Lay Down Your Crowns
I have been born again for 44 years now. For the past 36 years, the game of basketball has been an integral part of my life as a player and a coach. What I love about sports in general is that you have to put into practice what you learn. There is no arrogance of hiding behind knowledge, but actually developing a skill and then executing it in practicality. Learning fundamentals and responsibility to uphold your contribution to the team and game is a vital to be successful. Simply being yourself and doing your job or part contributes to something greater than yourself. Everyone on a team is valuable and has a role. It is constantly challenging you to put your faith in action with an end goal of winning. The same is true in the Body of Christ.
It is Finished
In 2023, we lost in the championship game. We had unfinished business. In 2024, we made it back and won. In the locker room afterwards I shared with the team these three things.
First, this was a special group that achieved something historic together.
Second, when Jesus was on the cross, before breathing his last breath and giving up His spirit He achieved the championship of humanity. He said “It is Finished”. He had accomplished all that He set out to do just as we just did with basketball. John 19:30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.
Hebrews 12:1-2 1Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2looking unto Jesus, the [a]author and [b]finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Any achievement or accolade we make in this life has value. The hard work, dedication, faith, hope, and love poured out from all our heart, strength, and soul that goes into it costs us something. That is valuable because we endure in it, investing our time, treasure, and talent, believing God for the outcome of victory. Rewards in the life are valuable and come with admiration, notoriety, and fame in appearance. He gave us the heart for these things to work in our lives and accomplished them through us. They belong to Him. We have used our authority in this earth to achieve something that carries the weight of dignity, honor, and worth, representing what Christ has given us. The Bible calls these rewards crowns. He is the King of kings and crowns of victory represent lordship to rule over something. We will lay these crowns at the feet of our king when we enter into eternity upon leaving this earth.
Revelation 4:10-11 10the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying:11“You are worthy, [g]O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they [h]exist and were created.”
Finally, we had done affirmations before games throughout the year and even before some practices. Rehearsing Gods truth about our identity as individuals and as a team. Biblical identity statements of truth produce healthy self talk. Godly self talk produces confidence in the truth of our identity in Jesus. These truths were written on our hearts with an emotionally charged environment that basketball games provided. With Gods joy welling up in my eyes, my closing statement to a championship season was this; something we had rehearsed for much of the year. Replacing “is” for “was“ upon accomplishing our goal.
It was our time, It was our season, It was our moment!
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As a believer, you are a champion because you believed in Jesus. That makes you victorious over anything this world throws at you. The reason I coach is because I believe in every kid I have ever coached. I recognize God believes in me and learn to see that in others before it happens. It produced crowns of glory for our team way beyond the game we love. Making eternal impact in the hearts of these young men and their families!
Believe!
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Become a part of the Team!
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