SigntoStory

LIVE YOUR STORY ANY WAY YOU CAN!

If you love the NCAA tournament like I do, you probably have a myriad of reasons for this deep love. I always pull for my beloved Tarheels and love watching my favorite team. I also love finding out about the most obscure players from the smallest conferences who also overcame tremendous odds to get to this point in their life. Lately, I’ve fallen more in love with something even greater.

Ever since I started really focusing on other people’s stories, I have learned to look for the “little things.” I use this term loosely to describe anything someone does with their life to make a positive influence or create an opportunity to show care, support, love, or encouragement. The NCAA tournament certainly provides these opportunities, but it’s not just for the players on the floor.

If you watched the Abiline Christian Wildcats take down the mighty Texas Longhorns, you probably saw a lot of great plays, a high level of skill display, tons of intensity, and many “little things” that allowed this almost unknown University win a most improbable game. I wonder if you noticed anything that happened off the court of play?

Early on, I noticed the Abiline Christian bench players staying very focused and intense and cheering on their team with great passion. As the game progressed and became even more intense, I noticed one or two of these players keep up the intensity on the side lines. One player in particular, caught my eye.

Meet Paul Hiepler, number 33, a senior player who spends most of the time on the bench. In fact, his career stats look like many players pretty good game. He averaged two points as a Junior and averaged 1.7 minutes a game as a Sophomore. As a Senior, he totaled 64 minutes of game-time over 23 games, averaging less than three minutes per game. So why in the world would anyone notice Paul?

Paul never set down. From all the highlights I can watch and all the times they scanned the Wildcats bench, there was Paul, standing tall. He was coaching, cheering, jumping, screaming, boxing out with the best of them (even though he wasn’t in the game), raising his hands, moving, shaking, gasping, and always standing.

Maybe Paul’s story could or even should be overlooked. One could argue he had absolutely no effect on the game. Sure Joe Pleasant, the weakest FT shooter on the floor at the time, knocked down 2 clutch free throws with 1.2 seconds left and then stole the ball to win the game. The guards hung tough and made some great drives before this moment. The defense was absolutely incredible. The rebounding was solid, and the team made shots when they needed them most. Paul didn’t physically do any of these things. He never entered the game and will not appear on the official scorecard to show up in the history books.

Paul did live his story. He didn’t let this fact, that he is a senior benchwarmer, hold him back from living his story boldly. He embraced the opportunity to give every ounce of support he had to the team. And sure enough, when the final pass was stolen and the ball thrown high in the air, who was the first person to run and congratulate Joe? I’m pretty sure you already know the answer.

Everyone wants to be like Mike. Everyone wants to be the best basketball player on the planet, hit the game winning shot, have your name in the history books, and have your best game at the most important time. However, we can’t all have this opportunity. In the game of life, you will often get overlooked, undervalued, pushed aside, or turned away. There will be times you will find yourself sitting on the bench. It’s your choice what to do with your story at this point. You can either sit there, frustrated or angry, confused or in denial, or you can stand up. You can make a difference. You can support others, cheer for others, celebrate with others, and refuse to give up. I pray we all get to be like Mike one day in our stories, but I also pray we all get to be like Paul too. Your life impacts others in more ways than you can ever imagine. Someone needs you to be their supporter or cheerleader. Someone needs you on their team. I am confident Paul made a bigger impact on his team this year than most of us will ever realize. At the end of the day, look who got to hold the trophy with his team, smiling like he just hit the game winner after all.

“There’s only one way to move forward…start”

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We all have them. Most of us pretend we don’t. There are always doubts or decisions, mistakes or missteps, covered pathways or crooked roads, that hold us back from moving forward towards the future. We tell ourselves that the best is yet to come, but find ourselves enjoying the security of what is now.

I absolutely wish I could tell you exactly what you needed to hear that would help you break free and take that next step. There’s hundreds of thousands of motivational speeches on YouTube. Some of them are really good. I kind of figure if that was the answer, at least a few hundred of those would have worked their magic.

Life is so much more than motivation and taking that next step is much more than sheer will. I believe it is a delicate combination of faith, hope, and love. If any one of them are absent or out of balance, moving forward becomes that much harder. Faith is the driver; hope is the fuel; and love is the promise. We need all three.

The key to all three is wrapped up in the original source. In the book of Jeremiah*, God was calling His people back to Him. He was providing what they needed to move forward. “I have loved you with an everlasting love,” was what he promised to them. He promised to draw them in with lovingkindness. This was the Hope they had in God. Faith was what allowed them to pursue it and Him. Love was given to and through them by God alone.

