All Grown Up

There are about a million things I loved about John Wooden's coaching, but one of my favorite things was when he taught his players each year how to put on their socks and tie their shoes properly. Now, you would think that college-aged men could do this on their own, but Wooden took nothing for granted. He paid attention to the little things of the game. I believe this is what made the big things come easier for his teams over the years. He always took care of the little things.

Sometimes, in walking with the Lord, we try to go right to the big things and neglect the little things that are so important. What are some examples of these little things? Spending daily time with God in His word, spending time praying for our day and serving our loved ones. Sure, we can do the big things for God and not care for these little things, but these little things make a huge difference in the way we handle the big things. To serve the Lord in the big things of life, we need to put aside our own selfish desires and follow Christ in the little things.

Of course Wooden knew these young men knew how to put on their socks and tie their shoes, but he wanted to teach them a lesson: if they were going to play in his program, they would have to put aside what they wanted to do and follow his plans for the team. It was the simple discipline in the small things that gave his teams great results in the big things (i.e. winning 10 National Championships). Coach Wooden shows us a great example of how the little things make the biggest difference.