What is your G.P.S.?

In today’s society it’s so convenient for us to find where we are going. We have our G.P.S. stowed in our glove compartments or we push a button and ask Siri how to get to where we want to go. There is no more printing off directions or buying a road map to plan out the family vacation anymore. G.P.S. systems have greatly enhanced our ability of navigating around the world. But what happens when it fails us? What happens when we get lost? What happens when we reach a crossroad in our life? What happens when we need someone to help us find our direction? That’s where we need God’s G.P.S. (God’s Positioning System).

We have all been in a position where we feel inadequate, where we feel like a failure or where we just feel lost in what God’s plan is for us. I know personally I have felt all these things. We meet new people, get new jobs, move off to better and brighter things and then something happens....we feel unhappy, tired and unmotivated. We want a road map now; we pursue a quick fix instead of waiting patiently and praying for where God’s road may lead us. 

Psalm 32:8 says: I will instruct you and show you the way to go; with my eye on you, 

                             I will give counsel

God wants to be our road map. He wants to be on this journey of life with us. So seek His guidance. Look and feel His presence speaking to you and which road you should you take. I am a firm believer in the saying “Everything happens for a reason.” We meet people, lose friends, get divorced, lose big games, hit the winning shot, strike out, lose a job, get injured, fail a big test, land a big job, not be able to have kids, develop cancer, pass that big test, beat cancer, win a championship, finish last or fall flat on our face. But in God’s time everything happens for a reason and sometimes it is down the road before we ever realize His reasons. So be thankful for the blessings, be thankful for the heartaches and be thankful for the this life we are fortunate to live. God has a road map for each of us. Listen to His nudges, pay attention to His signs and follow His path for you. 

I encourage all of you to find your G.(God’s) P.(Positioning) S.(System). Trust in God that He knows best and lean on Him in good and bad times. This is one of my favorite quotes:

“You only get one shot at life so make it count. Make it last. Make it worth every heartbreak, every smile, every tear, every memory.  This is your life, your destiny, your fate.. this is your only chance, your one chance to make a difference in the universe, when you are gone, your life is over.. thats it, there's no more re-runs. this is the main show and you’re the star.”

Enjoy your journey and the next time you are lost: Grab your G. P. S. (The good Book)!!

Verse of the Week: 

Psalm 143:10 says: Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God. May your gracious 

                                 Spirit lead me on level ground. 

Song of the week: “God’s Will” by Martina McBride

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BfYqPh5Pf0Y

Tournament Time....

For my coaching friends: A little something to share with your team...

My grandmother gave me this years ago. I always like to read it to my team. We often forget that basketball teaches us so much about life. If we give to the game, it will always give back to us. Have pride in your school, your community, your family and yourself and all those you represent. Always give your best in all that you do. Hope you enjoy this and feel free to share it with your team.  We should all be thankful we get to play and coach this great sport that we love. Sometimes we take it for granted. Best of luck to all of you in the post season!

Dear "Your team name",

     When you play tonight, play your best. Play your hardest. But most of all ...play for me. You say you will, you say did, but you're wrong. Encourage, don't discourage. Smile, don't complain. Most importantly, look ahead-not behind.

     When you play tonight, love your teammates. Love the ones that never do well, love the ones that are always the best. Love the person who loses the game for you. Love the person who gets all the cheers and compliments. Remember that I love them anyway and you should try to love them too.

     When you play tonight, remember how blessed you are. You may ache all over, but it will go  away. There are people who feel that way their whole lives. And there are people who can't feel. You may get frustrated at seeing a losing score on the scoreboard, but remember you can see. You may want to cry when your coach gets on you, but try to say thanks because you can hear. When you feel excited, when you feel hurt, remember these are gifts I gave you that compliment each other and that makes life a fascinating experience.

     When you play tonight, remember there are people watching you. That's a scary though, but it's important. Be careful how you live, you may the only Bible some people read. People notice when you hug instead of yell, and when you win or lose well. Someone you've never even met may come away learning more for your team about life than about the sport.

     When you play tonight, be humble. Don't try to the best, try to help the person next to you be the best. Don't look for glory, you won't find it. It will come when you aren't seeking it. Don't brag, don't flaunt your talents. Quietly work, think and try to improve. Make yourself perfect before working on your teammates.

     And this last request...though it comes last, in my eyes it is the most important....HAVE FUN!!!
In competition it's easy to forget why you started playing sports in the beginning. Ten years from now it won't be as easy to remember who won or lost as it will be to remember if you enjoyed the sport. You don't know when you'll be able to play again, so go out there and use your abilities and love every minute of it.

     Love winning because it is easy to love, but recognize that losing makes you become better. Love jumping, running, rebounding, and cheering. All over the world tonight there are people lying in bed dreaming of being able to do those things. And when it comes right down to it, that's what really matters, that you CAN do those things. It's not whether you win or lose, it's the fact that you are gifted, skilled and talented and win or lose....you STILL will be!

     So when you play tonight, remember me. I'll be watching you. So put up a good fight. I believe you can win and I hope you think so too. Love what you are doing and always remember to laugh!

                                                                                                                       Love,
                                                                                                                        God

Trust the Process

Trust the process:

It’s quite amazing what we can learn from kids. As many of you know my family and I are avid Vandy fans. My nephew Parker has continued the tradition and loves his black and gold when he is not cheering for Alabama....his dad is a huge AL fan. 

He loves going to the football games and can quote James Franklin’s post game locker room sessions like you can’t believe. In one of his post game talks to the team, he talked about Trusting the Process. This phrase has stuck out in my mind about many different aspects of our lives....sports, friendships, education, jobs and our relationship with God. 

