Many years ago a friend and his wife invited my wife and me to go bowling. I bowled some as a kid but hadn’t been bowling in many years and the same with my wife. Our friends on the other hand went at every opportunity. In fact they owned their own bowling balls, matching shirts, gloves, and embroidered bowling ball bags and jackets.
We rode with them, and immediately my buddy began boasting about their high bowling averages and he began arrogantly telling me that they were going to annihilate us and not to feel bad when it happened. I didn’t say anything and was riding along wondering why I’d accepted an invitation to go bowling with this cocky jerk in the first place.
When we got to the bowling alley they took their shiny bowling balls from their expensive bags and with great fanfare warmed up. They could have been on tour with their fancy silk bowling shirts, matching pants, and leather bowling gloves. I on the other hand was wearing blue jeans and a flannel shirt and looked like I’d just come in from the farm.
My friend swaggered up to the lane and promptly threw a gutter ball. Suddenly he was not crowing so loudly and his self-aggrandizing smile was missing. His next throw yielded one pin.
Hmmm . . .
My first attempt was a strike and was followed by many more thereafter. In fact I bowled the best scores I’ve ever achieved that night and my wife’s score was 30 points higher than my buddy’s wife on every game.
The better we bowled, the more they became frustrated. Towards the end of the night they were mad as hornets and every successive game they bowled even worse than before. After we’d finished for the night, it was a long trip home. All the swagger, swank, and bravado was gone and had been replaced with embarrassed surliness.
The odd thing about it; bowling was their life; and I could have cared less if I ever bowled.
Ouch! That one made it even worse . . .
Coach Vince Lombardi of the Green Bay Packers has been hailed as one of the greatest coaches who ever lived. This man of great principle tried to impart character into his players and many of his quotes are legendary.
He once said, “When you go into the end zone, act like you’ve been there before”. Too bad some of those egomaniacs in this era don’t heed that sage advice when they score a touchdown and instead dance around like monkeys gone crazy on LSD and even stand on their heads and whirl around to show off. It looks far cooler to cross into the end zone and then nonchalantly drop the ball and trot over to the bench with their head down like it’s no big deal because they’ve done it 100 times before.
Coach Lombardi had plenty of wise advice that we can all use in our lives every day. Here is a sampling:
- The harder you work, the harder it is to surrender.
- The greatest motivation is fear.
- The quality of a man’s life is in direct proportion to his commitment to excellence, regardless of his chosen field of endeavor.
- The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will.
- Quitters never win, winners never quit.
- Battles are primarily won in the hearts of men.
It seems that Vince Lombardi viewed his approach to winning football games in much the same manner as our battle with satan. My favorite saying of his reminds me of Jesus Christ when He won the victory for our lives. He wrote: “I firmly believe that any man’s finest hour, his greatest fulfillment to all he holds dear is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle – Victorious!”
Jesus was victorious over sin and death on the cross. Though He was and is King of all kings He was humble His entire life coming to us in a manger. How much more so should we emulate the example that He set for us with His life.
The Bible tells us that there is one acceptable time to boast and it can be found in 2 Cor.10:17 “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.” I will boast about Him throughout eternity; He was fearless, never quit, never surrendered, and His life was synonymous to excellence. He won the victory of all victories and this man’s heart in the process.
1 Cor. 15:57
But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.
January 28, 2014 – Click here to listen