If you are struggling to move forward, look at the source. Keep your eyes on Him alone. He will provide what you need. He always has, and He always will.

“This is such a strange way to save the world.”

The band, 4Him, had a Christmas song years ago called, “Such a Strange Way to Save the World.” These are certainly unprecedented and strange times we are living in today. Yet tonight it hit me, God rarely acts in the ways that make sense to the human mind to show us how much He loves us and how much He longs to have an eternal relationship with us. The book of Isaiah says that His ways and His thoughts are so much higher and greater than ours.

Think about His powerful moments in history.

He made Adam and Eve in His own image and walked with them in the cool of the day. They had everything you could ever desire, but sin showed up. Selfishness, pride, arrogance, doubt, and fear showed up. Yet God covered them in animal skins (the first sacrifice that pointed to the Greatest Sacrifice in Jesus) and loved them still. It was such a strange way to save the world.

The world turned. Murder, hatred, greater self-pride, a sense of invincibility and complete disregard for God took hold. God searched the earth looking for one single righteous man.  If He did not find him, God wondered if He should destroy it all and start again. But God found one man, Noah, and decided we were worth a second chance (a preview of everlasting grace and forgiveness offered in Jesus). He sent rain. No one had ever seen rain. 40 days and 40 nights of this strange substance, until it flooded everything. A rainbow, a dove, the sun, a second chance. It was such a strange way to save the world.

God wanted His people to be set apart. He found Abram. God told him that he wanted to start a new nation with him in a new land. Then he told him to start walking. He promised Abram descendants that would outnumber the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. He gave Abram a new name. God also gave him a barren wife. He got old. His wife laughed at God’s angel. Then, the promised son arrived. And God told Abraham to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. (This pointed to Jesus, God’s only Son, who would be the sacrifice, the ultimate sacrifice, that would take away the sins of the world.) Then, God stops Abraham. A new nation of chosen people are born. It was such a strange way to save the world.

Joseph gets left for dead and sold into slavery but becomes the second most powerful man in all of Egypt. Moses can’t speak, kills another in his anger, and has more self-esteem issues than most. Yet God calls him out of hiding in the form of a burning bush? He delivers the entire Israelite nation (pointing to Jesus as our great Deliver) and they watch the Egyptian army swallowed up by the sea. They get sidetracked on the way to the Promised Land and pretty much only their descendants get to see it. Yet, God leads them every step and reminds them to “take courage” and not fear. It was such a strange way to save the world.

The Judges help guide the people and pull them back towards God. The long-awaited king shows up in Saul but he doesn’t save them all (reminding us that only the One True King Jesus can truly save us all). A shepherd boy with a sling and some stones dares a giant to mock our God. He becomes the greatest king ever known as he struggles with pride and lust and his family falls apart. Yet God stays with him and promises him that his bloodline will never end (David was the great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather of Joseph – Jesus’ earthly dad). It was such a strange way to save the world.

Jerusalem is destroyed. God’s chosen people are scattered. The prophets beg and plead and share visions of what God is calling His people towards. Most of this falls on deaf ears. The promised Messiah is mentioned. Everything goes quiet for 300 years. The people doubt. For many, God is forgotten. And the silence is broken with the cry of a baby boy. It was such a strange way to save the world.

He lived as a carpenter’s son for 30 years. He never traveled more than 30 or so miles from his home. He turned water in wine. He healed the sick, made the lame to walk, and told the best stories. He cast out demons, loved the least of these, and poured into 12 disciples continually. He rose the dead to life, promised He was going to prepare a forever home for us, and told us we would never be alone. He died. It was on a Friday. The disciples quit and went back to fishing. A woman, who would not have been able to even testify in court, said he was alive. He showed back up. With holes in his hand, he reached back out to the disciples. He gave them a mission to change the world. He took away all our sin and defeated death and the devil and all darkness. Jesus ascended into Heaven with the promise we should share this news, remember all these things, and tell everyone who would listen. It was such a strange way to save the world.

Saul persecuted Christians like it was an Olympic sport. He stood by while Stephen saw the heavens open up and Jesus come take him away while they stoned him continuously. He took a journey on a Damascus road, went blind, but could finally see. Jesus got a hold of his heart and no attempts to kill him, stone him, kidnap him, imprison him, shipwreck him, or beat him would stop him from reaching the Gentiles (that’s most of us).  Paul was now starting churches all over the known world and reminding everyone that God’s grace is sufficient for us all. It was such a strange way to save the world.

