel with those non-believers for that salvation.At the same time in that church, we were committed to the discipleship of those who had believed in that gospel – both new and long-term believers. We tried to be just as intentional in our approach to that discipleship as we were in our outreach. In that discipleship, we emphasized small groups, interaction with the Scripture, authenticity, serving, worship, as well as other “spiritual disciplines.” However, I don’t think I saw the gospel as a central component of that discipleship. While I didn’t say it explicitly, again by my actions, my answer to the question was – “The gospel isn’t for believers; just for non-believers.”Today I see things very differently. It began as I looked more closely at the Scriptures, specifically those that spoke of the gospel. Going back to Romans 1:16, I noticed the tense of the verb “believes” is not past but present. In looking more closely at the verse, I realized Paul was saying the power of God is experienced as a person presently believes in the gospel – not as a one time past event but a present ongoing belief. This was a radical revelation.I began to understand that the salvation Paul is speaking of here in Romans 1:16 is not just a salvation from my sins in the past but an ongoing salvation from my sins in the present, something all of us as believers need – DESPARATELY. I saw that the way we experience the power of God for that salvation is through the gospel.Paul reiterates this idea in 1Corinthians 15:1,2 – “Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. ² By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.” Paul is writing to his friends and fellow believers in Corinth. At the end of the letter, he concludes by saying, “Now, brothers.” I noticed he clearly addresses believers not non-believers. He then says, “I want to remind you of the gospel.” Paul saw that remembering the gospel was essential to believers.Why? Paul further explains – “By this gospel you are saved.” The ESV says “By this gospel you are being saved.” The verb, saved, is present. Once again pointing to the present impact of the gospel in a believer’s life.Paul goes on to say this present salvation is experienced “if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you.” This present salvation isn’t just a given. It is experienced as we believe presently in the gospel. That is why Paul wants to remind them of this gospel. Their present salvation was at stake. Not their future salvation from the penalty of sin but their present salvation from the power of sin.Otherwise, Paul says, we believe in vain. The vanity or emptiness of our belief that Paul is speaking of here is not that we lose our eternal salvation but that we aren’t experiencing the present effect God designed for the gospel to have in believers’ lives.So I saw, and hope you see, the gospel is not just for nonbelievers. It is something for believers. Author Jerry Bridges speaks about this idea when he says; “I preach the gospel to myself every day.” I would even go further as to say I want to preach the gospel to myself throughout the day - for as I believe that gospel, the power of God flows into my life to save me in all the ways I need saving.Who is the Gospel for? It is for you and me and all others who need the power of God in their lives today.

The Secret to Reaching People for Christ

It's interesting, the posts I write regarding evangelism are often the lowest viewed posts on the blog.  So, I'm hoping the title of this post has piqued your interest.

So, what is the secret to reaching people for Christ? 

Prayer.

I know I probably just lost 80% of my readers but for you faithful 20%, I will continue.  Let me first clarify what I mean by 'secret.'  It's a secret not because it isn't known but because it's not practiced. Perhaps 'forgotten truth' would have been a better phrase to use than 'secret'.  Methodologies, events, and technology all are more exciting when it comes to evangelism and that's where we tend to focus on energy.  But, through it all, prayer has always been the bedrock of reaching people.Beyond the pragmatics of prayer in reaching people, we have to remember it's Scriptural!"I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. (1 Tim. 2:1-4)Prayer is not magic.  It doesn't guarantee results.  What it does guarantee though is that you will be changed for doing it. If you habitually prayer for someone and their salvation, it will change you.  You will pursue this person more, you will love them more, and you will rejoice in every step of faith they take.  And God just may use it."Until the gate of hell is shut upon a man, we must not cease to pray for him. And if we see him hugging the very doorposts of damnation, we must go to the mercy seat and beseech the arm of grace to pluck him from his dangerous position. While there is life there is hope, and although the soul is almost smothered with despair, we must not despair for it, but rather arouse ourselves to awaken the Almighty arm." (Charles Spurgeon)

Is Competition Good or Bad for Us?

