The Lesson of the Colts

on Dec 28 in Faith, Leadership

I’m gonna write about some sports stuff.¬† If you don’t like sports, please continue to read.¬† It’ll turn soon.

Last Sunday, the Indianapolis Colts rested their Starters in the second half of the game against the Jets.  As a result, they lost the game. They also lost a chance for an undefeated season.  They are now 14-1, not 15-0.

Supporters of this organizational decision will tell you that an undefeated season was never the goal – that it’s more important to keep Manning, Wayne, and Clark healthy.¬† A team cannot, after all, win in the post-season when its best players are hurt.¬† And Sunday, the longer they stayed in a game that had no playoff implications (for the Colts), the more they increased their chances of sustaining long-term injuries.¬† And this all makes perfect sense.

Until you look at the faces of the players.

Their faces exposed hearts that were deflated. Discouraged. Peyton Manning wore his helmet on the sidelines during the second half, when he would have normally put on a baseball cap.¬† He wanted to play – he wanted to get back into the game.¬† But he wasn’t given the chance.

I sometimes wonder if, in trying to create a life that makes perfect pain-free sense, I actually end up losing.

I find in myself how easily I can live under the shadow of the ominous “What if…?”:

* Should we hire the right person, even if we can’t afford him?¬† What if it doesn’t work out?

* Should we bless our oldest daughter who wants to work as a missionary in El Salvador, even when it makes no sense at all?  What if she squanders her college experience?  What if she goes broke?  What if her parents go broke?

* Should you plant that new church?¬† What if you don’t get paid for a year?

What if?  What if?  What if?

Here’s the thing about “What if…?” thinking.¬† We can’t control anything that might finish that sentence.¬† It’s complete lunacy on our part to live under the shadow of “what if…?”¬† When I abide there, I buy into the false belief that I can control my chances for survival on… anything.

There is perceived safety.  There is perceived security.  And there is certain Kingdom castration.

I do NOT want to lead a family, an organization, or a church while choosing to play it safe, rather than playing to win.¬†¬† And the people in my sphere of influence don’t want that either.¬† Whether they know it or not, they need to be given a chance to win, even when there is an equal chance of pain.

Slavery was abolished in the US and Britain when people played to win, and literally threw personal security and safety to the side of the road.

The Protestant Church was birthed (in part) when Martin Luther started asking bold questions, then acting on the answers he found.

And ultimately, God put on flesh in His relentless pursuit of a world gone awry, giving away the grasp of heaven, and dying on a tree He caused to grow.  No safety.  No security.  Only winning love.

When we give in to the potential answers at the end of the “What if…?” question, we begin to live under fear, not love.¬† We bottle our faith, and we put a cork in it.¬† We confuse peace with winning.

And we lose.  Every time, we lose.