The Needs of the Team

It’s been a while since I was in high school, but I still vividly recall one day during my junior year. It was the day my coach called me into his office and told me he was moving me from fullback to tackle. As a sophomore, I had weighed 200 pounds and was pretty fast. I gained 35 pounds over the summer and was a little slower at that weight. The coach told me I was too good of a player to sit on the bench, but that I was now too slow to be a running back. He asked me to make a personal sacrifice and move to a new position on the line so that I could help the team have a chance at the conference title.

I’ll never forget the deep-seated pain in my gut at that moment, but I’ll also never forget going to the playoffs the following year. Linemen don’t get a lot of media attention but their contribution to the game is obviously just as important as any fleet-footed running back or wide receiver. I have never forgotten my coach’s gentle manner as he coaxed me to accept a less glorious, but just as important, position on the team.

As Christians, we need to remember the words of our Lord as recorded in Matthew 23. The times we are not in the spotlight are often the times we bring Him the most glory. When we are still doing our best even when all eyes are not on us, He is exalted. And it is then, when we humble ourselves, that our Father delights in exalting us in His time.