For 2000 years since, God has continually shown up in the strangest of ways. The Romans took pride in killing Christians and persecuting them, but it only drove the Christians out to new regions and with newfound convictions. They shared the Good News of Jesus to even more of the world. The church itself became arrogant and lost its focus, until a list of 95 things that needed to be addressed, was nailed to a door. There were plagues and wars where saints stood in the gap and served as the hands and feet of Jesus. The church was persecuted and pushed to an entirely new continent but here we are in the greatest nation on the earth. People lost their way. God used John Calvin, Charles Spurgeon, DL Moody, Johnathon Edwards, George Whitlfield, John Wesley, and Billy Graham to call them back. It was such a strange way to save the world.

Now it’s 2020. The COVID-19 virus has people scared. It has changed our lives. People are dying. Nothing is certain anymore. We are faced with the deepest fears and forced to ask ourselves what really matters in life. We are spending more time with our family. We are reconnecting with friends. We are slowing down and suddenly finding the hamster wheel wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. We enjoy being outside again. We notice more of the small things. We take more time to pray. I don’t know where all this is going or why this is all happening. But I know who does. And I trust Him. I trust His plan. I trust His nail-scared hand. Maybe we will all look back on this one day (soon I pray) and say, “It was such a strange way to save the world.”

Jesus loves you. He wants you to know that more than anything else. John 3:16-17

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

I had an idea yesterday that I would get up this morning and go looking for Jesus.  After all, the women did this on Easter Sunday.  They prepared spices and incense and went to properly bury their Lord.  Only, it didn’t work out that way. He was and is alive.

I have been convicted lately there are times when I forget Jesus is really alive.  I think we all have a tendency to sometimes leave Jesus up in Heaven, or even occasionally, just to leave Him on the cross to gain our forgiveness.  While Jesus certainly resides in Heaven and died on that cross to take away the sins of the whole world, including yours and mine, we worship a Risen Savior and an ever-present Lord who resides with us.  He is alive IN us.

So on this Easter morning, I went looking for Jesus.  And the most amazing thing happened; I found Him.  He was not in Heaven and He was not on the cross and He certainly was not in the tomb.  I found Him in the sunrise and, like Elijah, in the breeze.  He spoke to me in the sparrow and reminded me of my worth.  He was alive in the slow, sleeping breath of my children and poured out His reminders of blessings at me as I looked at my beautiful wife and the family He has entrusted to me.  He heard me as a I prayed and spoke His love over me.  My ears and heart worshipped as I sang praises to my God in song.  The trees and their new growth exemplified what He is always trying to do in me (and you) as He prunes and grows something better and more beautiful.

I found Him beside me as I set outside and felt Him pull me close to remind me He is always near.  The small purple flowers below my porch reminded me that He is royal and mighty and worthy of all the praise we could ever bring.  The candle on my patio let me know that He has given me a light to shine for all to see.  It is not my own.  It is His light that must pour through and shine bright enough to all those around me.  The spider webs reminded me of the sin that so easily entangles us yet has no hold over me because He has defeated death and is alive forevermore.

The deck that I sat on encouraged me to believe that Jesus was a great earthly carpenter like His father, but an even better heavenly carpenter who builds the plans of our lives strong and sturdy and secure.  The sunlight is His light that radiates through me and promises to be our eternal light now and for always.  The butterfly is my example that the old is gone and the new has come and that if anyone is in Christ, they are a new creation.  He has made us new.  He is making all things new.  Our Risen Savior and glorious Lord did not stay on the cross or in a tomb.  He came down from the cross to live inside of you and me.  I pray you find Him this Easter and every day of your life.  He is alive.

Who do you influence on a daily basis?  Who notices your actions, your words, your attitude, or your responses?  If you had to rate  your level of influence, what ranking would you receive?  There are three things that I have learned about influence.  We all have it.  We all control it.  And what you do with it is all that really matters.

One of the most neglected aspects of our life is our failure to realize the impact that our influence actually contains.  We get too self-centered and our focus stays more on our self.  Jackie Robinson said it best when he stated, “A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.”  Stand in the middle of your circle.  Look around.  What do  you see? How deep is your circle of influence?  Does your circle engulf those around you or are they thirsting to death?

I heard Dabo Swinney, coach of the National Champion Clemson Tiger football team, speak at an FCA banquet on Tuesday night. He talked about this very thing and is why it has been on my heart,  in my mind, and constantly lifted up in prayer.  We are accountable to those in our circle.  The people that God has placed in that circle need something that, often times, only we can provide.  Why would we ever deprive someone of that opportunity.

