Fall is in the air and football is in full force.  For some of us our favorite college team brings nothing but frustration and for others of us it’s a time of great joy.  The beauty of Saturday competition on the football field as young men leave it all on the field to bring the team and fan base the win is incredible.  For those of you that are avid football fans, games can keep you on the edge of your seat…..or out of your seat.   You’ll find yourself yelling, tweeting, and almost experiencing a heart attack.  That’s just the emotions of those of us that are cheering for the winning team. 

As a huge University of Kentucky fan, I love that Kentucky finally has a decent football team….although if I’m honest, they made Mizzou’s terrible team look like a pro team this past Saturday.  One of the things that frustrates me the most about this team is their “play not to lose” attitude.   If you’re not familiar with this strategy, it sounds like a good idea.  Nobody wants to lose, so why wouldn’t you “play not to lose”?  Here’s where you misunderstand the frustrating nature of this strategy and also where I want to connect it to how we live the Christian life.

In football, the “play not to lose” strategy looks like this…..we’ll get the lead in the first half of the game, then we’ll get conservative, run the ball, avoid turnovers and costly mistakes, and let our defense keep us ahead.  While I can appreciate confidence in a defense, the game goes 2 halves and the other team won’t stop trying to score just because you’re ahead.  For me personally this has resulted in 3 weekends in a row where Kentucky got an early lead and then I watched a second half that could nearly kill me as they “played not to lose”.  3 out of 3 of those games came down to a last second play that could have cost them the game.

So what does the “play not to lose” mentality have to do with our Christian life?  We have the early lead.  If we want to get technical, Jesus actually already won the game through His death, burial and resurrection.  Back to the game.  We have Christ in our lives, we’re attending worship, reading our Bible, we’re in a Sunday School group etc.  We’re running the plays in the game of life.  Some of them are even really good plays.  It’s the second half now, we just have to maintain the lead. 

What’s the point of the game of football?  They’re trying to score more points than the opposing team.  The offense is trying to put points on the board and the defense is trying to keep points off the board.  So in our Christian life, since we already have the lead….we start playing defense.  We don’t need to score points because Jesus has scored enough.  We stop working heard on offense to score points.  We’re just maintaining, taking up time, keeping the ball out of the other teams hands.  What’s that look like in the Christian’s life?  We stop focusing on the mission God has given us….to reach people for Christ and make disciples, who will make disciples.  We fall back on defense, we get comfortable with our church, our Sunday School group, our personal walk with Christ.  We keep running plays, we keep engaging in ministry, maybe we even lead a ministry, but it’s not wholly focused on scoring points; reaching people for Christ. 

As the game progresses, we fall in love with our lead…..I mean our church and our small group…. and we can get so comfortable with the lead that we have that we stop scoring points all together.  We stop sharing our faith, we stop praying for lost people, we stop challenging others to do those things.  Why?  Because we’re “playing not to lose”.  We got the lead, it feels good, let’s protect what we got and get to the end of the game.  It’s a scary thing to think our church or other churches could grow to the point where we felt comfortable enough to employ the strategy of “playing not to lose”.

As I’ve watched Kentucky in its last few games, I’ve experienced all of the stress and emotion that comes with watching a team “play not to lose”.  They ran plays on offense, but just running the ball over and over, not scoring points…creating a very frustrating experience for me.  I can’t help but wonder if God looks at us as individuals…as groups….as churches and experiences some of the same frustration watching us “play not to lose”?

God wants us to put points on the board; there is never a point where he wants us to start coasting.  We have more lost people around us young and old than ever here in America.  Let’s get out there and score some points.  Plot and Plan…..Pray…..with your family and with your Sunday School groups.  Then go out and score points.  Let’s play to win, every play…..every day, every conversation, every opportunity God gives us.

WAS a good way to take your mind off of school and all of the mounting stresses that every college student experiences to some degree or another while living away from home!  While living in Tahlequah, Oklahoma I had floated the river several times with friends from the dorm and I was surprised how peaceful and comforting it was...that was until one day, after a rainfall of several days had occurred, I ventured out on the river with a couple of guys and the river was up...and it was moving fast...and I couldn’t seem to row fast enough to keep control of my canoe and take a safe path through the turbulent waters.  I finally made it to my final location and realized the “peaceful ride” was anything but peaceful.

In fact, I didn’t really want to “float” anymore.  But my experienced canoer friend was quick to get me back out on the river as soon as possible and help me to learn how to handle raging rapids.  He demonstrated the secret of being able to “take a break” in the middle of raging waters.  He showed me that there were quiet eddies behind some of the big rocks in the rapids and it was behind those big rocks that you could take a little rest as you travelled through some very challenging white waters.  There you could plot your path and have the confidence you needed to complete your journey.

He showed me how, I tried it, it worked, and the big rock actually became my very best friend on more than one occasion.  It’s good to know where to go when the current on the river begins to quicken to the point of being overwhelming.

 With the constant drumbeat of the daily news and the never ceasing challenges of daily living you may find that the current on your river has picked up the pace quite a bit lately.  Or perhaps your world has been turned upside down by turbulent waters you just didn’t see coming.  You find yourself in overwhelming rapids and the stress and unknown turns of the rapids have been a little bit more than your used to handling and it’s beginning to take a toll on you.  You need to find a quiet and safe place to renew, refresh, and prepare for the rest of the journey.  It’s no mistake that one of the pictures recorded in the Scriptures describes our God as the “rock of our salvation” .  You can find the rest you need and make preparation for the journey of life with confidence and peace as you find your rest and direction behind the “Big Rock”.

 For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. 2  He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.  6  He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken.                                Psalm 62:1-2, 6 (ESV)

The Rock that the writer of this passage, King David,  finds in the rapids of his life...is not a therapist or anyone on earth...the only place where a turbulent heart can find peace and direction is in a personal relationship with an unshakeable God.  All of the stuff beyond our control can easily be handled by Him.

You can find peace and refreshment to carry on with the journey and successfully and meaningfully navigate through life.  And like the friend who shared with me how to navigate the turbulent waters, you can give help and comfort to others as you share with them where you have found your peace and safety.

According to the Scripture, peace is a Person.  You will find that peace when you find Jesus and rest in His shelter of personal love, unlimited power, and guidance available for the journey we face.

 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28 (ESV)

If you’re not experiencing peace in the raging rapids, it might be the case that you’ve let the strong current pull you away from your rock of refuge.  The pull and the pressure may have caused you to neglect your time near the Rock.  Or, it could be you’ve never taken shelter in Him at all.

Stubbornly we try to navigate through this life on our own.  How’s that working for you?  Pretty stressful.  Takes away your energy doesn’t it?  Not an easy ride...and it eventually ends up with cascading over the unforeseen waterfall into even greater trouble.

No need for that.  It’s time to rest behind Jesus the Rock.  You can trust in Him because He died for you.  You can find the peace you need and discover the direction you need to navigate through this life with success and peace. 

The Rock brings you peace and preparation on the River for sure.  And Jesus, our Rock brings us the peace and preparation we need for daily living.

When the river rises and the current becomes overwhelming find your rest behind the Big Rock, the Lord Jesus.  Let the struggle end and ask for His help and you will enjoy the peace that “surpasses understanding”.

“do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7  And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7 (ESV)

Receive the peace you need...today...from Him.