Football

​Psalm 46:10 (NIV) “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
 
I never played organized football. I only experienced backyards and empty lots in my glory days. This is probably good because I am not athletic. The only significant plays I made were because the opposite team forgot I was there. When they remembered, I did nothing.
 
Don’t get me wrong: I loved playing football. I loved the feel of the ball in my hands. I loved the adrenaline of trying to sack the quarterback. I loved the swoosh of the ball in the air.
 
Just don’t ask me to throw the ball or catch it. Stick me on the line and let me be. Maybe if the opposing team forgets about me, I’ll be able to sack the quarterback.
 
Playing backyard football taught me some good lessons. One of which is listening. 
 
Before every play, we gathered around the quarterback and listened. We received our assignments and tried our best to follow through. Some of us did better at the follow-through than others.
 
The players that did not listen ruined the plays. The chronic non-listeners stopped being put in essential places.
 
Life is so much like football.
 
Every minute of every day, we have choices to make and plays to run to reach our goals. In those choices, we can pretend to be independent, trying to take on the opposing forces on our own. However, that never works. Just like a rogue player on a football team ruins the game.
 
Instead of independence, we can stop and listen. God says: “Be still and know that I am God.” We are to step into the divine huddle, put aside our ideas and broken schemes, and listen to our Leader's directions. And then we follow them.
 
We may disagree with the plan. We may even be vehemently opposed to the plan. However, He is God. Acknowledging that fact demands that we admit He knows better than us.
 
We humble ourselves in stillness, listening to His direction. Then, knowing that He is God, we run onto the field and work the play. For His honor and His glory.