You Play Like You Practice

What an exciting time of year! Football season is well into the second month, and big games are ahead in the coming weeks. Baseball season has moved into the playoffs and is moving toward the World Series. One of the reasons I love sports is we can learn lessons from life. We can even learn lessons about being a disciple. What do I mean?

Many years ago, I played football and baseball. My coaches were always full of ideas on how to improve. One tip I have never forgotten was “YOU PLAY LIKE YOU PRACTICE.”  What did this mean?

In football, we would run plays over and over in practice until we got it right. If we did this in practice, the game became an extension of what we did in practice. When our daily routine was right, this translated into a good game Friday night. Many years later, this principle is still true. More often than not, team results will be determined on the practice field and not just on the gridiron on gameday.

What do these lessons from how you practice have in common with our discipleship? The invitation of Jesus is to put into practice each day living as His disciple. Living our faith in daily practice helps us become a little more like Jesus each day. We practice each day being a disciple through prayer, searching the scriptures, and serving others. If we practice being a disciple each day, we will also be more ready when opportunities or challenges come our way.

As we seek to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world through Shalimar United Methodist Church, I still hear the voices of my coaches in my head. YOU PLAY LIKE YOU PRACTICE! It is true in becoming and making disciples too! If we put discipleship into practice every day, we become more and more the person Christ is molding us to become.

Every day offers us a fresh opportunity to put into practice the teachings of Jesus! So let us practice being more like Jesus each day! That way, we can be ready for the opportunities and challenges that come our way!

Shalom,
Philip