Who's To Blame?

The "it wasn't me" syndrome is something that has been prevalent since the beginning of time.  

Let's start there, the beginning of time, with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.  In Chapter 3 of Genesis, we see Eve and the serpent in the garden conversing over the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden.  Satan lets Eve know that the fruit of the tree will not kill her, but make her like God.  So, Eve takes a bite of the fruit and then gives some to her husband.

Here's where we will pick up with scripture...

"...She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it." Genesis 3:6b

"Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid...And He (God) said, 'Who told you that you were naked?  Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?' The man said, 'The woman you put here with me, she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.'"  Genesis 3:8a, 10-12

So there we have it, the first "it wasn't me," Adam took very little to none of the blame for disobeying God and eating the fruit from the tree.  Adam placed the blame on his wife, Eve.  Of course, he admits he ate it, which might show he took a little blame, but he still blames Eve.  He practically blames God!  "The woman you put here..." Maybe that is reading too much into it, but its obvious Adam wasn't trying to be the one to go down for it.  

I recently discovered the "Temptation" track from the 116 Clique's Man Up recording.  Mixed in with the music are quotes from a sermon.  The speaker makes a statement that stuck out to me the other night when I heard it.  

"Sex is a gift from God, but we've taken it and made it idolatry.  We've taken it and put it in the place of God.  We worship it and so it comes out in all kinds of profane ways.  And so we blame the women for what they're wearing, and we blame the media for what they're producing.  But we never blame ourselves for how we've twisted God's gift to glorify us."

So what is that saying?  Well, sex started off as a gift from God, but we have made it an object of our affections, something we worship.  As humans, we have taken that gift and tainted it.  We have taken God off the throne that he deserves and have placed so many things there.  No, it isn't just sex.   It is money, power, prestige, clothes, championships, teams, sports, activities, and so much more.  All those things are gifts from the Lord.  But, in order to further expound on the quote above let's stick with sex for now.  And not just the act, but all that is encompassed with it.

As a man, sex is prevalent in my life daily.  If it isn't an article or picture in a newspaper or magazine, it is a TV commercial or the side advertisement on a website.  Sports shows are filled with women who are pretty and sometimes know NOTHING about the sport they cover!  Let's just be honest.  The world glorifies it and we consume everything the world gives us.  

If these kinds of things cause me to stumble and fall into sin, who is to blame?  Well, of course, I am.  Any situation has a way of escape.  If there is a woman who is scantily clad, I DON'T have to look at her!  If there is a website with filth in the advertisements, I can always reload the site, in hopes of the advertisements disappearance, or leave the site entirely.  

The deal is, I cannot blame anyone else for my inclination to sin.  I hear it many times, "well, the devil made me do it" or "if those clothing companies would make better clothes"  or "there was nothing else on, so I had to watch that."  ARE YOU KIDDING ME????

We have so many excuses for my sin.  I say we, because I am as guilty of it as anyone!  I use excuses for sin every day!  I slide into some sin, and then try to justify it.  Instead, I , we , everyone needs to own up to our sin and seek God daily in all our pursuits.  We shouldn't hide from Him, but bear all we are to Him and He will forgive us.  

Let's enjoy His gifts, but not make them our gods.  Let God lead and bless your life!

  

116

Happy 116 Day!

Romans 1:16

"For I am not ashamed 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."

What does it mean to be unashamed of the Gospel?

To be unashamed is to spread the Gospel no matter the cost.  When faced with loss of friends, death, loss of popularity, and anything of the sort, you continue to follow Jesus and His word.  Does it mean that you'll never make a mistake?  No.  We all fall short of what we strive for, being like Christ, but that doesn't mean that we quit.  Does it mean that we lay in our filth and just give up?  No.  Jesus wants us as we are, but we are still called to be like Him.

To me, it means praying with my student-athletes after every practice and before every game. It is during Friday pre-game praying with the entire Henderson coaching staff before taking the field. It is having conversation with anybody who will listen about my Creator.  It is riding the streets of Henderson blaring Christian rap songs and southern gospel songs.

Keys to Balance and Success

Last night, closed out the college football season. In the end, Urban Meyer and his Ohio State Buckeyes were holding up the trophy.Talk about a team with a story.  The Buckeyes lost their QB, Braxton Miller, early on in the season.  Then by the Michigan game, they lost their second string QB, JT Barrett.  So, here they go into the conference championship with a 3rd string QB and blow out their opponents. Let's be honest, they qualified for the playoff, but I never thought they would go into the game with Alabama and win.

They truly came out and took advantage of opportunity, then they rolled into Arlington and did the same thing to Oregon.  I even saw the Alabama game as a fluke.  I got on Facebook and said "Oregon by however much they want...," and there is evidence of why I NEVER make it a habit to bet on or try to predict games.  I am never right.  

All that to lead into, I have a ton of respect for Urban Meyer as a coach and as a husband and family man. 

Jenn and I attended a Coaches Outreach marriage conference this summer and very much enjoyed it.  

The speaker brought up Urban Meyer one night and gave us a quick rundown of his story and then shared with us what he did when he got the Head Coach position at Ohio State.While Urban was at Florida, his health had begun to decline BIG TIME.  He was spending a ton of time at the office and was under a ton of pressure.  He eventually resigned from Florida due to all this.  When he took the job at Ohio State, he signed a contract with the university and then signed one with his family.The terms of his job contract pale in comparison to the terms and the significance of his contract with his family.

Here is his family contract:

1. My family will always come first.
2. I will take care of myself and maintain good health.
3. I will go on a trip once a year with Nicki -- MINIMUM.
4. I will not go more than nine hours a day at the office.
5. I will sleep with my cellphone on silent.
6. I will continue to communicate daily with my kids.
7. I will trust God's plan and not be overanxious.
8. I will keep the lake house.
9. I will find a way to watch Nicki and Gigi play volleyball.
10. I will eat three meals a day.

So here, we see that, if he has put this all into practice, it has paid off.  Of course, I can't tell you whether or not he has kept to the contract fully each and every day.  However, I feel like he probably has.  It seems to me that it is worth taking note of.

No matter what career we have chosen and how we fill our days, there are things that are more important.First of all, God should be the center of our universe.  He commands us to not put anything else before him.  In the Bible, it was other physical or spiritual Gods. For us, it may not be a golden calf, but it could be our pursuit of recognition or of money.  It could even be a championship chase.  None of those things are bad.  It is not necessarily bad to seek recognition or to strive to make more money.  It is not bad to want to win a championship, but when those things throw God off His throne, they become our own gods and that is not what He asks of us.  

Our family should always be next on our priority list.  Without family where would we be?  I'd be a pretty sad shell of a person without the love and support of my wife Jennifer.  I'd also be pretty bad off without the rest of my family.  Jenn takes a backseat to nothing but God, and I know she feels the same about me.  Following those two, everything else usually falls into place.  For me it is God, then family, then football!  

What about where he talks about his lake house?  Well, I feel like its an acknowledgement he has made to actually relax and have some fun.  If I spent all my time on my teaching and coaching, my hair would fall out and I'd probably have a heart attack.  I feel like lately I have been able to balance the scales of my career and life challenges and then been able to slide in some relaxation and rest.  

So, relax and view life the way it is supposed to be.  We are supposed to take joy in this life.  I promise, the only way that becomes easy is if we place God at the forefront.  Let Him guide you and He will handle it!