March Madness is in full swing. I love this time of year. Several years ago my son played basketball for a program out of Kansas City. He was blessed to be able to travel to different parts of the country and play against some of the best players in the country. One event that we went to was in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It was being sponsored by Tyson chicken. There were teams from all across the country there. Several Division I college coaches were there as well. It was the beginning of the open period. That’s the time that the NCAA coaches could make contact with the kids.
This tournament had invited a guest speaker to come motivate the kids. His speech took place in the Walton Arena. I’m not gonna mention his name. Because, I’m not a big fan of his. And what he said to the kids really struck a chord with me. Something that really bugged me. As he’s talking, he asked the kids to raise their hands if they were millionaires. Of course none of them did. He asked the people in the crowd to do the same. Of course none of them did. Well…except for the owner of Tyson chicken. Who is actually considerably more wealthy than the speaker. Which was kind of funny. The speaker was trying to point out that he was the only millionaire in the room. Then he went on to talk about how the kids had to go out and “Get theirs” in this world. Basically, telling them to put their interests and desires in front of everything else. Let’s just say that what I thought then, and what I think now, is this: He could not have been more wrong. And I think that is part of the reason why the world is in the state that it is. Putting ourselves above everything else.
We are called to serve others. We are called to put others above ourselves. And that’s in basketball too. It’s a team sport. Therefore, you play for your team. Yes, I understand personal goals. I get that. But to be successful, your team comes first. As believers, everyone else comes first. Just as Jesus did for us. Putting us above himself. To the point that he washed feet. Raising others above himself. And we all know what he did on the cross. We all know that was for us. Or at least we should know that. Believe that. We are called to do the same thing. So today, let’s do that. Let’s put others above ourselves. Let’s make it a priority to serve others instead of ourselves.
