Control the Controllables

There are many distractions and demands that athletes face during competition. Officials, coaches, teammates, the weather, the surface, the equipment and, not to mention, your  formidable opponent. These aforementioned realities can unpredictably impact your playing as they are outside of your control, they impact the outcome of a contest and they impact your attitude and effort.

But, what if these external variables didn’t have to? 

Colossians 3:23 states, “Whatever you do, work at it with all of your heart, as working for the Lord and not for men.” 

The Bible gives us such a foundation of truth to build our lives upon.

Whatever you do….whatever sport, event, level of competition, in season or out of season, all things matter.

Work at it with all your heart...Show an effort, attitude, and a commitment to a process. These are the only things that are within your control; God isn’t holding you accountable for the others.

Work for the Lord and not for men…..Our focus is to be on the Lord. An audience of one. Do not let the scoreboard or the stat sheet, or who is in the stands, or what the coach thinks steal your focus from him. 

Could you imagine if athletes were unmoved by the circumstances outside of their control and laser-focused on the circumstances within their control?  Your attitude, effort, words you speak, and thoughts would dramatically change.   Win or lose, rain or shine, wouldn’t this type of athlete would be tough to discourage?

Athlete, there are many pieces to the puzzle that are outside of your control. Let those go. Focus on what is in your control. Work on these things with all of your heart. And remember who your audience is. An audience of one. “Working for the Lord and not for man”.