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Welcome to the “Peak Performance” section of Cross Training.  It is my prayer that you will find encouragement, motivation, and real-life connections here that you can carry with you throughout your season.  The coaches at Victory want you to perform at your peak - physically, emotionally, and spiritually – each of these areas is vitally important as an athlete and a Christian.  Check back with “Peak Performance” every couple of weeks to read devotions that will help you stay sharp in all of these areas. 

 


 

PEAK PERFORMANCE 8
“Serve Deep”
by Shelley Small


            The serving game in volleyball has changed a great deal over the years.  A few years back, it didn’t matter too much if you missed a serve.  Besides the obvious blow to your momentum, a missed serve only resulted in a side out.
            Serving is more aggressive now, and it can set the pace of a game in a hurry.  It can be an offensive weapon and a defense destroyer.  Still, it may not be the most significant part of volleyball, but serving is one of the most crucial parts of our Christian walk. 
            The ultimate Servant role model is Jesus Christ.  Matthew 20:28 says, “. . . just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”  To our earthly eyes, seeing the King of Kings in the role of a servant might be odd.  That’s who He is, who He wants us to be. . . and certainly who He was on the cross.
            One of the many servants and heroes of September 11 was a young man named Welles Crowther.  After a jet flew into the South Tower, Welles was determined to save as many people as he could.  For 76 minutes, the former lacrosse player from Boston College (who spent much of his time on the field feeding the puck to other players so THEY could score) gave orders to people he didn’t know, reassuring them that he could lead the way to safety.  As he ran in and out of the building delivering people down and out of the stairwells, he didn’t have any protection against the smoke and fumes of thousands of gallons of burning jet fuel except his signature red bandana.  Ever since Welles was a little boy, he had carried a red bandana.  It helped him immensely as he made his way down from the 104th floor, grabbing shocked and frightened strangers along the way, and even carrying an injured woman on his back down 15 flights of stairs.  Welles made the ultimate sacrifice that day, helping others live as he lost his life.   
            Our opportunities to be servants aren’t typically as intense or life-threatening.  We do have daily chances to live and serve like Jesus though -- especially as athletes.  If you want to see a real-life example of servant hood -- one that you could learn from and imitate, look no further than Victory Coach Mike Laughlin.  The man lives to serve, seeking out opportunities to do so before ever being asked.  He’s the first to respond, and the last to take credit (I didn’t ask his permission to write about him -- I thought I’d just ask for forgiveness!).  He does everything without being asked, from cleaning up other team’s messes to filling the gap whenever and wherever it may be.  Mike Laughlin has a sincere servant’s heart and daily lives the “I’m Third” lifestyle:  God first, others second, I’m third.   
            2 Timothy 2:21 says, “So if anyone purifies himself from these things, he will be a special instrument, set apart, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.”  Being a servant in today’s selfish, “me first” world can certainly set you apart.  Servant hood goes against the very direction our society points us in.  Dare to be different – dare to serve . . . and to serve deep.     
               

 

 

 

 


A Christmas Message

by Shelley Small


Joy Williams - Here With Us

When Caesar Augustus demanded that a census be taken, people had to travel many miles to the towns in order to register.  Joseph left Nazareth for Bethlehem, for he belonged to the house and line of David.  He went there to register with his wife-to-be, Mary, who rode sidesaddle on a donkey for nearly 85 miles.  Bethlehem was packed, and by the time Mary and Joseph straggled in, there wasn’t a room for miles.  One innkeeper saw what shape Mary was in and offered a bit of privacy, if they could handle the other four-legged guests who would be sharing their room. 

They entered the city unnoticed.  They entered a barn without even a glance from passersby.  What was about to take place in that barn should have garnered the attention of every single person – from rulers to peasants, farmers to high-ranking government officials, but no one seemed to notice. 

Mary was in the midst of contractions and carrying out her promise to God.  Joseph was concerned, exhausted, and ready to fulfill his role, too.  Neither one of them complained about their location or their circumstances.  Jesus was coming. 

Through Mary’s excruciating contractions and labor, He did, indeed, come.  His arrival, however, seemed rather ordinary.  The following excerpt is from Ken Gire’s book, Moments With the Savior: 

And so, with barely a ripple of notice, God stepped into the warm lake of humanity.  Without protocol

and without pretension.  Where you would have expected angels, there were only flies.  Where you

 would have expected heads of state, there were only donkeys, a few haltered cows, a nervous ball

of sheep, a tethered camel, and a furtive scurry of curious barn mice. 

