Coach's Corner
Warm-Up
“This is my command: Love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this: to lay down his life for his friends.” — John 15:12–13
You love your teammates, and you’d do anything for them. But when you understand your greater purpose, you’ll realize that your team is much bigger than you’ve ever imagined, and God wants you to share His love with them!
We’re going to have a relay race with a twist. One team will have four runners. The other team will be one person running all four legs on his or her own.
- For the person running alone, how hard was it racing with no team?
- For the people who ran as a team, how did having four people working together make the race easier?
Workout
One of the worst things that can happen to an athlete is getting hurt and not being able to play Think of your favorite players from the sport you play. Imagine if you could make a dream team with those athletes. Do you think that they’d be the best team ever? They might be.
But there are more aspects to a team than being the best and having a lot of talent. In fact, a team can be gifted and not be successful if the players on the team don’t work together. A great team is loyal, selfless, honest and trusting.
- Who are some of the athletes you would want to play on your dream team and why?
- Other than athletic talent, what else is important to being successful?
One of the first things Jesus did when He began His ministry was to put together a team. He found 12 average men to become His disciples. Several other people also joined the team—men and women who followed Jesus because of His wisdom, kindness and the miracles He performed. They believed He was the Messiah, which means Savior, and is Someone who came to rescue them.
But Jesus’ team was never meant to only have a few people. When Jesus went back to Heaven, around 120 followers were ready to share the Good News of Jesus with the world.Eternal life means never-ending. It means that even though our bodies might wear out and die one day, we have the greater promise of an amazing, never-ending life with God. Unlike our athletic gifts and the life we live here on Earth, the greater gift of Heaven will last forever.
Now, with billions of Christians around the world, there is still room on God’s Team. Because of His love for you, God wants you on His team. This is how Jesus prayed to God for you:
“I am in them and you are in me, so that they may be made completely one, that the world may know you have sent me and have loved them as you have loved me.” — John 17:23
Wrap-Up
And as part of your greater purpose, He wants you to invite more teammates to do the same.
Understanding your greater purpose means you spread God’s love to others, we should want to tell the whole world about Jesus and His love! People will see a difference in you and God’s team when they see the way you love others. People will see a difference in you and God’s team because of the people you have invited to be on His team. No one should be left out; everyone is welcome to follow Jesus. People will see a difference in you and God’s team because of the greater things you will do together.
Close in prayer or ask an athlete to lead the team in prayer.