Stay Alert and Focused - The Edge by Coach Doug Reese

A number of years ago when I was coaching college football at Michigan Tech University, we made a trip to lower Michigan to play Ferris State University in Big Rapids. Our team stayed over on Friday night in Reed City, which was about 14 miles north of Big Rapids.

Typically we would leave campus early Friday morning and travel most of the day by charter bus with a couple of 15-passenger vans following. In the late afternoon we would have a light workout. The team would do some easy running and stretching, we would run some offensive plays versus our defense, check personnel, and go through all of our special teams. The practice lasted no more than an hour.

After practice we would head back to the hotel. The guys would shower and dress for the team dinner. After dinner we would have a team meeting or position group meeting that might last a couple hours. Then it was back to the room to relax, watch TV, do some homework, or just discuss the upcoming game.

Lights out was at midnight. The coaches did a bed check to make sure everyone was in their proper place. All of our rooms would get a wake up call in the morning, and we would have a mandatory team breakfast. After breakfast there would be another position group meeting or a special team’s meeting. The players would go back to their rooms, watch some TV, and pack up their gear. At the appointed time we would load the bus and depart for the game site.

Since we were so close to Ferris State, our head coach instructed the team to get taped in the hotel by the training staff, then dress in game uniform and get on the bus. We were going to head directly to the stadium, unload the bus, and go right onto the field for our pre-game warm ups.

When we arrived at the field we scrambled off the bus. I met with my offensive line in the right corner of the end zone as we always did each Saturday. Something was not right. I was missing two guys!

I had no idea where they were, and I didn’t have the time to go looking for them. I had to focus on getting my group of lineman ready for the game.

We finished our pre-game rituals and headed into the locker room for the final words from our head coach when my two missing lineman came running into the locker room out of breath and sweating heavily.

“Where have you been,” I screamed.

“We missed the bus,” one of them answered.

“How did that happen?”

“We lost track of time watching cartoons.”

“How did you get here?”

“We hitchhiked!”

“Oh my God…you guys are unbelievable! I can’t believe anybody would pick you two up dressed like that!”

It is easy to lose your primary focus just like these two college football players. The things of this world are always vying for our attention and time. Even cartoons can dull the sense of urgency and focus while lulling us to sleep.

Samson is a very famous Biblical character. He was a man of action, a man of tremendous strength and of great potential. Yet time and time again, Samson lived for the moment, losing his focus.

Samson fell in love with a woman named Delilah. The rulers of the Philistines offered Delilah a great sum of money if Delilah could find out the secret of Samson’s great strength so that the Philistines could overpower him and subdue him (Judges 16).

Time after time Delilah asked Samson to tell her the secret of his strength. Each time Samson made up a story and Delilah would catch him in his lie. Again Delilah would push, nag, and prod Samson to tell her his secret. Day after day this went on until Samson was tired to death.

At one point Delilah asked, “How can you say, I love you, when you won’t confide in me?” Although Samson loved Delilah, Delilah was in it just for the money.
Finally Samson told Delilah everything. He was worn out. “Delilah got Samson to go to sleep on her lap. Then she called for a man to shave off the seven braids of his hair. That's how she began to bring him under her control. And he wasn't strong anymore,” (Judges 16:19 NIRV).

Delilah kept asking Samson for the secret of his strength until he grew tired of it. He was lulled asleep by the constant nagging, by the constant lies.
The world today continually nags and prods us with lies just like Delilah.

The world keeps telling us divorce is okay and easy to do. The world shouts that a fetus is not human, so abortion is okay. The world cries out “if it feels good do it.” The world exclaims, “Do whatever it takes” to get ahead.

You can become so taken up with the lies of this world, your mind so filled with the garbage it produces, that you may never think of the things of God – your primary focus.

The sad fact is all the lies lull us into indifference and carelessness – all the while the Philistines are ready to pounce on us. When the attack comes, there is no spiritual strength. It is gone!

We need to watch our step and maintain our strength by the truth of God’s Word! Paul gives us this coaching point in Ephesians 6:10-13.

“God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we'll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.

Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it's all over but the shouting, you'll still be on your feet,” (THE MESSAGE).

Don’t believe the lies of the enemy. You’ve got to know the game plan and stick to it. The only way to win in this game is to stay on task. Don’t be deceived, and don’t be lulled to sleep. Stay alert and focused, the only way to do that is to stay in God’s Word and know His truth.