The Big Question

At Cede Sports, we talk a lot about the brokenness of sports. As you read what we say, you might get the message that we thinkcompetition is bad. We don't.However some do. Here is an example from a blog previously posted by Joshua Becker entitled "How Competition Made Me Less Successful":

“I have, unfortunately, viewed most of my life through the lens of competition. I could blame it on…but most likely, competition is just the default position of my heart....and to be fair, it’s not all bad. Viewing life as competition has motivated me to work harder at school, work, and personal growth. It has prompted discipline and perseverance….Viewing life only as competition has terrible drawbacks. It pursues success for only the self. It breeds jealousy and envy. It withholds encouragement. It mistreats others on its way to the finish line. A world divided into winners and losers is one that misses the opportunity to show grace....Our world needs people who compete less and encourage more.”

A Different Way to Look at This

While I agree with much of his sentiment, I find exception to his use of words. For instance, I would change his statements to the following:

“I have, unfortunately, viewed most of my life through the lens of fallen competition. I could blame it on…But most likely, competition is just the default position of my heart.”

“Viewing life only as fallen competition has terrible drawbacks. It pursues success for only the self. It breeds jealousy and envy. It withholds encouragement. It mistreats others on its way to the finish line. A world divided into winners and losers is one that misses the opportunity to show grace.”

These I agree with. Fallen competition - that strives against others to more fully establish my glory - IS TRULY the default of everyone's heart. The drawbacks ARE EXACTLY as he says.

• In fallen competition, the pursuit of success is only for self.
• Fallen competition does breed jealousy and envy.
• Fallen competition does mistreat others on its way to the finish line.
• Fallen competition does assume that success in another’s life equals one less opportunity for success in mine.

Our Solution

But the answer isn’t getting rid of competition and replacing it with encouragement. The answer is to redeem the competition, to take it back to the way God intended.If we see the solution to this problem as merely a switch from competition to encouragement, we oversimplify this redemption. In the process, we could also miss the beauty and depth to this redemption. Competition came before the fall not after. Original and, therefore, redeemed competition is about striving together to more fully express in others and us the image of God within us.Certainly, redeemed competition includes encouragement, but it involves so much more. This same writer describes this redeemed competition as follows:

"It becomes about the challenge, the experience, the unity of a common goal, and the opportunity to help someone else cross the finish line with you….As a result, the entire route is filled with encouragement from bystanders and competitors completely committed to running well and helping other racers finish strong."

The Application

Do you hear what he is saying? This competition is not just about encouragement.  It is also about "the challenge...the common goal...running well." All this striving not for our glory but to spur others to more fully express their God given glory. This heart of competition is lost if all I do is switch “compete to encourage” as the author does.

 "Our world needs people who compete less and encourage more."

At Cede Sports, we would say "our world needs people who compete in a fallen way less and compete in a redeemed way more."This is not just semantics. The beauty of the heart of competition, this striving together, is at stake. If all I do is focus on encouragement, this heart could just so easily be lost as it has so tragically been marred in fallen competition.Competition doesn’t need to be eliminated. It needs to be redeemed. 

The Power of Story

Let me paint you a picture..

"Motorcycles are dangerous."I believe that propositional statement to be true.  You may believe it or not.  If you do, you can believe it to be true without that belief really connecting with you.However, if I said “I had a motorcycle wreck on June 22, 2013. I was riding with two of my friends about 20 minutes from my house when I rounded a curve. It was an unfamiliar road and I didn’t quite make the curve, ending up on the shoulder. I thought I would just ride it out and just ease back on to the road. However, something caught my front wheel, flipped the bike, and sent me about 30 feet into the air, with me doing a somersault in the process. I landed on my left side in between the road and a metal fence.  In the process of flying off my bike, I broke my left ankle and right thumb. On the fall, I banged my left elbow, taking eleven stitches to heal up. I went back to the accident scene two weeks later and saw the fence and the road – each about 3-5 feet from where I ended up in this sort of ditch. As I looked at that grass “cradle” where I landed, I started to weep. I got a real glimpse of how close I came to hitting either the fence of the road – neither of which would have been good. I wept over what could have been and out of gratitude for God’s protection.”Then you would understand why my belief connects with that truth that motorcycles are dangerous. My story connects me to it. If you cared about me, that story would connect you with it as well.

