For those that know me, they know that I am a total sports fanatic. There are many reasons why I love sports, whether it be the competitive nature, the sportsmanship, the skill, the hard-work, or the teamwork. As a Boston sports fan, we have witnessed some pretty awesome championships over the years, as well as some heartbreaks, some still fresh on our minds and hearts.

But I have moved on from it. Today, I want to talk about something else, at least sort of. One of the best stories in sports is the player who comes from the relatively unknown to become one of the greats. Boston has seen their fair share of these players over the years, none more notable than Tom Brady. The story of Brady taking over for Drew Bledsoe after he went down with an injury and leading the team to a Super Bowl victory that same year is the stuff of legend. Often when injuries and complications arise on the field, in these situations you often hear one form or another of the same phrase: “Next man up.” It’s a cliché term thrown around these days in practically every setting and sport. But beyond the surface level, it takes on a whole new meaning when applied to life in general, not just the realm of sports. “Next man up” is about staying ready, staying prepared, and taking advantage of your opportunities. It’s about doing the little things when no one is watching and with no guarantee that it will mean anything because you may never see the court or playing field. It’s about showing up. Showing up to not just play, but to win. I thought Stefon Diggs, wide receiver for the Minnesota Vikings said it best on his description of his team’s blowout loss in the NFC Championship to the Philadelphia Eagles: “We came to play, they came to win”.

Life is all about attitude. In Psychology, you learn about internal and external locus of control, internal being that you control your own destiny and external that outside influences give you the hand you’re dealt. In truth, I think it is somewhere in the middle. What I’m trying to say is to get to where you want to be in life, having a winning attitude can make all the difference. But first, you need to take the initial step and show up.

As I think about all of this, it makes me think of our Christian faith. So much of the time, we go through the motions of our day, doing what we need just to get by. It’s this type of passiveness that can be killer to our faith. Too often, it is the result of not trusting God through every situation that we go through. It’s something that I have been thinking about a lot lately as I contemplate the future and as I edge closer to the two decade mark of my life. Living in uncertainty and the unknown can be frightening, but we have to be willing to initially put ourselves out there whatever that may look like.

My freshman year I took an introductory New Testament class with a well-respected professor. What he said to the class was both humbling and unexpected from him. He told us, “Take advantage of your opportunities that God gives you. You see me here today teaching this class, but it very well could be many other people just as qualified as me. The only difference between me and countless other people is that I took hold of an opportunity that God gave me and capitalized on it. This really spoke to me because too often, I feel like I hesitate to do things because I’m afraid. I’m afraid of making mistakes. I’m afraid of putting myself in a new and unknown situation. I’m afraid of not being in control. I’m afraid of not feeling qualified enough to get the job done.

People say that the only opinion that matters is your own. For me, that’s not good enough. Our perspective of ourselves is often quite flawed. Truly, the only opinion that matters is that of our Heavenly Father. His is the only one that counts! Oftentimes, we dilute and simplify ourselves to a GPA, a character flaw, others’ opinions of us, and the sum of our life experience and growth. That sells ourselves short and only is a small part of the equation.

“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalms 139:13, NIV).

Love him or hate him, Tom Brady took advantage of an opportunity he was given. He was by no means the most qualified or the most talented (at least at the time). He was the 199^th pick in the 2000 NFL Draft and was a backup at Michigan for two years before he got a chance to prove anything. But he put in the work and he has put himself into the GOAT Discussion today (I’m sorry, I had to).

As you contemplate your past, present, and future, know who you are. Not who your qualifications say you are, but who your family and friends say you are. But most importantly, who God says you are. Don’t worry about the outside noise and only listen to those who will always stick by your side regardless of what happens. Show up every day ready to get to work and make an impact on the world around you; however big or small. Take a chance, make the most of the opportunities awarded to you, and attack your challenges and hardships with a winning mentality. Live not to survive, but to thrive. Thrive with the resources that God has given to you, living with the confidence that only He can provide, and the humility in knowing His perspective of you is unwavering and that every opportunity given to you is by and through Him.

“In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps” (Proverbs 16:9, NIV).

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat”. –Teddy Roosevelt

“I have been at the bedside of many people in their final moments when they stand on the edge of eternity, and I have never heard anyone say, ‘Bring me my diplomas! I want to look at them one more time. Show me my awards, my medals, that gold watch I was given’. When life on earth is ending, people don’t surround themselves with objects. What we want around us is people—people we love and have relationships with”. –Rick Warren, The Purpose Driven Life

P.S. Congrats to Nick Foles, quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles. He’s another underdog guy who beat the odds and made it to the pinnacle of his sport. A well-deserved achievement and judging from his post-game interview, he knows the Lord. Hats off to him.