My challenge is that we all take a look around and decide to be what we were created to be and impact those around us with the gifts and talents we have been given!  I often catch myself needing to put my “self on the shelf.”  I need to quit looking at me and look out.  The only thing the mirror has ever told me is that I have food on my face and that I have more wrinkles than I used to.  Not being aware of our circle of influence is not an excuse.  Look around you.  Put your self on the shelf and realize that what your circle needs most is you.  Impact lives.  Be bold.  Pray big prayers.  Increase your circle but most importantly, care for the circle you have.  God is giving you the opportunity to put your self aside and impact others.  Don’t waste it.

I have been relatively quiet in regards to our “Teacher Rally and March for Students” taking place in Raleigh and across our state today here in NC.  The truth is, I have been so focused on helping our students, staff, teachers, and families finish this year strong, that I have not had a lot of time to dedicate to this tremendous cause.  In all honestly, I was also not exactly sure what to do to help others understand how grossly underfunded and disrespected public education here in NC has become over the past 10-20 years from the state/legislative level*.  It’s been a slow fade.  This is the problem.  By the time we realize where we currently stand and how far behind we sit, we’ve faded so far back that it’s hard to even see our rally flag in the distance.

Yet as I went to work this morning and stepped into our amazing school, I was greeted by the 30 or so educators that were working hard today.  I watched them plan for our students and discuss their needs.  I listened to passionate teachers reflect and tried to offer support and encouragement for this year.  I worked with a teacher to plan the most amazing graduation walk for our local HS students to come through our building next week and be recognized for their outstanding achievement. I received texts and pictures from our teachers in Raleigh and tried to encourage them from afar.  I reflected and contemplated and reviewed and prayed about our open teacher position.  I met with four educators to ensure we had the best plan for a student who has recently broken her arm take the EOG.  What other profession spends this much time and care to take care of one situation for one person?!  I talked with our teacher lead/garden committee chair whose husband was delivering dirt in a thunderstorm so our garden would be complete for our students.  I sat with three first grade teachers who were working as hard today for our students as they were 165 days ago.  The sheer commitment was evident in everything.

I’m glad our teachers and staff care so much about our students. I’m glad some went to Raleigh.  I’m glad some came to work.  I’m glad a few supported local movements.  I’m glad a few stayed home with their families and will be ready to come to work tomorrow to finish this year strong.  We all did what we felt we needed to do.  And tomorrow, we will all be back at school ready to continue our journey into the extraordinary.  We will greet our kids with hugs and smiles, affirm them with our words, challenge them with our questions, teach them with our passion, and encourage them to always be their best.  We will bandage their scrapped knee from the playground, open their chocolate milk at lunch, sign their signature cards when we catch them being safe, respectful, or responsible, and give that quick glance to get them refocused on the task at hand.

Our teachers in our 4th grade classrooms with 31-33 students will keep working hard to engage every student and personalize learning for them.  Our teacher assistants will run (literally at times) from one end of the building to another to help facilitate small groups and provide interventions for our students on their “part-time” schedule.  Our custodians will work hard to keep a gigantic building clean with the limited crew we have on hand.  Our front office staff will greet and guide and manage and support.  Our EC teachers will continue juggling their large caseloads and classrooms but pour everything they have into our students.  Kindergarten teachers will assess students on how far they have come in their reading.  First grade teachers will do the same.  Second grade teachers will work on end-of-year math assessments. Third grade teachers will rotate and review to give our students a different voice.  Fifth grade teachers will keep holding it all together and instructing until the end.  Our music teachers will sing with students and make a joyful noise, art will paint something beautiful, PE will engage and tire them, media will challenge them, guidance will remind them to always care.  Administrators will support and work to manage it all so that everyone knows we have their back. We will all do our part.

We won’t gripe about our paychecks.  We will not worry about the budget.  We won’t complain in the teacher’s lounge (which schools really don’t have and I’m not even sure why the term exists).  We will teach our hearts out.  We will finish this year strong.  We will support every child.  We will make a difference.  We won’t get a break.  We never do.  We will go home tired.  We will go home content.  We will continue to pursue the extraordinary.  We will never stop.

I don’t know the exact answer to our problem but I do know that I will be an example.  I do know that our school will be an example for others to follow.  We will do more with less than you can ever imagine.  We will help every child reach their goals and potential. We will show our state legislators and representatives what is possible.  Every kid, every teacher, every administrator, every staff member matters.  Come and see what we do at PSRES every single day.  You may even want to fund us and support us so we can do even more extraordinary things.  A light, even in the distance, can shine bright.  Shine on teachers, shine on educators, shine on kids.  It all matters.