The Bigger Picture

The powerful connection that comes from telling a story is important to remember as we think about the Gospel.As I have asked people over the years, “What is the Gospel?” I usually get a propositional statement or two like:-       Jesus died for my sins.-       Jesus died for my sins so I could go to heaven.-       Jesus died for my sins so I could be in relationship with him now and then be with him forever.All these statements are propositions. I believe they are true. But, when it comes to describing the Gospel, they are incomplete. They don’t tell the story.In not telling the story, these statements don’t connect with us in a way that The Story of the Gospel can.So let me ask you a couple of questions about the Gospel:-       What do you tell people when you tell them the Gospel?-       What do you train others to tell people when you train them to “share the Gospel”?-       Does what you tell them describe the great Story of the Gospel that God has been telling since CREATION, through the FALL, and REDEMPTION, and ultimately ends up in the CONSUMMATION?You may be telling people the truth, equipping others to tell them the truth, but you may not be telling them or equipping them to tell others the whole Gospel. The result - you may be telling them the truth, but you may not really be connecting with their hearts as you remove those truths from the STORY of the GOSPEL.If you would like some resources to help you both understand and share the Story of the Gospel with others, check out the following:-       The Explicit Gospel by Matt Chandler-       The Story (Tract)-       The Gospel ProjectRemember – “If stories come to you, care for them. And learn to give them away when needed.  Sometimes a person needs a story more than food to stay alive.” Barry LopezHow different would our evangelism be if we thought this way? God has given us the Story of the Gospel. We need to care for it and learn to give it away when needed because there are those in our spheres of contact who need the Story of the Gospel more than food to stay alive.

Three Key Components for Coach Development

We talk with sports ministers about developing coaches about as often as Stephen Curry looks good shooting a jump shot! 

Why?

Maybe that is because the success of sports ministries that have leagues rests on the shoulders of those coaches. They are the “players” in the game of “sports ministry.”  (We don’t consider this vital ministry in any way a game, but, to understand the role of coaches, we use this metaphor.)  Since most sports ministers don’t have the luxury of only having “first-round draft picks” on their team, they know they need to develop these coaches.

This is the other reason so much discussion goes on here.  They are looking for help.  Most of the sports ministers we talk with are frustrated with their efforts to develop coaches.  They don’t think what they are doing is that effective or wrestle with the lack of participation from their coaches.

Step By Step

One of the ways we help alleviate that frustration is to get sports ministers to think about three key components when it comes to developing coaches.  They are:

–       Vision

–       Curriculum

–       Structure

Vision is what you want those coaches to become.  You could encapsulate that vision by asking the question – “What would an ideal coach know, be able to do, and be?” Or “What is the knowledge, skill and character of the ideal coach?”

Curriculum is the content God uses to move your coaches toward this vision.  This material comes in a variety of formats and is what your coaches need to grow from where they are now into these ideal coaches.

Structure is the delivery mechanism for your coaches to interact with this curriculum.  It should include various activities along the thought that you

 Teach to Knowledge           Train to Skill                Mentor to Character

God has used us to help sports ministries develop this vision, curriculum and structure and change the atmosphere of coach development from frustration to fulfillment.

If that is something we can help you with, contact us at info@cedesports.org

Written by Bob Schindler

Back To The Basics

A while ago I was in Dallas meeting with leaders from local churches to discuss the foundation for Sports Ministry in the Local Church.  We talked about the why, the what, and the how of Sports Ministry which I still find so relevant to share with you today.  Our primary leader was Pastor Sameh Maurice from Kasr El Dobara Church in Cairo Egypt, someone I deeply respect and enjoy being around whose church is doing a fantastic work in the Middle East.

