DADs, do you know that no matter what position or row that you start from that you can still win the race in NASCAR?
 
I have become a huge NASCAR fan over the past few weeks and like all real NASCAR fans l have my favorite drivers. 
 
What I have learned very quickly is that although it is usually better to start the race closer to the front, starting position does not always determine how you finish!
 
And because it is a long race, leading many laps does not always mean victory either, because once again, it is a race of strategy and endurance.
If a driver can persevere he can not only finish in the top ten, he can actually win it from the back and take the checkered flag!
 
DADs, much like a NASCAR race, where we start in life or what our current life circumstances are does not have to define our final outcome!
 
James 1:25
"But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom and perseveresin it, 
and is not a forgetful hearer but a doerwho acts—this person will be blessed in what he does."
 
Life is not what happens to us, it is how we react to it!
Remember its not always how you start it's how you choose to finish! 
DADs, do not diminish the finish!

DADs…“get in the game”…
Today is game day…and so is every day…
God gives you! So…C’mon men…Suit Up!

DADs,
I was watching a NASCAR race on TV and after 400 hundred miles one of the drivers that had the lead on the last lap ran out of gas on the final lap allowing another to pass him for the victory.
 
Now being a fairly new fan of racing I am still learning the strategies of the race. What I am finding out is that there are many adjustments to each drivers original start plan throughout the race.
 
Depending on how each driver handles different circumstances he or she encounters during a race will often determine the final outcome.  
 
Many times the drivers that are able to finish and even win are the ones that take heed to listen to the instructions they are given by their crew chief throughout the day.
 
Deuteronomy 7:12
"If you listento and are careful to keep these ordinances, the LORD 
your God will keep His covenant loyalty with you, as He swore to your fathers.
 
What is it your crew chief, your heavenly father, trying to tell you today?
Will you take heed, or will you run out of gas not able to finish the race?

DADs…“get in the game”…
Today is game day…and so is every day…
God gives you! So…C’mon men…Suit Up!

BE THE DAD TODAY!

DADs,
This week I am talking about the similarities of my new found obsession NASCAR and our life in general.
 
Just like in NASCAR we often find ourselves on the FAST track going around and around at high speeds trying to win the human race. To ensure that we are able to keep going so we don’t run out of gas we NEED to  listen to the advice of our "crew chief" and make a pit stop!
 
DADs, the problem is we are sometimes the NASCAR driver that fails to heed direction and reluctant to trust the advice of others and our personal "crew chief", our Heavenly Father.
 
DADs, to be in control of your race you must relinquish the wheel and allow God to be the real driver of our lives!        
 
Jeremiah 29:11:
"11For I know the plans I have for you "this is the LORD's declaration—
"plans for your welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.
In all circumstances our God, our Heavenly Father knows best!"
 
DADs, where in your life do you need a pit stop to receive God’s plan for your race? 

DADs…“get in the game”…
Today is game day…and so is every day…
God gives you! So…C’mon men…Suit Up!

BE THE DAD TODAY!

DADs,
Recently I have caught the Nascar fever. For years I never understood the excitement of watching cars go around and around a track for 3 or 4 hours! But after giving Nascar a real chance I have discovered that there is a lot more to this racing thing than meets the eye.

For instance, what other sport begins with a chaplain saying a prayer to God and His son Jesus Christ aired live for all those watching on TV to hear? Talk about evangelism!

Now I am not endorsing, nor soliciting your support of Nascar but I am celebrating the fact that a major spectator event that occurs 36 weekends a year on National networks demonstrates its boldness and is not ashamed to give glory to our country’s Christian foundation and belief in Jesus.

  In Philippians 1:20 Paul says…

"My eager expectation and hope is that I will not be ashamed about anything, but that now as always, with all boldness,Christ will be highly honored in my body, whether by life or by death."

DADs, do not be ashamed, just like Nascar to show your boldnessfor Christ? Be eager to model your boldness for your kids and your family today!

DADs…“get in the game”…
Today is game day…and so is every day…
God gives you! So…C’mon men…Suit Up!

BE THE DAD TODAY!

DADs,
How many times have you set your sights on a goal only finding yourself falling short or missing the target?

How often have you prepared long & hard for a job interview only to receive a thanks but no thanks letter in the mail a week after the process?

