The Christ Centered Athlete's First Priority

Christ Centered Athlete - An athlete who exemplifies a Christ in everything they do - on or off the court.

 “It’s better to have God approve, than the world applaud” Unknown

One of the most difficult balances in life is the pursuit of our dreams while keeping Christ in first place. An excellent Christ Centered athlete is still required to dedicate an exorbitant amount of time training to achieve their career goals, and many times that will be disproportionate to the time they spend growing in Christ. Both are requirements for a player’s success, which makes it difficult for an athlete to balance and to also ensure that Christ does not take 2^nd place in their life

From the beginning of time, God requires that He be #1 in our life. It is the first of the Ten Commandments, and reiterated in many Old & New Testament scriptures. Many times God’s children, the Israelites, would worship the god’s of other people and suffer greatly because of it.  The Bible is also filled with God blessing His children when He was #1 in their life.

In today’s culture, there are many things that vie for our time, talent, and money. This creates an opportunity for many things to take precedent over God. A December 2015 study published in Time Magazine showed that the average American checked their phone 46 times per day. Those between the ages of 18-24 checked their phone an average of 74 times per day. That means someone is checking their once every 19.5 minutes! A 2014 study conducted by the Barna Group found that only 15% of Bible reading adults read the Bible daily. This study also revealed the number one reason for a decrease in Bible engagement was because people felt they did not have time to read the Bible. When you consider these facts and the required amount of time for an athlete to achieve their athletic dreams, then it’s easy to see how God takes a back-seat in the life of a player.

So how does the athlete ensure the God maintains a #1 place in their life? Matthew 6:33 provides the answer. When an athlete seeks first the Kingdom of God, then everything else will be taken care of. Psalms 37: 4-5 says “Delight thyself also in the Lord: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and He shall bring it to pass.” Make a commitment each and every day that your relationship with Christ will come before anything you do, and then follow through on it. Commit your training and preparation to the Lord. Talk to the Lord on a regular basis throughout your day. Make it a goal to memorize scripture or to write down what God is teaching you every day. Give God, and only God, all of the glory for your achievements. That’s how the athlete ensures that God stays #1 in your life.

To be a successful Godly leader, always remember that He will give you the desires of your heart, when you make desiring His heart your first priority.

In Christ,
Coach CJ

President
CHSM

Website: www.chsmhouston.com
Twitter: @CJPOMEROY1 or @CHSMHOUSTON
Facebook: www.facebook.com/chsmhouston

*http://time.com/4147614/smartphone-usage-us-2015/

*http://www.americanbible.org/uploads/content/state-of-the-bible-data-analysis-american-bible-society-2014.pdf

Reach Heights You Never Dreamed Possible!

On April 5th, 2016, the UCONN Huskies women's basketball team won their 4th straight national championship while winning their 75th game in a row. Their 3 senior starters were a perfect 24-0 in the 4 women's tournaments they participated in, and averaged more points per game than their opponents. So how do 3 incredible talents and Hall-of-Fame coach achieve unprecedented success? The answer is very simple. By committing themselves to excellence in their role, recognizing the end goal requires help, and being humble enough to serve each other in pursuit of that goal. That's called TEAMWORK.

The amount of character these girls had to have in order to win is more than we can ever imagine. They did make it look simple, but the truth is - SUCCESS IS SIMPLE. Failure is complicated.

The same is true in our walk with God. Success is reached when we keep your eyes on Christ in pursuit of His will for our life, recognizing that we can’t achieve anything of substance without His blessing and the help of others, a willingness to be broken down and corrected, and being humble enough to serve and sacrifice to help others in pursuit of their desires.

Commit yourself to excellence. Recognize that you cannot experience your dreams without the help of others. Be willing to be humbled, corrected, and selfless to help others in pursuit of their dreams. By doing so, we too can reach heights we never dreamed possible!

In Christ,
Coach CJ

President - CHSM

Website: www.chsmhouston.com
Twitter: @CJPOMEROY1 or @CHSMHOUSTON
Facebook: www.facebook.com/chsmhouston




Read about UCONN's 3 senior starters - Click Here!

Attitude

Our attitude is in constant need of adjustment. When it pertains to having a good attitude, there will never be a time when we will have "made it", or a time when we will never have to worry about our attitude again. Our attitude needs to be reviewed, renewed, and adjusted every single day – sometimes multiple times during the day!

This is the essence of what it means when you hear "You are the driver of your bus." (Rule 1 from The Energy Bus by Jon Gordon) Whether you go forward or backward is a choice you and you alone make.

The person who allows the actions of others to affect their attitude has not given up the driver's seat of their bus. Instead, they have chosen to drive their bus in a direction that others are going.

You cannot control whether the sun shines, the clouds produce rain, or the snow falls. You can only control the manner in which you drive your bus. To drive the bus safely you will check that the essentials are working properly.

The same applies for your attitude. To successfully arrive at your destination, check the essentials each and every day, and keep both hands on the wheel. Always move forward knowing that, if you are in Christ, then God’s got a great plan for you!

Jeremiah 29:11
Proverbs 3:5-6


In Christ,
Coach CJ

President - CHSM

Website: www.chsmhouston.com
Twitter: @CJPOMEROY1 or @CHSMHOUSTON
Facebook: www.facebook.com/chsmhouston