God's Character is the Foundation

In answering the why, we began by looking at God’s character.  We were reminded that since God is the author of all things and all things are to reflect his glory, his character is a critical starting place for every discussion of the whys of anything, including Sports Ministry.

As we talked about our God being loving, relational, and incarnational, I was deeply impressed with the incredible grace of our marvelous God so beautifully seen in Christ.  He came to be with us – our Immanuel – who would “never leave or forsake us.”   He also came to be one of us – this “Word became flesh” – and “sympathizes with our weaknesses” as one who has been “tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.”

With us.  One of us.

I thought about the passion Cede Sports has to see Sports Ministries glorify God.  I was deeply impressed that in order to see this passion realized, I sensed God’s urging on the need to herald this incredible incarnation and call Sports Ministries to take up this same incarnational mindset and approach.

I thought about reminding Sports Ministries to take the initiative to be with the people outside the kingdom and not just wait for them to come to them.  I thought about the value of playing with and not against those outsiders if we are going to one of them.

These are two ways to be with them, one of them and reflect the Son’s incarnation.  There are many more.  If you think of any, let me know!  Better yet, write a blog for us about it.

After all, we all need to regularly get BACK TO THE BASICS!

The Biggest Loser & Spiritual Development

Written by Bob Schindler 

What I like about the show, The Biggest Loser, is watching people achieve what they have never achieved before but have longed for some time to accomplish.  It just stirs my heart as I watch their struggle and joy.

I think there is something to learn from the show about developing people.  To unpack those insights, let me ask “What makes these people able to do on the show what they couldn’t do on their own?”

Remember, there is nothing magical about the equation for losing weight:

Decrease caloric intake + increase caloric output = weight loss

I would guess that each person on the show understood this equation for the most part.  They may not have understood the caloric content of what they were eating but they at least understood the principle.

If that is so, “Why did they achieve during the show what they couldn’t do on their own?”  Or another way of asking the question – “What did the show provide for them that they couldn’t get themselves?”

Basic Premise

While there may be many more than the list below, I point to following concepts as keys to the participants successful weight loss:

 –      Clear formula for weight loss: outlined above and discussed/reinforced often/meals

– Community of development: they were on teams working together on that formula.  

– Qualified Coaches : participants were given individual as well as group attention that extended beyond but impacted their approach to weight loss.

–  Accountability to the team: individual progress impacted the whole team.

–  Focused atmosphere: they were removed from the everyday distractions and together for a specific purpose.

Having listed them, it is the combination of these elements that is the key not just the individual components.  In fact, some of the participants may have even experimented with some of these ideas individually without the corresponding success they found on The Biggest Loser.

Relevance To You

With those thoughts in mind, think about your own efforts or your efforts to help others grow spiritually.  Like many who want to lose weight, I often find people who -

–  want to grow spiritually but who have never really experienced what they long for.

–  are trying to help them grow spiritually, like sports ministers and their coaches and players, but who have little or frustrating impact from their efforts.

 One solution to this frustration may be to take a lesson from The Biggest Loser and try to build this same kind of development atmosphere

1)    the community of development

2)    accountability to the team for progress

3)    focused environment

4)    qualified coaches

working within God’s formula for development.

Our Commitment

At Cede Sports, we work to help local churches construct such an environment.  We create tools to support that environment, including the following video. Join our church directory at no cost where you will have access to many free resources to help equip and train you in furthering your Sports Ministry for the Gospel. Preview these by watching this video explaining our devotional resources and then use this link to join our directory to access all our free resources!

The results – God is using such environments to help sports ministers, coaches, and players achieve what they have always longed to achieve but have never quite got there.  Here is one sports minister’s recent experience:

“We have a renewed excitement and energy. We have a renewed passion for pursuing something that’s so much bigger than just sports. We’ve re-designed our programs with the idea of integrating sports and ministry in mind rather than trying to inject ministry into sport which is what we were guilty of doing before. As a result, participants are enjoying a better experience, families are being served better, and volunteers are serving with a higher calling in mind which gives them a lot of significance.”

If we can help you and your church, please contact us.  We exist to serve the local church.