Winning the Battle

This morning, my pastor at Harvest Bible Chapel in Rockford, preached an outstanding message entitled, "Winning the Battle Over Sin".  I instantly knew that I wanted to share this on my blog not only because it is so convicting and powerful, but also because he relates it so strongly to the sports arena.  His whole point was to encourage us and inform us of the necessity it is to "make war" with our sin on a daily basis.  So many times we find ourselves just doing the typical "Christian" thing and making sure we are just doing OK.  But I was really challenged in this message to take initiative and really take a "Holy violence" against my sin. He had 3 things we need from Colossians 3:1-7 that he used to make that point to us.  The three points were:

1. You must have a good OFFENSE

2. You must have a good DEFENSE

3. You must have good TEAMMATES

The entire passage talks about our utter dependence on God and how me must put on a "New Self."  I thought it was so awesome how he related sports analogies to our walk with Christ.  I was extremely convicted of my walk with Jesus and how I am playing "defense" too often.  I just want to fight sin and stay out of trouble.  But Jesus really encouraged me to take the "offensive" in winning the battle over sin.  I was also struck back by how important it is to have the right 'teammates' on your side to encourage you in your walk.  Instead of summarizing the entire sermon in this blog post, I would rather allow you to listen to it yourself.  I STRONGLY ENCOURAGE you to listen to this sermon while your working out in the morning or while your driving your daily commute to/from work.  I feel like this idea  of "making war" or "winning the battle over sin" really needs to be strengthened in my walk as a Christian and I believe that it can be directly translated to the way I coach a basketball team.  I hope you are as encouraged by this message as I am and I would love to hear your feedback!

Remember to Die

Remember to die.  This isn't a phrase that we usually say to someone, but it should be the first thing to cross our minds each day.  The apostle Paul is a great example of this discipline every day.  In 1 Corinthians 15:31, Paul makes it known to the church at Corinth that, "I die every day!"  Before you navigate away from this blog because you think its creepy, hear me out.  Remembering to die may be the most important things you ever do and it could be very essential in a successful life.  Jesus calls us to die to self so we can be alive in Him.  "For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." - Philippians 1:21.  We need to die to ourselves, to sin, everyday.  Jesus Christ bore our sin in his body on the tree so we can do that (1 Peter 2:24).  The world is alive in sin and alive in themselves, but that is the recipe for disaster.  We need to make a conscious effort to avoid sin at all costs.  We need to be dead to it. As coaches, it is vital that we wake up every morning and remember to die.  Having a spirit of humility is the secret to success in any profession.  Humble yourself and be willing to die to yourself.  Be excited to die to your sin.  Fight it.  It's not an easy task to fulfill, but it is the direct calling from God to believers.  Remember to die every day so that we can obtain the Kingdom and live a life worthy of the gospel.  Wake up!  Be an example! Next time you roll out of bed have one thing on your mind.  REMEMBER TO DIE!

"Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.  For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may win Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends of faith - and that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead." - Philippians 3:8-11