Everyone wants to be a winner. We want to win in our spiritual lives, family lives, careers, and in virtually everything we do. No one wants to be a loser. When I was young my father told me that I was a loser and would never amount to anything. His ridicule of me didn’t hurt as much as it made me mad.
Years later after becoming a Christian whenever I would get discouraged and think about quitting, I would remember his prediction and it gave me renewed energy to keep working and to never quit. My life’s verse was taken right out of the Bible in Phil. 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Sometimes I would grit my teeth as I said that verse over and over again as I fought through the battles of life. Ultimately I became successful in life.
Mine was an unusual case and ultimately my dad and years later I both came to know and love the Lord with all of hearts and reconciled our differences. I love to hear the stories of how successful people reached for the stars and actually grabbed them, because I know how difficult it is to achieve success. It is especially encouraging to see someone who not only achieves success individually, but takes others along for the ride, (especially young people).
Mike Martin is entering his 37th season as head coach of the Florida State University baseball team. Coach Martin was inducted into the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2007. He has won 17 Conference championships and has taken the Seminoles to the College World Series three times in the last eight seasons. His success is founded on the principles of his Christian faith and we are delighted to say that he is coming to Honey Lake Church as our special guest this weekend for our Second Sunday service.
The aforementioned accolades don’t mention the hundreds of young men’s lives that Mike has helped shape. I imagine that he would be the first to tell you that seeing these young men go on to achieve greatness, in no small part due to his leadership and teaching values, is the bigger reward.
As I look at the problems in this country it is obvious to me that we are reeling from the absence of fathers in the American family. 54% of our kids end up in in single parent homes by their 17th birthday. The statistics for the kids in these homes are not encouraging, 30% of whites, 54% of Latinos and 72% of blacks are born in a single parent home. The results are in, these kids have more anger issues, low self-esteem, smoke, drink alcohol, take drugs, become sexually active earlier, and end up in poverty and in public welfare whereby they remain dependent upon the government for the rest of their lives more often than those who live in two parent homes. This is not to say that it is impossible to be a winner in a single parent home, but it is to say that these statistics are not made up and speak for themselves. It is more difficult for kids raised in single parent homes to achieve success.
Ronald Reagan said: The family has always been the cornerstone of American society. Our families nurture, preserve and pass on to each succeeding generation the values we share and cherish, values that are the foundation for our freedoms. In the family we learn our first lessons of God and man, love and discipline, rights and responsibilities, human dignity and human frailty. Our families give us daily examples of these lessons being put into practice. In raising and instructing our children; in providing personal and compassionate care for the elderly; in bringing the handicapped into the mainstream of community life; in maintaining the spiritual strength of religious commitment among our people – in these and other ways, America’s families make immeasurable contributions to America’s well-being.
Kudos to the Mike Martins of the world who provide that missing father figure and I encourage you to come hear Mike tell how his faith in God has led to so much success over the decades. It is an awesome opportunity to hear from a man who has figured out how to become a winner in life.
If you are struggling in your marriage, or if you know someone who is considering packing it in, I encourage you press on and fight harder. Be a winner and nurture your kids to be one too. Take it from this silver headed old man, time passes quickly and with it opportunities to do the right thing for your family and for yourself.
America needs winners and the traditional American family is a good foundation to build your winning strategy. Fathers play a pivotal role in the family and often the success of the father determines the success of the family. The greatest commandment in Scripture is this found in Duet. 6:5: “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength”. Going back to verse 2, we read, “So that you, your children and their children after them may fear the LORD your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life.” It is important to train your kids up in the Bible whether a single parent or not.
Deuteronomy 6:6
“These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up”.
October 8, 2015 – Click here to listen