Team Player

I am writing this on Wednesday morning, a week in advance, and they play tonight. So, I do not know the outcome of the game. But the MCA Buccaneers boys’ basketball team is playing in the Georgia High School State Tournament. They have already won two games. They are ranked in the top five in the state, and have been ranked number one for a couple of weeks. They are having an outstanding season.

The bottom line is this. By the time you read this they will have been eliminated from the tournament, or they will be preparing for the championship game in Macon later this week. There will be ecstasy, or agony.

How do I know this? Forty-eight years ago, about this time of year, I was playing in the state tournament. My Dacula Falcons won one game, but lost in the quarterfinal round. We finished the season with 26 wins and 3 losses. I remember peeling off that number 22 jersey in the locker room at Macon Coliseum for the last time. I cried like a baby.

Playing team sports was a powerful teaching tool in my life. I learned how to work with others. I learned to listen to, and learn from, a coach. And during my high school basketball playing days I learned a lot about race relationships. During my senior year the miniseries “Roots” debuted. My coach made practice accommodations for us to be home in time to watch it. Both watching the show, and listening to my teammates was quite the experience for me. It helped me to grow.

We live in a world that is deeply divided today. Race is simply one of the issues that divide us. I wonder. What would happen if we actually listened to one another? How would life change if we stopped screaming, and really heard what others were saying.

Your momma told you what I’m about to say. But you may need to hear it again. God gave you two ears and one mouth. There might be a reason for that. Paul wrote in Romans 12:18, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” I pray that we will do just that.