Not much fanfare for the King of Kings.  A handful of shepherds got the newsflash, as did three foreigners who managed to look up and follow an unusually brilliant star. 

In 2007, we have enough fanfare to cover all that went unnoticed in Bethlehem that silent night.  Ours is one wrapped in commercialism and all that is quite the opposite of the celebration of Jesus’ birth.  Here is a prayer that might help us all to reconnect with the one true meaning of Christmas:

    Dear Jesus,

Though there was no room for you in the inn, grant this day that I might make abundant room for

you in my heart.  Though your own did not receive you, grant this hour that I may embrace you with

open arms.  Though Bethlehem overlooked you in the shuffle of the census, grant me the grace, this

quiet moment, to be still and know that you are God.  You, whose only palace was a stable, whose only

throne was a feeding trough, whose only robes were swaddling clothes.

On my knees I confess that I am too conditioned to this world’s pomp and pageantry to recognize God

cooing in a manger. Forgive me.  Please. And help me understand at least some of what your birth has

 to teach – that divine power is not mediated through strength, but through weakness; that true greatness

is not achieved through the assertion of rights, but through their release; and that even the most secular

of things can be sacred when you are in their midst. And for those times when you yearn for my fellowship

and stand at the door and knock, grant me a special sensitivity to the sound of that knock so I may be quick

to my feet.  Keep me from letting you stand out in the cold or from ever sending you away to some stable. 

May my heart always be warm and inviting, so that when you do knock, a worthy place will always be waiting . . .

(Ken Gire’s Moments With the Savior)

 

Merry Christmas, Victory Family. 

 

 

 


PEAK PERFORMANCE 7:

"Center Stage"

by Shelley Small


 

In high school, I was asked on more than one occasion to list the top priorities in my life.  Like a good kid, I knew exactly what to write.  God, family, friends, school, sports – I wasn’t exactly sure what all that looked like, but I knew my list was “correct.”  I found out my senior year that while God was at the top of my list, He wasn’t really at the top of my game. 

If I’d been a little wiser and more spiritually mature, I would’ve been able to see that I used God when it was convenient, rather than putting Him in the center of each area in my life. 

I was all about sports in high school.  “What’s your favorite sport?” people would ask.  “What season is it?”  I would answer.  I lived and breathed working out and competing – especially in volleyball.  My high school has always had a strong volleyball program, and my senior year was the strongest it had ever been.  We had the chance of a lifetime to make it to the state tournament in Austin that year, and we were more than confident that we’d do it.  I couldn’t imagine anyone working any harder than we did to achieve success.  Our practices would begin each morning at 5:45, and if our coach was feeling particularly generous, she might let us go by 9:00 so we could get cleaned up for class.  She pushed us to the edges of ourselves and sometimes intimidated us, scaring us into winning.  We did experience losing a match here and there – those bus rides home were lessons in “How to Get Close to God in a Hurry,” but the “morning after” practices were enough to make us want to switch sports.  By the time the district season was over, we had built a winning momentum that we knew would take us right down I-35 to Austin.

We had a few obstacles to get past in the meantime.  The first one was a district championship playoff game with Nimitz High School.  We’d had a long-time rivalry with this team, and we couldn’t wait to face them before advancing in the playoffs.  Our practices had gotten even more intense and grueling, but it was paying off.  On the day we were to meet Nimitz, our principal called us all down to his office.  He was a loyal fan of ours, and we loved to make him happy.  We walked as a united team (with the exception of one teammate who was missing for some reason) to his office, anticipating his pre-game speech, that he’d tell us how proud he was, and that he’d promise to be in the stands that evening.  But his office was dark and had a heavy feeling to it when we walked in, his face distraught and tense.  This sure didn’t feel like the pep talk we were expecting. 

