the game-changer
Last night the NFL draft took place, and as is often the case, quarterbacks won the day. These talented team leaders were selected 1,2 & 3. Why do quarterbacks get all the attention? The answer is simple. Teams are looking for a “game-changer,” someone who can introduce the secret ingredient to success. More than any other position, quarterbacks create opportunities for the team to score. Do you know who actually scores the most points on an NFL team? It’s usually the smallest guy on the field, the kicker. Kickers win games, but it takes a quarterback to get the team to the right place on the field so that the kicker can score. So, the commander of the squad, the quarterback, is still the game-changer. Strangely enough, first-round quarterback draft picks do not have good records of success. But it’s still worth the chance to score another Tom Brady for your team. By the way, Tom was a sixth-round draft pick, 199th overall.
If you could draft a game-changer for your personal life, one that would guarantee a better life, would you take the chance? I’m betting that many of you would.
This secret ingredient to success is not a person or a thing; it is an attitude. Thankfulness is a game-changer. Adopt this perspective on life, and you’ll be a winner. Why?
Thankfulness improves any situation.
A woman was at work when she received a phone call informing her that her young daughter was very sick with a fever. She left her job and stopped by the pharmacy to get some medication. She got back to her car and discovered that she had locked her keys in the car. She didn’t know what to do, so she called home and told the babysitter what happened. The worried babysitter informed her that the fever was getting worse. She suggested to her employer, “You might find a coat hanger and use that to open the door.”
The woman looked around and found a rusty old coat hanger left on the ground, possibly by someone else who had also locked their keys in the car. The woman had no idea how to use the make-shift tool to open her door.
So, she bowed her head and asked God to send help. Within five minutes, a beat-up old motorcycle pulled up, with a dirty, greasy, bearded man wearing an old biker skull rag on his head. The woman thought, “Lord, this is who you sent to help me?” However, she was desperate, so she was also very thankful.
The man got off of his Harley and asked if he could help. She said, “Yes, my daughter is very sick, so I stopped to get her some medicine, and I locked my keys in my car. I must get home to her. Please, can you use this hanger to unlock my car?” He said, “Sure.” He walked over to the car, and in less than a minute, the car was opened.
The grateful recipient hugged the man, and through her tears, she said, “Thank you so much! You are a very nice man.”
The man replied, “Lady, I am not a nice man. I just got out of prison today. I was in prison for car theft and have only been out for about an hour.”
The woman hugged the man again and, through sobbing tears, cried out loud, “Oh, thank you, God! You even sent me a Professional!”
The Apostle Paul put it this way in Ephesians 5:20. “20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Give thanks for everything. That’s a mouthful and easier said than done.
I sometimes find myself more often considering what I’m not thankful to possess. However, every time I come up with something, just like this stranded motorist, I am reminded that God somehow uses the items on my unthankful list for something good.
I’m not thankful for my appetite. It gets the best of me, and being overweight has been a constant battle throughout my life. It seems to me that God could have made me with a higher metabolism and lower appetite. However, this battle has driven me to God countless times. I cannot effectively wage this war without His assistance. If I were one of the “beautiful” people, I would probably just become stuck on myself and not consider the need for him in something so essential to my daily life. “Thank you, God, for my daily food consumption battle.”
I’m not thankful for exercise. It makes me sweaty, sore, and smelly. I would have appreciated it if God created me such that my muscles were self-exercising as I slept. No such luck. Yet, I’ve learned so much about the concept of daily exercise of my “spiritual” muscles when I compare the discipline to physical training. There are so many parallels between physical and spiritual workouts. I’ve also learned that keeping my body healthy provides all kinds of benefits. “Thank you, God, for exercise.”
I’m not thankful for Brussel Sprouts. They’re funny looking, smell bad, and taste like I went out in the back yard and started grazing. In fact, there is quite a list of foods for which I am not thankful. But when I am presented with one of these “no eat” foods, I am reminded of what my mother told me. “Don, people are starving in China. Eat your green beans.” I’ve had the opportunity to visit numerous developing countries. I’ve seen many children with starvation red hair. “Thank you, God, for blessing me so abundantly that I can pick and choose what I want to eat.”
The list continues.
I am not thankful for the many times I’ve been rejected. But I am grateful that rejection caused me to see areas of my life that needed improvement.
I am not thankful for losing my wife to cancer, but I am appreciative for the thirty-eight years we enjoyed and that she is now proof of the faith we held so dear.
I’m not thankful for taxes. But I do like good roads, bridges that are safe and I don’t have to use an outhouse. I’m also thankful I have until May 17th to submit them.
Thankfulness is a game-changer. When you start and end your day grateful and appreciate everything in between, you can’t lose.
Paul is right. Always give thanks to God for everything, and you’ll be a winner every time. So, stop right now and thank God for whatever comes to mind.
