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What a quote from the Denver Nuggets team leader, Chauncy Billups.  Last night after the Nuggets clinched the series with the Hornets, he talked about how his team was so excited about clearing the first round of the playoffs.  He said, “It has been a long time since I have lost in the first round.  Man, I shoot higher than that.”

It appears that his teammates had set their sites on just making it past the first round.  Chauncy made it clear that he didn’t come back to Denver to just make it past the first round of the playoffs.  He has his sights set on a much higher prize.  I believe he was sending a clear message to his team that they needed to adjust their aiming point.

I encountered this  attitude when I was coaching as well.  When Abilene Cooper High School hired Randy Allen to be the Head Football Coach, he was coming back home.  He played for Cooper in the late 60’s when they played Austin Reagan in the 5A State Championship.  With the clock winding down, 4th and Goal on the one yard line, they ran the ball up the gut and it was called down on the one inch line, the game was over.

In his first team meeting as Head Coach some 20 years later, he surveyed the team about their goals for the next season.  At that time, Cooper was battling their cross town rival, Abilene High, to see who would be the worst team in the district.  We were bad!  The team overwhelmingly set of goal of just beating Abilene High so they wouldn’t be in last place.

Coach Allen, said, “If your goal is just to not be in last place, then I came to the wrong place.  I came back for one more inch.”  And from that moment on, I watched a team redefine their thinking and begin to march toward another 5A State Championship appearence in 1996 against Austin Westlake.

What goals have you set for yourself?  What about your family?  Have you set any spiritual goals lately?  May we take a lesson from two outstanding leaders and make sure that we are setting our goals high enough.

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.”               Ephesians 3:20

SHOOT HIGH TODAY!!

Joel

I don’t know if you are like me, but I am constantly referring to my calendar to see what I have scheduled next or when the next sporting event for one of the boys is scheduled.  I have my calendar on my computer, I have it on my iphone, I have a hard copy in my office….. my calendar is always close by.

I also know that the time that I don’t have things scheduled with something to do is precious to me.  That is the time that I get to do what I want to do.  I get to decide who I share it with.  I am not a loner type person, so I usually look forward to spending my down time with my family and friends.

Today, I am reading through Psalm 103 and I am impressed with what was on God’s calendar.  If you haven’t taken some time to read through this Psalm, make sure that you do today.  Do whatever you have to do to fit it into your calendar.  Make sure you have time to sit quietly and let these words marinade in your heart.

Verse 17 says, “But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear him.“  Did you catch that?  God has a continuous appointment on His calendar to love those that fear Him.  I don’t know about you, but I plan on spending the rest of my days in awe of my Lord.  I am glad to know that I  am on His calendar from everlasting to everlasting.  I needed that today, how about you.

Well, how does knowing that the God of the Universe has your name on his calendar everyday effect you?  For me, it reminds me to make sure that those that I love the most are on my calendar everyday.  I am guilty of letting work, business, and everything else block out those that matter the most to me.

May we all take a lesson from our Heavenly Father and love others with an extreme kind of love.  Make room on your calendar for God and family everyday.

Joel