"And He was withdrawn from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” -Luke 22:41-42 NKJV

Many professional athletes grew up dreaming of playing their respective sports at the collegiate and/or professional level. This may be for various reasons including:

• For the love of the game

• They watched their favorite athletes growing up, causing them to want to play the sport.

• They want to better themselves and their lives, and escape from negative family situations or neighborhoods where they grew up.

• They want to provide financial assistance for their families.

• They desire fame, fortune, a lavish lifestyle, and they want to create their own brand.

Some of these athletes may have grown up in Christian household, where faith was most important. They make it to the collegiate and/or professional leagues initially showing that they are Christians. Good fruit is being shown on and off the court, and they even give God the glory in postgame interviews and award shows. But the longer they are in the pros exposed to fame, fortune, premarital sex, drugs, alcohol, etc., the more they allow the enemy through these forms to entice them to be like the world. They begin to use foul language, get tatted up, and becoming more sexually active which translates to having children outside of marriage. They become more and more arrogant thinking that because they have success, they are bigger and better than what they are. As a result, sometimes they hit rock bottom in their careers or in life and they may be wondering why things have turned upside down.

Now, this isn’t always the case. There are plenty of strong believers who have used self-control, constantly growing in the Christian faith, and telling others about Jesus. I’m not looking to judge but I am expressing to everyone what can happen when we don’t look to grow in our relationship with Jesus, be strong in the faith, center ourselves around godly people, and don’t put on the whole armor of God.

It is so important for us to not allow the world or culture to shape how we should live. Instead, we should ALWAYS allow God to be foundation of our lives and allow Him to shape our minds through His Word by reading and studying it daily.

You may believe that living by rules isn’t cool. One thing that we must realize is that being a Christian is cool. Just because we are Christians doesn’t mean that we can’t go to the movies, go bowling, travel, go to sporting events, etc. God desires us to live a great, enjoyable life but He also want us to live life His way according to His word. John 10:10 says, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” We must tell other about the life we live for a cool Heavenly Father who loves us unconditionally. God cares for our well-being and He desires us to live according to a Christian standard. Is there any harm in that? No, our Father wants what is best for us. It is cool to grow in our Christian walk. It is cool to have someone who loves you and has your back when it seems like all is lost and there is no hope. It is cool to live for someone who has given the ultimate sacrifice by allowing His own Son, Jesus, to die for our sins so that we wouldn’t have to. It is cool to have a Father who, unlike mere humans, forgives us even when we don’t deserve it. Do you know what’s even cooler? Going to heaven which should be our ultimate goal.

Every day, the enemy is like a thief, looking to steal, kill, and destroy. He is looking to take your peace, your hope, your belief in Jesus Christ, your favor, your prayer, your praise, your love for God and others, your life, and your focus on God and purpose. Our relationship with God must be the number one priority in the lives. As we grow in God, we will grow to be like Jesus daily and we will be able recognize the enemy’s schemes. Always counteract evil with good. When the enemy approaches you with negativity, do the opposite so that God can get the glory out of your life.

In Matthew 13:1-23, Jesus gives the Parable of the Farmer Scattering Seed. I love Jesus’ parables, by the way! In this parable, a farmer plants seeds (the word of God/gospel message) in four different ways. The four different ways help us understand the ways people respond to the gospel. One of the ways that I want to talk about is where the seed fell on thorns. This represents those individuals who hear the message but all too quickly allow the worries of this life and/or the pleasures of this world to overshadow their desire for Jesus Christ. Therefore, they desire money, fame, women/men, culture, job position, etc. but don’t desire to be saved and surrender their lives to God. Ultimately their hearts began to harden. We don’t want that.

Let’s be like those individuals who allow the seed (God’s Word) to fall into fertile soil and produce more than what was planted. Every day, let’s strive to be people of God who allow the seed to be planted in fertile soil. In other words, we must take in the message of Jesus Christ in our hearts, applying it, and allow it to shape and mold us so that we can produce godly fruit to be more and more like Jesus Christ.

Can we truly say that we have a Kingdom over culture mindset? Are we looking to help others know more about Jesus? Do we want to be like Jesus by growing in our relationship with Him? Make “yes” your answer! Allow the Holy Spirit to help you to win over the temptation that the enemy tries to bring in life.

Allow God's Word to grow in your life.