How often has a loved one made a decision that caused heartache to you or your family?

Disappointment is a part of life. 

A friend once told me that in the good times or in the bad times the statement “this too shall pass” works in all situations. I don’t know about you, but I don’t really find much comfort in that but in Romans 8:28, I do find a more appropriate answer. Paul tells his disciples, “We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose.”

In the midst of disappointment or failures it is hard to see God’s purpose but we must find the faith in the storm that God’s will even in dark circumstances will be eventually revealed.

Remembering that Paul places emphasis on His purpose versus ours allows us to pick up the pieces and persevere as it is written in James 1:12, “blessed is the man who perseveres under trial; because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those that love Him”.

DADs, trials, disappointments, failures, we all go through them, but God does not want us to waiver regardless of our conditions. Instead God wants His DADs to continue to carry His banner and to be the men that love Him and always stand firm in Christ! 

DADs…“get in the game”…
Today is game day…and so is every day…
God gives you! So…C’mon men…Suit Up!

BE THE DAD TODAY!

DADs…
One of my all time favorite Christian Groups is 4HIM. One of my all time favorite songs that they sing is called the “Measure of a Man”.  

The chorus goes like this:
 "Oh, I say the measure of a man
Is not how tall you stand
How wealthy or intelligent you are
'Cause I've found out the measure of a man
God knows and understands
For He looks inside to the bottom of your heart
And what's in the heart defines the man…"
 
DADs...How is your heart condition today? 
How does your heart measure up to God’s standards?
 
Society tells us that the measure of the man is how the world judges us.
Society places us on the world scale.
 
God’s scale is much different. God measures us from the inside out!
Matthew 6:21- "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
 
DADs do not let the world measure you but let God be your judge. 
Do the things that leads to a heart condition that focuses on being the man 
God can fully use as His hands and feet. 
Be the DAD and the husband God praises. 
Be the man that has a heart for Jesus in all that you say and do!

DADs…“get in the game”…
Today is game day…and so is every day…
God gives you! So…C’mon men…Suit Up!

BE THE DAD TODAY!

DADs,
If you google obedience on the internet you will find many of the first 

page links deal with how to train your dog. You would have to look long and hard before you may run across an article that reflects a positive light on obedience as it pertains to our daily walk with Christ.

DADs, in this world to “obey” is not often the “norm” and sometimes has a connotation of weakness, and giving away our control to others. To obey goes against our instincts & inclinations.

To comply, submit or to be generally agreeable in the world that we work and live in communicates as a lack of strength or leadership.

But in truth DADs, to be obedient is to lead and will bring three basic benefits:  

Rescues us from self-destruction:

• His will & not our will helps us see our sinful nature & instills in us a desire to not turn back…an “inward renovation”

Perseverance even in dire sufferings:

• Focusing on Him & not our circumstances…we become enabled by His spirit. 

Aids in our interpersonal relationships:

• When we focus on Him & what He has done for us we change from the inside out! 

This helps us recognize authority & direction from others! All three lead to Winning Situations!!

2 Chronicles 31:21: "He was diligent in every deed that he began in the service of God's temple, in the law and in the commandment, in order to seek his God, and he prospered."   

Are you ready to prosper?

Then DADs...start your obedience today!

DADs…“get in the game”…
Today is game day…and so is every day…
God gives you! So…C’mon men…Suit Up!

BE THE DAD TODAY!

DADs…what do you say or do at work that communicates to your co-workers, bosses, customers, and others your obedience?  

Is your obedience at work only obvious in the “big” things or is your obedience apparent to others even in the day to day plans and activities? 

At what point during the day do you hand your day over to God? 

Is it in the disappointments of a failure or even in your successes?  

In 2 Chronicles 17& 18:Ezra writes about one of Judah’s Kings…King Jehoshaphat.    "The king’s strengths and accomplishments included that he was a bold follower of God and carried out a national program of religious education…"

2 Chronicles 17:3 & 4: "Now the LORD was with Jehoshaphat because he walked in the former ways of his father David. He did not seek the Baals but sought the God of his father and walked by His commands, not according to the practices of Israel."

But Ezra also wrote of Jehoshaphat’s lack of obedience in the little things that can often become the big things.