*I proudly work for Cabarrus County Schools.  Our school system and county compensate for so many people, resources, and needs that the state will not fund.  This is not an inditement in any way on our local systems (or LEAs – Local Education Associations).  All 4 LEAs that I have worked for during my educational career have had to supplement at a ridiculously high level to fund basic necessities and required needs.  The local systems are not the problem.  The state government is the one that needs to answer for its inadequate budget and low priority of true public schools here in NC.

So my son Jackson just found out he didn’t make the 7th grade basketball team.  Out of the 37 twelve/thirteen year-olds who tried out for the team, he wasn’t in the top twelve.  He may have been number 13 or number 30 but none of that really matters right now.  He’s heartbroken.  He’s frustrated and angry and extremely disappointed.  Most of all though, he seems confused.  He knows he left it all on the court and knows he did his best.  His mom is proud.  I am proud.  I hope he is proud of himself.  But like that big fish that got away, it doesn’t seem to mean much to him right now.

What is he supposed to learn from this lesson?  Should he learn that he isn’t one of the best basketball players in our community?  Perhaps, although I think he already knew he wouldn’t be starting on the team and averaging 22 points per game.  Should he learn that as long as you try your best, nothing else matters?  It sounds good on paper but it doesn’t put his name on a roster.  Will he learn that hurt and disappointment fade away over time?  Maybe he will, yet tonight sure brought back memories of my own “failure” to make the 7th grade basketball team (if you knew me then or know me now, you know I’m not exactly built for basketball but my 12 year-old self didn’t want to accept that or hear that either!).

In all honesty, it just makes me wonder what lessons we teach our kids about what we value.  Would I rather Jackson have made the basketball team and go to school tomorrow and trash-talk his friends, cuss them if they dared question why he made it, and then make a cruel or obscene joke?  Not in a million years.  We have a son who sees the value in people.  He works hard and makes excellent grades.  He plays club soccer and attends church almost every time the door is open.  He has a big heart and, I believe, an even bigger future before him.  Yet tonight, it doesn’t matter much to him.

I choose to believe that God is going to teach him a great lesson through this and show him something greater is out there.  I choose to believe that God has a purpose for his pain and will only use it to motivate him to get better, work harder, and never stop pursuing his goals.  I choose to believe that this blip on his life radar screen is a jumping off point to something greater.  I choose to believe that if I teach my son what really matters in life: caring for others, showing kindness in all you do, believing God has created you for a grand purpose and given you the gifts and talents to achieve that purpose, and understanding this journey called life has many hills and valleys but a most glorious final destination, I have taught him well.  Did I teach him everything I knew about basketball?  I did.  Have I taught him everything I’ve learned (and am still learning about life)? I’m only getting started.  You are an awesome and amazing son that God will bless and lead to do amazing and wonderful things.  Never forget that fact.  I don’t care what a 7th grade basketball rosters says.  You are extraordinary. That is the lesson I need him to learn.

It did not look good.  Joel Berry, star point guard for the Carolina Tar Heels goes down with a rolled ankle and is heading back to the locker room.  “This can’t be good,” the announcer states as all of Carolina nation holds their collective breath.  Seventh Woods, back-up point guard, enters.  He quickly picks up his second foul.  There are limited choices.  Coach Williams looks down his bench and sees the old veteran, Stillman White.  He gives him a nod.  White calmly comes in the game and goes about his business.  “The offense looks out of sync with this lineup,” the same announcer digresses.  The offense does look stale.  Suddenly, White takes the ball on the wing and drives.  He goes up and under the basket for a beautiful reverse lay-up.  Its worth 2 points.  Carolina holds on to win by, you guessed it, TWO points.

There were 148 points scored in the Carolina/Kentucky Elite Eight game but none were bigger than those.  Sure, one could argue that Luke Mays 18-footer actually won the game, but it is all for nothing if White doesn’t step up.  There is something to be said of making the most of your minutes.  Stillman White sure did.  In fact, Berry came back into the game a few minutes later and White took his customary spot on the bench and took on his customary role of cheerleader.  He did not play another minute.  So, sure, one could argue that he had a minimal impact.  I however, believe he did exactly what he was called to do, and maybe what we all are called to do, make the most of your minutes.

I have been quite convicted lately to grab hold of every small moment and set of minutes and really make them count.  I have shared this at work, with my son and family, and with my brother.  God continues to remind me that we don’t get to be here long.  We must embrace every moment and every good day.  Matthew Henry, in his biblical commentary, said it best, “It is wisdom to fill up our vacant minutes with that which is good so that no small moment of time will be lost.”  May that be our challenge always.  When we have an opportunity to do good, in whatever capacity and in whatever moment, let’s do it.  We never know where it might lead.