Sports

I’m not a Kobe fan.  Not even a little bit.  However, I saw a story at the gym a couple of weeks ago that really caught my attention.

Kobe was looking to improve his post game.  In order to do so, he called Hakeem Olajuwon and asked him to work out with him so that Kobe could learn from Hakeem.  Hakeem is regarded as one of the top post players in history, if not the best ever.

One thing I respect about Kobe is this.  He understands that leaders are learners.  He is already considered one of the top 3 players in the league.  He could be comfortable in that.  Instead, he is doing all he can to learn from the best.  He knows that to be a great leader, you have to continuously be learning.

I’ve got tons of respect for that!

Ok.   I know I might be a little lot biased, but I feel that C.J. Spiller should be getting some serious Heisman press.  You can go here and look at all the numbers.    I think they speak for themselves.

In 8 of the 9 games this season, he was a run, reception, or a return of 58 yards or more.  Against FSU and Miami, he racked up 622 total all purpose yards.  That’s impressive!

Some people say if he played for a better team, he would be getting more press.  This is one of the problems with the Heisman trophy in my opinion.  It is an individual award, yet it matters greatly how good the team is.  Doesn’t add up to me.

Vote C.J.!

Currently, I have the opportunity to oversee the Guest Services areas on Sunday mornings. Pastor J.R. challenged us to think through why a person should desire to serve in our particular area.  Here’s what I came up with:

5. You have the opportunity to help our guests have a great first impression of Freedom Church.

4. You have the opportunity to honor others by creating a distraction free environment for them to worship.

3. You have the opportunity to connect with other incredible partners.

2. You have the opportunity to be on the front lines of something so much bigger than yourself.

1. You have the opportunity to help people far from God to experience life in Christ.

I am writing this post to get some stuff off my chest after watching the Clemson game today.  Here are my thoughts:

*We are terrible.  We should have beaten Maryland by 3 touchdowns.

*All we have is CJ Spiller.  That’s it.  That’s not an exaggeration.  That’s the truth.

*Scouting report – Play D on CJ.  Don’t worry about anyone else.

*Our offense cannot move the ball.  It’s never good when your kicker has more points than any other kicker.  It means you can’t get the ball in the endzone.

*Some people will be calling for Dabo’s job.  You’ll have to give the dude more than a year.  I’ll at least give him 2:)

*CJ is the most electric player in college football.  Period.

*Can we trade both of our QBs for 1/2 of a good one?

*  Bottom Line:  It’s going to be a long season!

{End Rant!  I feel better now!}

David led them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them. (Psalms 78:72)

This verse has always intrigued me.  I think it illustrates perfectly that you need more than skill to lead people effectively.  You also need more than integrity.  I would argue that you need both to lead people in a way that is pleasing to God and brings Him the most glory.

You need more than skill.  I have seen people with an incredible amount of skill  but zero leadership.  Why?  Because no matter how talented you are, people aren’t going to follow anyone who doesn’t have integrity.  People are far too busy to waste their time following someone who is sloppy, doesn’t speak the truth, or continually abuses their power.

On the flip side, I have seen people with incredible integrity and no skills.  They love God and love people but they have no idea how to lead them.  It is evident that they spend time with God, but they cannot sing at all.  This is very important and if I had to choose one of the two, I would choose integrity.

However, I think both are necessary to be the leader that God has designed you to be.  I am praying that God would give me both.  I’m a little greedy like that!

I’ve always heard this saying that goes something like this, ‘that boy needs some sense knocked into him’.  Not sure how hard you have to get ‘knocked’ to get some sense but I think it happened to George Foreman.

Foreman was once the heavyweight champion of the world.  However he is probably more know for the ‘Lean, Mean Fat Grilling Machine’.  In fact, he signed a $137 million dollar deal in 1999 to endorse what is now called the ‘George Foreman’ grill.

Here’s what he had to say about integrity:  “You must preserve the quality of your name, your integrity.  You don’t want to lie about anything.  And it’s something that people will be happy about once they get to know you.  Because people count on you.”

I have been playing in a fantasy baseball league with some guys from college for the past 8 years.  Here’s a glimpse my roster for this year.  {I know you don’t really care, but it is my blog:) }

C:  Russell Martin

1B:  Ryan Howard, Adam LaRoche

2B:  Mark DeRosa, Howie Kendrick

3B:  Kevin Youkilis

SS:  JJ Hardy, Derek Jeter

OF:  Manny Ramirez,  Josh Hamilton, Hunter Pence, Rick Ankiel, Jay Bruce, AJ Pierzynski, Jayson Werth

P:  Roy Oswalt, Francisco Liriano, Derek Lowe, John Smoltz, John Maine

RP:  Joe Nathan, Bobby Jenks, Huston Street, Billy Wagner

It was raining and freezing!  However, I didn’t mind.  Any day that you beat the crap out of the Gamecocks is worth it!!  A great ending to a disappointing regular season.  Now let’s go bowling!!

Also, I am pumped about Dabo being named the coach.  I had reservations before Saturday but he proved to me that he deserves the job.  (I’ll post more about that later.)  C-L-E-M-S-O-N! 

Throw the records out the window!  Today I will gather with over 80,000 people for the Clemson/ USC game out in the cold and rain.  It doesn’t matter what the rest of the season has been like, it’s a rivalry game and anything can happen. 

To say I’m pumped about the game would be an understatement!  Go Tigers!

For a Clemson fan, yesterday was a crazy day.  I thought I would express my thoughts about the situation.

*Tommy Bowden is a great guy.  He seems to really love Jesus and care about the players.  He was instrumental in bringing the program to higher level.  He won a lot of games and had one of the best graduation rates in the country.  I am thankful for the 10 seasons he was at Clemson.

*I agree with the decision.  I am glad that the leadership at Clemson had the guts to make a move.  We must continue to move forward. 

*I agree with the timing of the decision.  If the guy ends up with 7 or 8 wins, it is a lot harder to fire him.  It also seems that there was a loss of control on the team.

I wish Tommy the best.  Let’s go Tigers!!