In June, we talked about what it means to Surrender Your Heart. When you submit to the leading of Jesus and His motivations in your life, God gives you new life and pursuits that align with His hope for the world.
Over the next quarter, we’ll continue our journey of PURSUE and explore what it means to Pursue Team. We’ll learn what it takes to evaluate, draft and commit to the team that God wants us to have as we step further into our faith.
This month, we dig into what it looks like to Evaluate The Team and take a look at who we hang around and how we might adjust to place us with people who will best support our faith and lead us closer to Jesus.
Think about some of the greatest teams throughout history. They moved effortlessly together, as one. Each player knew their role and gave their best for the good of the team. They shared a common goal and worked together to make that goal a reality.
Like all the great teams, we need to have the right players on our spiritual team to help us grow in relationship with Christ. Now that we’ve surrendered to Jesus and chose to trust in Him, the next step is to form a team that will walk with us as we walk out our faith.
**
At the start of the season, good teams first evaluate goals, individual strengths and how they can encourage one another in their talent.
Before we get too far into our faith journey, we should pay attention to who’s around us and whether we have the right people in place. What do we need to look for, or evaluate, as we determine the right people to share our lives with? This is important, because much of our growth or stagnancy develops from who we give our time and attention to.
The apostle Paul gives us a great example of what it looks like when we surround ourselves with the right kind of spiritual teammates:
Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near. (Hebrews 10:24-25)
Before you begin to choose, take an assessment of the people around you. What do they value? Do they bow down to Jesus or an idol of the world?
When we assess the “who” in our lives, it helps us live out our “why”. We search to find “who” we should be pursuing and know what we are looking for.
Over the months, we’re going to look at the disciples—Jesus’s great team—and observe their beginnings and transformation as they learned from Jesus. But for now, let’s explore three qualities we should look for when it comes to evaluating the type of people for our team.
Confident
Someone who knows their worth in Christ can’t help but stand firm when life’s challenges start hurling towards them. Rather than insecurely cutting others down, they build others up and encourage us to step into our own identity as God’s son or daughter and live with boldness knowing we have every spiritual blessing in Jesus. They sharpen our focus to see what matters and learn how to stand on the promises of God.
A solid teammate knows his or her value and reminds you of your own God-given worth.
“But blessed are those who trust in the Lord
and have made the Lord their hope and confidence.” (Jeremiah 17:7)
Loyal
To be loyal is to be unwavering in faith or support. In the New Testament, while background of believers varied in geography, culture and tradition, Jesus was always the connection that unified. A person sold out for Jesus puts Him first in every aspect of their lives—before relationships, goals, what to do and how it would look. If something doesn’t seem right when hanging with friends, she leaves because she’d rather please Jesus. If someone is mocking his faith, he stands firm on God’s Word and believes anyway.
A solid teammate has your back and there’s never any doubt they want nothing but God’s best for you.
“A friend is always loyal,
and a brother is born to help in time of need.” (Proverbs 17:17)
Caring
A kind heart goes a long way and gently reflects the love of Jesus. It’s the little acts of service that showcase the caring nature of someone who echoes the life of Christ and seeks the good of others. A caring friend focuses on the joy of making someone’s day better. She serves, stays after school to help a classmate who’s struggling with math or brings a meal to an elderly neighbor. He writes a note of encouragement to a friend who is struggling.
When we assess the “who” in our lives, it helps us live out our “why”.
A solid teammate looks to help you when you’re hurting and point you to Christ.
“Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.” (Colossians 3:12)
It’s all about intentionality. When we want to get better at basketball, we work on our non-dominant hand dribbling or spend extra hours at the free throw line. When we want to beat a team that’s been beating us all year, we watch film of previous games to see where we can make adjustments. So, too, we can take assessment and look at the good qualities of people to evaluate who we want to spend our time with.
But be mindful—just because someone seems good and is a good person, the most important thing to look for is whether or not they follow Jesus. That’s the ultimate when it comes to surrounding ourselves with a tight-knit group of people we live life and grow with.
As we determine the positive characteristics that form healthy relationships, it becomes easier for us to assess whether we’ve got a good support system or not. And it gives us the courage to make adjustments if necessary, to best surround ourselves with dynamic spiritual teammates.
Consider: Are you willing to be honest with yourself and determine if your friend group may need to change?
Action: Decide what kind of teammates will best help you in your faith and take inventory of their good qualities and why they’re important.
This quarter, we’re exploring what it means to Pursue Team. This month, our focus is on how to Evaluate the Team. Join us as we journey through this exploration and prepare to Draft the Team next month.
One way to actively Pursue Team is through joining an FCA Huddle. The Huddle is one of FCA’s greatest teams. It is an important resource to help coaches and athletes grow in the essentials of their faith and become fully devoted followers of Christ. As a coach or athlete connects to an FCA Huddle, they will surround themselves with teammates who point to Jesus. Bring a friend and find a Huddle near you!
*If you read this article and aren’t in relationship with Christ yet but would like to know more, we invite you to go through FCA’s The FOUR that explains how an everlasting and fulfilling life with God is possible.
Other Pursue Articles:
Read previous months' articles:
January: Imperative: Read The Truth
February: Connected: Pray The Truth
March: Accountable: Reach For Truth
April: Be Honest: Open Your Heart
May: Be Intentional: Examine Your Heart
June: It’s Time: Surrender Your Heart
-FCA-
Photo courtesy of Unsplash