BE PREPARED

by Barbara Chadwick

I am reading a book on the life of Tim Tebow, the quarterback. It is very interesting to me, not because of all the football action he describes (I’m blond after all and just don’t get all that!) but because of how God has worked in his life.

Did you know that his mother was told that she should abort him? A doctor told her that “it” was just a “mass of fetal tissue” or a “tumor.” Amazing!

But, Tim says, “In the delivery room, my parents tell me that I entered the world without much fanfare, followed immediately by a blood clot that was bigger than I was.” The physician (a different doctor) told his dad, “Mr Tebow, your child is a miracle baby. I can’t explain how it happened, but despite all odds, he beat them. Only a small part of the placenta was attached, but it was just enough to keep your baby nourished all these months.”

In chapter nine he quotes Colossians 3:23-24: Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve. That has been a mantra for him. He always pushes himself to do his best work.

In chapter ten he talks about being prepared:
“Being a competitor, I wanted to be out there helping and felt that I was ready to be involved whenever the coaches felt they needed me. The hardest part was no knowing – warming up to stay ready and then not knowing when your number will be called. It was a ‘wait, then hurry up, and then wait again’ situation, like much of life. You never know when an opportunity to help, to do something good, to lift up someone, or some situation will come your way. Always be prepared so that you can do your best when it’s time.”

Today I played the piano for a funeral of a friend - a godly man who was an example of Christ’s love and compassion to all who knew him. I made a number of mistakes and remembered this quote from Tim Tebow. I felt a little ashamed because I realized I had let too many hours of too many days slip by without practicing or touching the piano. God gave each of us talents and He expects us to develop them and be prepared to use them.

Chapter sixteen begins with a quote from Luke 12:48:  From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more. His parents instilled this truth into all their children and they all put every effort into whatever work they undertook. Tim is a hard worker. He pushes himself to always set new records and give back to God what God has entrusted to him.

What a great example. Thank God for my Christian friend who was an example to family and friends and thank God for Christian sports figures who point to Christ in their actions.