4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.
5 I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
Because of the presence of Christ in our hearts and the redemptive work that He has done, we can think and act in a different way - different from the way we used to behave and different from the ways of the world. He brings meaning to our lives and the supernatural ability to put sin to death and put righteousness on display. It's not us, but Christ in us. The roles we serve should be informed by our faith in Him and infused with Holy Spirit power.
Want to talk about purpose? What God has in store for the child of God? Ephesians 2 gives us some
insight into how God sees us - in Christ:
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
The defending college football national champions kicked off their season at home against Georgia Tech. The last time that the Clemson Tigers were on a football field for a game, they pounded the Alabama Crimson Tide, 44-16. It's certainly a defeat that will motivate the Tide this year. But, I would say the Tigers have no plans of backing down and resting on their laurels.
The architect and motivator of this team is none other than Dabo Swinney, and he has set the tone for the season with a single word: purpose. The Christian Headlines website quotes in this excerpt from the article:
As the article notes, Swinney has not been reserved in sharing his faith in Christ, noting that after winning the championship last year, he said, “For me personally, joy comes from focusing on Jesus, others and yourself.”
Speaking of purpose, I was struck by a retweet of video comments from former NFL player now pastor Derwin Gray. The title was "WHY do you coach?" The tweet was from none other than current Florida Atlantic head coach and former Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin. I had to say, what's up with this. After all, Kiffin has been known for his coaching instability and rumors of personal indiscretion.
Florida Atlantic, by the way, opens its season at The Ohio State University.
But, here you have two rather well-known coaches talking about purpose, from a Biblical perspective. We can ask ourselves if we can identify it in our own lives. As Dabo says, ultimately, it's to glorify God - and God will provide direction in order for us to do this. He has wonderful intentions for us, and desires that we discover them.
Also, let's talk for a moment about perception. We generally have a good perception of Dabo Swinney's faith; others, like Lane, not so much. I have to admit, I was a bit surprised to learn that Del Duduit had included Ben Roethlisberger, who has had his share of bad publicity, in his devotional book - didn't see that one coming! But, think about it - no one is beyond redemption. Because of wrong choices, a person can build a reputation, and we develop a perception. But, God can provide the potential for that perception to be wiped away, having given a person a clean slate through Christ's forgiveness.
Finally, if God has done something wonderful in your life - and He has! - then be involved in the proclamation of what He has done. We can tell our stories, and live in a manner that shows the world that we belong to Him. Christ has come to rewrite our stories, to rescue us from sin's power, and to reverse the work of the enemy in our lives.
+++++
Want to talk about purpose? What God has in store for the child of God? Ephesians 2 gives us some
insight into how God sees us - in Christ:
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
The defending college football national champions kicked off their season at home against Georgia Tech. The last time that the Clemson Tigers were on a football field for a game, they pounded the Alabama Crimson Tide, 44-16. It's certainly a defeat that will motivate the Tide this year. But, I would say the Tigers have no plans of backing down and resting on their laurels.
The architect and motivator of this team is none other than Dabo Swinney, and he has set the tone for the season with a single word: purpose. The Christian Headlines website quotes in this excerpt from the article:
Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said during his press conference this week he wants his team to focus on one word this year: purpose. But Swinney – whose team is ranked No. 1 in the major polls – defines “purpose” differently than many football fans would.
“My word is ‘purpose’ this year – my purpose as a man, my purpose as a father, my purpose as a husband, and then our purpose as a program. …. And then also helping my staff and my players find and fulfill their purpose.
“[I’m] just really convicted on that. We’ve had a lot of success, I’m going into year 11, but we’ve stayed true to who we are the whole way. … I know what my purpose as a man is, and that’s to glorify God. That’s to be a great husband and father, and it’s to use the game of football to equip young people for life. That’s just that simple.”He also commented on the purpose of the Clemson program: “...to graduate our players, and to give them the tools that they need to go be successful – to make sure they have a good experience and to win a championship ." Last year's seniors had a 97% job placement rate.
As the article notes, Swinney has not been reserved in sharing his faith in Christ, noting that after winning the championship last year, he said, “For me personally, joy comes from focusing on Jesus, others and yourself.”
Speaking of purpose, I was struck by a retweet of video comments from former NFL player now pastor Derwin Gray. The title was "WHY do you coach?" The tweet was from none other than current Florida Atlantic head coach and former Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin. I had to say, what's up with this. After all, Kiffin has been known for his coaching instability and rumors of personal indiscretion.
Well, it seems that Kiffin has had a discovery of purpose in his life. A Christian Headlines story from last year relates how the chaplain at Tennessee, where Lane was the head coach for one year, gave him a book, according to a piece the coach wrote for the Athletes for God website:
“On the first page were four words that changed my life,” Kiffin wrote. “’It’s not about you.’ “That’s all Rick Warren needed to say. It immediately sunk in, and I've been telling my players and coworkers that line ever since. I had never heard that before but that is the purpose of life.”Those, of course, were the opening words of the book, The Purpose Driven Life. The article goes on to say, regarding his sudden firing at USC: “What it turned out to be … was the beginning of God humbling me to the man I am today,” adding, “I was not using the platform He put me on at all in His way. As my pastor once said, 'God wasn't punishing me, he was just giving me a wakeup call.” He also noted, "Just when I needed Him, God answered in a big way,” Kiffin wrote. “I don't know if God is a sports fan or not, but I do know this: He loves a good comeback.”
Florida Atlantic, by the way, opens its season at The Ohio State University.
But, here you have two rather well-known coaches talking about purpose, from a Biblical perspective. We can ask ourselves if we can identify it in our own lives. As Dabo says, ultimately, it's to glorify God - and God will provide direction in order for us to do this. He has wonderful intentions for us, and desires that we discover them.
Also, let's talk for a moment about perception. We generally have a good perception of Dabo Swinney's faith; others, like Lane, not so much. I have to admit, I was a bit surprised to learn that Del Duduit had included Ben Roethlisberger, who has had his share of bad publicity, in his devotional book - didn't see that one coming! But, think about it - no one is beyond redemption. Because of wrong choices, a person can build a reputation, and we develop a perception. But, God can provide the potential for that perception to be wiped away, having given a person a clean slate through Christ's forgiveness.
Finally, if God has done something wonderful in your life - and He has! - then be involved in the proclamation of what He has done. We can tell our stories, and live in a manner that shows the world that we belong to Him. Christ has come to rewrite our stories, to rescue us from sin's power, and to reverse the work of the enemy in our lives.
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