"And the Lord will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, and are careful to observe them." -Deuteronomy 28:13 NKJV

In the 2018-19 season, Paul George had an MVP caliber season as the shooting guard for the Oklahoma City Thunder in which he averaged 28.0 points, 8.2 rebounds, and an NBA-leading 2.2 steals per game. In February 2019, he suffered a shoulder injury which somewhat negatively affected his play in the second half of the season. The summer of the 2019-20 season, George had to undergo two shoulder surgeries. On July 10, 2019, the six-time All Star was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers to play with the newly acquired Kawhi Leonard, who was the 2019 NBA Finals MVP. After receiving the news, Paul George was excited because he was able to move close to his home in Palmdale, California (1 hour away from Los Angeles). In addition, he was happy that his parents would be able to see him play every game.

In the first game of the 2019-2020 season, the Los Angeles Clippers played a nationally televised game against the Los Angeles Lakers who added an NBA All Star, Anthony Davis, to their roster. But the Clippers had to do so without Paul George’s services as he was recovering from his shoulder surgeries. At last, George returned to the basketball court and into the starting lineup as a member of the Los Angeles Clippers vs. the New Orleans Pelicans (11/14/19). The Palmdale native had a virtuoso performance for a person who just returned from injury with 33 points and 9 rebounds (10-17 from the field, 3-5 from the three-point line, and 10-10 from the free throw line) in 24 minutes. Two days later, George led the Clippers to a 150-101 win vs. the Atlanta Hawks while scoring 37 points (10-17 from the field, 6-11 from the three-point line, and 11-11 from the free throw line) in 20 minutes of action.

Paul George had a phenomenal two game stretch considering he couldn’t play competitive basketball for seven months. Some people were surprised that he was able to play as well as he did so quickly. Although, Paul George’s first two games were a surprise to some, I’m sure that he wasn’t surprised with his performances because he is confident of his abilities based off of the work that he put in on and off the bas ketball court.

Has there ever been a time in your life in which others have doubted you? Have you ever been told that you aren’t worthy? Have you ever been told that you aren’t smart enough to graduate from high school or col lege? Has anyone ever told that you are ugly? Has anyone ever told that you aren’t attractive enough because you may be overweight or have a deformity? Have you ever been told that you are not qualified to possess a particular job because you don’t have a Masters or doctoral degree? Have you ever been told that you are too short or not strong enough to play a particular sport at the collegiate or professional level?

Never allow others’ opinion of you to be your reality. You are worthy. You are smart enough. “You are fearfully and wonderfully made” according to Psalm 139:14. Ladies, you are beautiful. Fellas, you are handsome. God didn’t make a mistake when He created you because He doesn’t make mistakes. Just because you are not qualified in some people’s eyes doesn’t mean that you aren’t qualified in the eyes of God. No matter your height or weight, you are more than capable of playing college sports and/or going to play professional sports. Always know that “every good and perfect gift comes from above” according James 1:17. God wouldn’t tell you to do something if He didn’t give you the ability to do it. Also, God wouldn’t have given you a gift if He didn’t expect for you to use the gift for His glory. Believe in Jesus Christ, put all of your trust in Him, and work hard. Always know that you can do all things through Jesus Christ because God loves you. Do you know why God loves you? Because He is love (1 John 4:16). You are more than capable of doing anything that you put your mind to according to God’s will in spite of what people may say or think about you. As a child of God, you will never lose, you will always win!

God says you are qualified for the job!

Romans 8:31

Deuteronomy 28:13

1 John 4:4