Are You On The Team Or A Raving Fan?

Will you be watching the Olympics?

Have you picked your favorite athletes? Will you stand in front of your television, screaming, “Go! Go! Go!” “You can do it!” “Don’t give up!” “Pick up your feet!” “MOVE!” 

You know I will. I will be yelling at the television. Jumping up and down. Applauding. Cheering my team on. When Team USA wins, it feels like I win.

It takes a team.

It takes a team to even qualify for the Olympics. There are trainers and nutritionalists, doctors and donors, sponsors and coaches doing their part to make victory possible for athletes.

As an avid fan of Olympians, I tune in and cheer them on, but the truth is, though I may be exhilarated by their win, it does not make me part of their team.

Team Member or Fan?

When it comes to Jesus, are you on the team or just a fan? Are you in training – reading and studying God’s word? Have you enlisted a coach or mentor to guide your way, help you make great decisions and avoid calamity? Will you submit to correction from your coach, yielding to Holy Spirit prompts? Is your mind and heart and will pledged to the team, or Body of Christ, to share what you know, cheer on other members and use your strengths for good?

Start where you are, (or start over where you are) and put on your team uniform. It’s never too late for a fresh start with Jesus.

When I first started in Bible Study, I was a clueless hot mess.  I didn’t know how to navigate my Bible, didn’t know how to pray, couldn’t understand the homework lessons and was constantly questioning the teacher’s authority.

Louise, a gracious and compassionate woman of God, and always on the lookout for new “team Jesus members”, looked past my rough exterior and crass language. She coached me how to study the Bible, how to let go of my past and embrace the truth of God’s love for me.  She introduced me to other godly women who were on the team.

When I conquered a bad habit, they all celebrated the victory, too. On occasions when I backslid into old patterns and behaviors, they lovingly but firmly coached me back on track. When I started teaching other women what I knew (with one of them as my co-leader), they nodded approvingly and quietly cheered me on.

Who is your team?

We need to be part of the Body – that is our team. Whether your role is coach, intern, cheerleader, or step-and-fetch-it-guy, we should all be actively engaged enlisting other members and propelling our team to victory over sin and death.

Listen, I get it. The little role you have on the team may seem insignificant. You many never gain a trophy or get recognition for your participation or be exalted for your role on the team, but it takes all of us. What you do is important.

Who knows but you may be raising up the next Billy Graham, tutoring the next Corrie Ten Boom, speaking truth into the next Dietrich Bonhoeffer, discipling the next Joyce Meyer, or teaching the Bible to next Beth Moore.

Now is the time to get back in the game. Look around for possible new Team Jesus Members or those who are injured or got sidelined. Invite them back to in-person church or over for coffee or to join your book club or to take a walk. You can get my Journey to Trust Bible Study, and go through it together.

Leave me a comment and tell me who is training you and who are you training?

Verse of the day: Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ.  For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.  Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many. 1 Corinthians 12:12-14

Prayer: God, thank you for making us a people who need other people. Surround me with those who can lead and teach me. Give me opportunity to share my faith, wisdom and skills with to glorify you. In Jesus name, amen.