Our short lives here on Earth are a process. Starting when we are born, we must learn to crawl before we walk, walk before we run. This is a process and doesn’t happen over night. When we begin our long journey in education, we first go to kindergarten. We learn our colors, shapes, to share and get along with others. As we grow older our processes become more advanced. We have to learn to be on our own, learn to succeed, to fail, to overcome disappointments, to learn to let go and move on, to stand up for what we believe and to basically learn how to pursue life, love and happiness.

One of my favorite athletes growing up was Michael Jordan. He just celebrated his 50th birthday. He is quoted saying  “I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”  Basketball was such a big part of my life this was one of my favorite quotes. Such is life as well; If you never take risks, if you never fail or if you never step out of your comfort zone you never truly experience the “process” of this short life. 

So life is a big process: we all maintain some sort of faith that we are training and working towards the right process for ourselves. The past few years have been a struggle for me. I’ve struggled with God’s purpose for me. Where does He want me to be? What is the big picture for me? Where is my process taking me? This life is so short: As Kenny Chesney says “Don’t Blink.” The past few years I have come to the realization that our Life process is to put our faith in God and trust in Him in all that we do. He wants to help us with the big decisions of our lives. So talk to him and ask His opinion. Phillipians 4: 6-7 says “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” His answer may not always be what we want, but in the long run if we have faith His outcome will far outweigh anything we ever imagined. 

So what is your process? Do you trust and have faith that God’s plan is much better than your plan? It took me a few years to grasp this concept. He knows much more about my journey than I do. So this week: Have faith and “Trust the Process.” God never promised that life would be easy, but if we believe in Him and honor Him in all that we do, our rewards in heaven will be much more than we could ever accomplish or gain here on Earth. 

Have a great week and Trust God’s process!!

Verse of the week:

Psalm 18:2 “The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.”

Song of the week: In God’s Time by Randy Houser

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71nKSAkvRos

Dating Jesus

Since this is Valentines Day Week.....here is a little thought about relationships.

Relationships are some of the most complicated areas in our short life. Friendships and dating often involve much of our time and energy. Some can be negative and some can be positive. I feel very blessed to have some great friends in my life. As I get older, the statement "good friends are hard to find" becomes more and more true. Trust and communication are two of the most important aspects of relationships. Sometimes we get so caught up in finding the right mate, fitting in and finding friends that we neglect the one person who loves us unconditionally and wants to be in a relationship with us.....God. He is always trustworthy and always ready to listen to us.

God doesn't judge our past, he doesn't judge our looks, he doesn't care how much money we make and he doesn't care what our status may be. He is never late for a date and always on time when we need him. He has given us so many gifts that we take for granted each day. He does not intend for us to devote all of our time and energy in pleasing our friends or significant others. He wants us to "get to know Him." So plan a date with God this week. Talk to Him, thank Him, Praise Him for all the blessings that He gives us every day. He gave us the greatest gift of all.....He loved us so much He died on the cross for our sins. Now that my friends is "Love."

We all have a choice. You can accept God's invitation to have a close relationship with Him or you can just continue to wander around in a lukewarm, comfortable environment and proclaim you have the truth. But that kind of truth will not set you free! Get to know Him....He is waiting! Matthew 11:28-29

When I don't listen to Christian radio, those of you know me know I love country music. There is a song out right now called "Beer with Jesus." I don't particularly agree with the title, but the song has some really great lyrics. Perhaps you can substitute "Coke" or "Tea" for the beer.  Here is a link to the song.

http://www.cmt.com/videos/thomas-rhett/855115/beer-with-jesus.jhtml

So plan a date with Jesus! This Valentine's Day Jesus will be my Valentine because He loves me much more than anyone on this Earth ever well!

Have a great week!


Verse of the week:

Proverbs 8:17   I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me.

Have you seen God today?

We as human beings often see what we pay attention to. If our vision is focused on negative then usually all we see is negative. If we focus on the positive then usually we tend to pay attention to the positive aspects our lives. 

So where is God in our every day lives? I was talking to my sister the other day about the miracle of a child being born. How can you not believe in God when knowing that another human being is being shaped and formed inside a mother's womb? Arms, legs, a stomach and a brain are all being developed. This is a miracle that only God could control. 

But still we often ask ourselves....Where is God? He is prevalent in our busy every day lives. It may be a rainbow, snow, a beautiful sunset or even standing and watching the ocean. My favorite place on Earth is the beach. I love standing in awe watching and listening the sound of the ocean. It is there I find peace and know that when the tide sweeps beneath my feet and the sand nestles between my toes that God is truly amazing. One of my best friends and I have a saying every time we sit in our chairs that "This is the life." You can see Him everywhere....

The past couple of years I have started going hiking. Nature is one the most intriguing views of God's creation. The trees, sounds and views generate a feeling of closeness of God. To sit and listen to the waterfalls and listen to all the different sounds allows His presence to be felt. 

So where is God in your life? Look around at all the blessings He has given you. Focus on the good things and worry less about the bad things. One of the most important callings of our Christian faith is to let people see God in us. One of my favorite sayings is "that you may be the only Bible some people ever read." Scary though....but so true. Let your "lifesong" be pleasing to Him. Be kind, smile and try to be pleasant in all that you do, for you never know who may be watching. Don't be afraid to let your light shine!!!  So the next time you are driving to work, going for a run, visiting a hospital, talking to a friend, competing in a game or looking up at the stars....Look for God! He is everywhere!

In closing, I want to share one of my favorite songs with you. It is George Strait's I Saw God Today. 

Below is the link to the song...sometimes we don't look for Him near as often as we should. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q06AvQF5NOw

I encourage all of you to look for God in your every day life!!! 

Hope all of you have a blessed week!

                                                       I saw God today......Did you????????

Until next time...."God is 1st

                            Family and Friends are 2nd

                            And I Am 3rd!" Gayle Sayers