Turn the Page

Welcome to my friends from the Encouragement Cafe! Thank you for joining me today! Like I said in the devotional, "Life is full of choices!" They truly never end, but I want to encourage you in a specific area today.

Like I wrote in my previous post, much of my time is spent in a gym these days. All 3 of our boys are wrestling and our 2 girls are playing basketball. As I coach the b-ball team, I find myself remembering that sports can teach us so much about life and our spiritual walk.

One phrase I've said a few times this season is: "Turn the page." The words come as I talk with an athlete who's made a mistake. Basketball is a physical game, but it requires mental strength as well. Turnovers are part of the game and bad calls can be too. Sometimes your shot isn't falling, but still you must press on.

I still remember my high school coach telling us, "Don't let one mistake lead to two." Now as a coach myself, I see this happen quite often. When a player makes a bad pass, they tend to make a bad play on defense. This takes place because mistakes tend to get in our head; they become the focus of our attention. We think about what we did wrong instead of what we need to do next. We allow what happened in the past to impact what happens in the future.

In attempt to encourage my players to not get stuck in their mistakes, we simply say, "Turn the page." We've talked about this as a team and the girls know what the simple statement suggests. Knowing this and doing it are two different things, which is where choices come in. My athletes can decide if they are going to move past their mistake or dwell on it and friend, you and I can do the same.

There comes a time in practice and in games when athletes must make this choice and though our playing days come to end the need for perseverance never does. We mess up as friends, employees, wives and moms and when we do, Satan tends to pounce.

Our mistakes impact our lives and the people we touch, but they also affect our minds. Doubts can creep in and lies can lead us astray, so mentally we must turn the page. Friend, daily you and I need to choose to exercise Philippians 3:13-14. Here Paul tells us, "Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead; I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." 

Once we make the decision to turn the page, we then must choose to press on. This isn't easy on the basketball court and it's just as challenging in life, but our effort will be rewarded! Whatever mistake you make today, I pray you can put it behind you and move on. Then make the choice to do the work that lies in front of you! Friend, turning the page might help my team win a game, but this choice for us as Christians has the potential to impact eternity, so let's choose wisely today!