2 Chronicles 18:1: Ezra writes: "Now Jehoshaphat had riches and honor in abundance, and he made an alliance with Ahab through marriage."

Jehoshaphat allowed his son to marry the daughter of the wicked Ahab. Without asking God he made an alliance with Ahab and later got involved with Ahab’s son in a venture that was shipwrecked by God. 

DADs…God wants all of us…not just when the odds are clearly against us!

God wants to be in our business…even in the details.

DADs…while on the job…what are the ways you can ensure obedience in your work day for the future? 

How can you model obedience in all your words and deeds?

Next time…we will continue this conversation on obedience at work and look at how your position at work can be a mission field.
 
DADs…“get in the game”…
Today is game day…and so is every day…
God gives you! So…C’mon men…Suit Up!

DADs, how do you demonstrate obedience at home? 

Although in Ephesians Paul talks about “mutual” submission between a husband and his wife, it is the man that needs to take the lead and model that spiritual example.

Obedience in our walk starts in the home. God gives many of us the precious gift of a life partner in our wives and precious legacies in our children.

If we cannot practice intentional obedience with our family it will not matter that we are obedient at work!

Paul writes in Ephesians 5:25-28: 25Husbands, love your wives, just as also Christ loved the church and gave Himself for her, 26to make her holy, cleansing her in the washing of water by the word. 27He did this to present the church to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but holy and blameless. 28In the same way, husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.

 Ephesians 6:4: 4And fathers, don't stir up anger in your children, but bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.

DADs, if our faith and obedience is real it will usually prove itself first at home, in our relationships with those who know us best!

In what family relationship do you need obedience the most? 

What are the primary obstacles that are keeping you from practicing obedience in your home?

DADs, remember to obey is God’s command.
 
DADs…“get in the game”…
Today is game day…and so is every day…
God gives you! So…C’mon men…Suit Up!

Dads, 
I used to hate to stretch. When the coaches would look the other way I was the one just acting like I was stretching. Especially when it had to do with mid section core.
Sit-ups. 
Not sure that I hate any other exercise more than doing sit ups. Even in the weight room I dreaded the sit up station. I flourished at the push up, but avoided my core. 
DADs...even today I do all other stretches or workouts before I work my core! 
Why? Two reasons. 
1. Its hurts!
2. It doesn’t always show immediate results! 
Thats what we want, little pain and immediate results.
DADs, why is it the same sometimes in our spiritual walk? 
Even when we know it will make us a better we sometimes choose the easier path? In the physical sense we know what's good for us. Working on our core will make us stronger, faster, better for our team and teammates, but we get distracted.
The same holds true now in our adult roles as husband and DAD,. We can be detoured and shy away from church, Bible study, and prayer. All things that would only strengthen our families.
As a coach, I would ask my players do your individual goals outweigh your team, or are your team goals more important than your personal goals?
As your brother in Christ and a Minister of Men, I would, in regards to your spiritual growth, ask, does what matters least serve as an obstacle for what matters most?
You see football is a team sport. When you work on your core you are working on your team. As long as your core values includes putting the team before your individual goals. As the leader of your family, the DAD, WE can NEVER place outside priorities ahead of our “team”, our most precious gifts, our families! That means working on our spiritual Core daily! 
As the coach, do you know the players I most admire? The ones that come to work every day. Early to practice. Last off the field. First to volunteer to run scout team. Always have their helmet on during the game, but at the same time rarely plays. Wow. The difference in most games when it comes down to the best teams are not always the best players, but the strength of the core players. The core becomes the difference. 
DADs, the difference in your family is YOU! 
The outside world wants to celebrate the starters. The one that scores the winning TD. Believe me, as a coach I loved those too, they made me a great coach at times. But when one of those players is also a core player, humble, and acknowledges that his success is based on the team. That's special. 
As DADs we may not look like the superstars to others. Often not even to our own families but we must be consistent and unwavering in working on our spiritual core!
Hebrews 10:24-25 - 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

C-ompassion for all
O-pen to coaching
R-elentless to be better
E-levates those around him

Be the DAD today and everyday! Suit Up! Put on your Core!
 
DADs…“get in the game”…
Today is game day…and so is every day…
God gives you! So…C’mon men…Suit Up!