Are you Coachable?

Be Coachable

- Dave Egner

Casey Seymour, a successful soccer player and coach, notes that everyone on his team hates the 10-by-100 drill that ends practice. Before the men can leave the field, they must run 100 yards 10 times at full speed with minimal rest. If they don’t beat a prescribed time, they have to do it again.

The players hate it—until the day of the game. Then they find that they can play at full capacity for the entire match. Their effort has been rewarded with a championship!

The apostle Paul used metaphors of training and competition in his letters. While he was a missionary to the Gentiles, he submitted to the instructions and drills of God amid great suffering and hardship. Twice in Philippians 4, he said, “I have learned” (vv.11-12). For him, and for each of us, following Jesus is a lifelong learning process. We are not spiritually mature the day we are saved, any more than a schoolboy athlete is ready for professional soccer. We grow in faith as we allow God through His Word and the Holy Spirit to empower us to serve Him.

Through hardship, Paul learned to serve God well—and so can we. It’s not pleasant, but it is rewarding! The more teachable we are, the more mature we will become. As members of Christ’s team, let’s be coachable.

Oh, it’s hard to learn the lesson,
As we pass beneath the rod,
That the sunshine and the shadow
Serve alike the will of God.
—Anon.

God’s work in us isn’t over when we receive Christ— it has just begun.

The Prayer

Psalms 19:1 – The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.

Romans 1:20 – For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse

The Prayer:

Jesus, I need you! You are my Lord, my God, and my King. You are worthy of all of my worship. Help me, by your grace, to know you and love you so deeply and dearly that the things of this world fade away and grow strangely dim.

I want to worship you and you alone. I don’t want to be forged by the culture. I am in you; I want to be one with you. Bind my heart to yours, and place your truth deep within me. I not only want to know you and your Word, I want to have the desire to forsake sin and follow you and your Word. Enable me to worship you in spirit and in truth.

I need your power, your grace, and your love so that no matter what life brings my way, I can respond to each situation, each person, and each trial the way you would respond—all for your glory. I don’t want to respond merely outwardly, but rather from within, from the river of living water. I want to be so close to you, Jesus that your Spirit flows forth from me in all I do and say. May I find all of my joy only in you.

May I glorify you in all I say and do. (Psalm 42:1-2a; Galatians 2:20)

No matter where I am, what I am doing, what Scripture I am reading, or what song I am singing, I want my mind, my energies, and my heart focused on you and not on me and my circumstances. I want you and you alone.

No matter if I succeed or fail, win or lose, am rich or poor, am included or excluded, am known or forgotten, may I be content knowing that you are mine and I am yours.

May my chief aim be to love you and be loved by you, to please you and serve only you. Help me to see my sin, mourn it, and forsake it, by your grace. Help me hunger and thirst after righteousness.

Lord Jesus, grant me your grace, your mercy, and your loving-kindness to enable me to see you, know you, love you, and be one with you. Thank you that you’re Word tells me if we ask anything in your name and according to your will that you will do it. Amen. (John 14:13-14)

Just as I am

Let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely. -Revelations 22:17

Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear, and your soul shall live. -Isaiah 55:3

I just saw this in todays Daily Bread that I read and It really made me think about things.  Such as when you go to Christ you need to go "Just as you are" and He don''t want/need any flashy nothing to go to Christ.

Family Resemblance

Love is the family resemblance the world should see in followers of Christ.

Do you show your love and do people see it and know that you are a follower of Christ?  Do you have love in your heart and mind?  If you don't have Love you don't have Christ.  Remember that Love is Christ.  Christ is Love.

Basic Rambling

Let Christ and Live!!!!

Live Christ and Love!!!

Christ is Christ is Love is Christ!!!

Live and let God and then Live!!!

-Shawn

Small Question

I have put together a small questionnaire for you to fill out for me.  Please take a couple minutes and fill it out and hit send thanks.

Jesus Questionnaire

Fan or Follower of Christ

I just finished an awesome book called Not a Fan written by Kyle Idleman.   Actually this would be the second time I read it and I must admit that it took some time but it made me realize what it means to be a true follower of Christ.  For years I will honestly say that I was playing as a fan just like I am a fan of baseball or a fan of Star Trek.  It all started from the verse Luke 9:23-Then He said to them, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.

I believe the key in that verse is the word "daily" now I’m not saying that the rest is unimportant so make sure you truly understand that.  But, I want you know if we are to follow Christ it needs to be a daily commitment because Satan enjoys screwing with our minds and he does this by making it seem not important if we side backwards even just a little bit then the next day it is just a little bit more than before you even realize it you have found yourself so far back you forgot where you started from.  Daily means just that every day and sometimes more than once a day.  If you don’t do this then how can you make sure you are on track?  You need to understand that Satan can take every advantage he can to cause you to sin.  He can tempt you in ways that you, yourself, would never think of.  He will do this trust me.  I know because over the years I have fallen victim to the lies and temptations.

What do I do when this happens?  Well, What I have done was when I saw what had happened to me I quickly did what I thought was best and recommit myself. (Which was fine) And this was done once then I go through life and realize I did it again.  "Wow, really Shawn Again?" I would say to myself then back to the alter or on my knees asking once again for forgiveness and another chance.  See the pattern.  I am sure that I am not the only one who has done this.

People please don’t tell me you never had this happen to you and if you tell me that then I will call you fibber, LOL.  Yea, I just may have offended one or two people and I will say I am sorry you feel this way but truth hurts at times.  This brings me back to the daily thing and even more than once per day.  Jesus wants us to know Him.  Not just know Him like we know our favorite actor or favorite singer but to really know him.  Example, One of my favorite actors is Sir Patrick Stewart and I feel I know him but really I don’t know him.  I don’t call him on the phone or sit and have coffee with him.  I really only know of him.  So hence the term fan.  Whereas Jesus I know...I can talk with him during all times of my life.  He is there in the good and the bad.  That is where He wants to be.  I have to keep in constant communication with Him and I do this daily.  I am always asking for His guidance and protection from the temptations that life has to offer.  But this cannot be done once very couple of days, months, or years.  It is a daily thing.  That keeps me strong and filled with the Holy Spirit and I know Christ is with me and in me.