Are You Ready?

Related Scripture:

 “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross. — Hebrews 12:1–2 (NIV)

There’s something different about the beginning of football season. The uniforms are clean. The fields look good (that’s because most of them are fake grass). Everyone is undefeated. And for officials, our legs haven’t started hurting yet. But we also know something the fans may not realize: a good season doesn’t begin with the opening kickoff. It begins long before it. We’ve studied the rule book. We’ve attended camps. We’ve taken tests. We’ve worked on mechanics. We’ve conditioned our bodies (maybe). We’ve talked through situations with our crews. Why? Because when the lights come on and the unexpected happens, we have to be ready.

I believe there is a spiritual lesson in just about every situation. Paul told Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:7 to “train yourself to be Godly.”No coach wants an official trying to learn the rules while the play is happening. In the same way, the middle of a difficult moment isn’t the best time to begin building our relationship with Christ.

This is why preparation matters in every situation! We have to prepare spiritually through Scripture, prayer, worship, fellowship, and time with God. Those disciplines may seem ordinary, but God uses them to prepare us for the moments when our character, patience, integrity, and faith are tested. I once had a coach tell me, “Prepare so much that when you do something wrong, it feels weird.”  The reason we do that is that preparation builds confidence when pressure arrives.

The same is true in our walk with Christ. But preparation is only part of the equation. Preparation gets us to opening night. Perseverance gets us through the season. By midseason, the excitement feels different. The body hurts a little more. The schedule gets long. There are late nights, long drives, difficult coaches, angry fans, controversial calls, and maybe even a game when we know we didn't perform our best.

Hebrews doesn't tell us simply to start the race. It tells us to “run with perseverance.” Faithfulness isn't proven by how excited we are at the beginning. It's revealed by how we continue when things get difficult. That means showing up prepared and excited for Week 10 just like Week 1. It means treating a Thursday-night JV game with the same integrity as a Friday-night rivalry. It means responding with grace when someone questions our judgment.

And spiritually, it means continuing to follow Jesus when life becomes tiring, frustrating, or disappointing. Hebrews gives us the key to perseverance: it’s “keeping our eyes on Jesus.” During a football game, our eyes matter. If we're looking in the wrong place, we'll probably miss something. The same is true spiritually. This season, there will be plenty competing for our attention—our performance, our reputation, coaches, fans, assignments, rankings, and opportunities. But none of those can become our ultimate focus. Our identity isn't found in the uniform we wear or the games we're assigned—OUR IDENTITY IS FOUND IN CHRIST.

So as another football season begins, prepare well. Study hard. Take care of your body. Be a great crew member. Officiate with integrity. But don't neglect something much bigger than Friday night. Prepare your heart. Run with endurance. Keep your eyes on Jesus. And when the final whistle blows on this season, may we be able to say that we didn't just officiate well—we represented Christ well.

Questions to Ponder:

What are you doing to train yourself to be Godly?

Pastor Mickey Carroll - Chaplain, Lanier Football Officials Association(LFOA) - Clarksville. GA