Charger Nation: Game #2

Charger Nation: Game #2

Charger Nation,

            Game #2 is upon us.  Last week I wrote to you about what a tough opponent North Florida Christian would be and this week I triple everything I said.  Stockbridge is ranked #3, #5, or #1 depending on which AAAAA poll you look at.  They are coming off a huge when where they beat the #2 ranked team in the entire state of Alabama.   When I was watching film of their defense this week I was eager to hunt for personnel holes and formations I could use to get them misaligned.  There aren’t any!  These guys don’t have any holes and are the fastest team I have ever seen on film defensively.  They are a team of stars full of D1 athletes just like North Florida Christian was but they are bigger and more impressive stars. 

          

           There will be no easy play for us tonight.  There will be no easy yard and there will be no time on defense where we can lose our focus.  This is the best team ELCA has ever played.  So why play?  I am making it sound like little hope correct?  Here is why you play:  There is never a big time accomplishment without a big time obstacle.  You will never have a big time win without playing a big time opponent.   You will never do the impossible without trying to conquer the impossible.  If you live your life in fear of losing or failure you will live never become all God has created you to be.  Great challenges bring great pressure.  Great pressure is what molds and shapes us if we use it constructively. 

            

           I coach a bunch of boys I believe in.  They believe in themselves.  They may be smaller and they may not be as fast but it’s hard to put a measure on their heart, their desire and their will to win.  We are talented too.  I wouldn’t even begin to write about how I believe we can win if I knew it was impossible.  But it’s not with this group I coach.  They are not intimidated and they are excited about this opportunity tonight.  If the time was ever right for ELCA to knock off one of the big boys it is right now!  It is tonight!  Each player tonight must be perfect and do their job with great precision for us to win but if I ever had a team that could pull off that feat, it is this one.  Did I say I believe in this group?!

            

          When I play games like this and am watching film and game planning I always feel like I have to come up with some perfect play and formation for us to win.  I am sure Coach Dallas feels the same was as the defensive coordinator.   We frantically work and work and work trying to come up with the perfect gameplan.  However, each morning this week as I came to the Lord and prayer I kept finding myself writing the following: “I am weak but the Lord is Strong.  I can’t but the Lord can.  He is my Hope, my Strength, my Confidence, and my Trust.  Not my will Lord, but yours be done.”  The Lord was convicting me of approaching the game in my own strength, with my own intuition, and in my own power.  I was convicted to not put the trust in the plays I was drawing up or the formations I was drawing up but to place my Hope and my Trust in Jesus Christ.  This does not mean I do not have to work hard, but as I work hard put my Hope and Trust in Christ.  It’s for his glory I work, not my own!

            

            This game tonight is fun and exciting.  But it is going to come and go.  If we win it will easily be the biggest win we ever had here at ELCA.  But whether we win or lose, we will just have to get right back to the grind next week for the next opponent.  The joy of the victory will be short lived.  The pain of the defeat will be distinct but quick.  My joy, my Hope, my Confidence, my Trust, and my Strength cannot be wrapped up in a game that will come and go.  We will have good games and bad games, good years and bad years, happy times and frustrating times.  But these ebbs and flows can never define me as a man.  I will be steadfast in success and failure because the Lord is my Hope and my Rock.  My foundation will not be built on upon the whimsical experiences in this world.  My Hope and My Trust are in Jesus Christ and he always prevails!

            

            I have no fear and I have no trepidation tonight.  I run to this game with great confidence and eagerness and it is not because of confidence in myself.  The biggest battle I will ever face is the one over sin and death and that was one I could not overcome by my own effort or strength.  But through is great love for me and for you, Jesus Christ became sin and death for us and defeated them both for all of those who accept him as their Lord and Savior.  I have no fear over what challenges life might bring because I know I serve a God who will always see me through the good and bad times in this world. 

            

           Therefore, we run to this game with great confidence and excitement tonight.  We could not have had a better week of practice.  Everything seems right.  The time seems right but I know and trust in this simple truth:  “The horse is made ready for battle, but victory belongs to the Lord.”  Proverbs 21:31

Wholly for Christ!

Coach Gess