He said he had some bad news.  I remember thinking, “How bad could it be?  Just tell us and let’s move on.  We’ve got a game to win.”  After pausing and trying to choose the right words, he informed us that he and our coach had been looking through academic records that day, and they had found something that wasn’t right.  As I looked around at my teammates, I noticed that nothing was registering with any of us.  “Girls, we have found an ineligible player on the team.  We will have to forfeit all the matches she played in.”  Still attempting to make this whole scene “OK,” I desperately tried to figure out how much this girl had played.  It hit us all at the same time:  we’d been so far ahead in all of our matches, this player managed to get into every single game, if only for a point or two.  In less than thirty seconds, our season was over.  Our high school careers were finished.  The dream that the seniors had been chasing for three years was pulled right out from under us.    As an eighteen year old who had poured my entire heart and body into volleyball, this was utter devastation.  In fact, I was unable to even speak about it for the next five years. 

Why would God allow this to happen?  I was a good kid – I went to church and youth group and Young Life and Campaigners and FCA.  My priority list was right, wasn’t it?  I didn’t drink or party.  In fact, my friends would always drop me off first on Friday nights.  My morals were high, my standards were solid, and I’d only gotten in trouble once (that’s another story J).  What else did He want? 

About six years later, I figured out what He had wanted.  As I stood on a stage in Kerrville, Texas, preparing to speak to about 500 college athletes at an FCA conference, I realized that this devastating event would be a big part of my testimony.  God hadn’t wanted to be at the top of some useless priority list, only to be called upon when the score was tied in a tight match or when I thought I couldn’t run one more sprint at 6:15 in the morning.  God wanted to be in the center of EVERY SINGLE PART OF MY LIFE.  He wanted to be the foundation of my family and my friendships, the center of the choices I made on Friday nights and the only One in the stands during wins AND losses.  He wanted to be my reason for playing and not the last resort if my team was behind.  He wanted – and deserved to be – center stage in my life . . . in every single area of my life. 

Matthew 6:33 says, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”  When we really and truly put God first in everything we are and do, the blessings He will give us will be more than we could ever hope for.

 

 


PEAK PERFORMANCE 6:

"My Commitment as a Christian Athlete"

by Allie Rankin, 17 Elite


It’s my honor and privilege to step aside for this next Peak Performance and have you all see the heart and the talent of one of our own players, Allie Rankin.  Allie plays on our 17 Elite team, and as you’ll see in her devotional which follows,  she shows the true core of Victory Volleyball Club.  We’re so proud of Allie’s contributions on and off the court, and so thankful that she has allowed us to understand her passion for being a Christian athlete.  Thanks, Allie!

 My Commitment as a Christian Athlete

 "Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds."  Hebrews 10: 23-24

 

"So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.  You need

to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive

what he has promised. For in just a very little while, "He who is coming

will come and will not delay." Hebrews 10: 35-37

 

Hebrews 10: 19-38 Calls us to persevere in Christ Jesus and so we are called

to persevere as athletes in His name. We are called to have confidence and spur our teammates on.

Therefore as a Christian Athlete. I am part of the fellowship of the team.

I have Holy Spirit Power. The game has begun. I have stepped onto the court.

The decision has been made. I play for Him. I won't look back, let up, slow down,

stop pedaling, or be still!

 

I am finished and done with slow movement, heartless dreams, smooth knees, tamed passion,

silence, weakness, selfish ambition, and small aspirations.

 

I no longer need glory, fame, or popularity.  I play for the One

and His team.  I don't need to be recognized for my achievements, but

I achieve none the less.  I play for Him and for the team.  I lean on my girls,

my sisters, and prepare with prayer.

 

I am ready! I believe as I reach for the prize, knowing the goal extends

past today.  Though the road is long and  sometimes rough, we know our mission is clear.

Our heart and our dreams cannot be compromised, lured away, turned away,

or delayed.  It's GAME DAY! I will execute and not expect less than the best from them. 

I will not hesitate or ponder at the pool of self righteousness or of past mistakes.

 

I WON'T STOP! I won't give up, shut up, let up until I have passed up, set up, stayed up, prayed

up, and played up for the cause of Christ and OUR TEAM!

I am a Christian Athlete.

I play until the end, give until I drop, pass to the spot, set and never stop, and

I hit to see their jaws drop! And when they see us play, they will know us by our DESIRE, our HEART,

Our LOVE, and our WILL to WIN FOR HIM!

 

- Allie Rankin

 

 

 

 

 


PEAK PERFORMANCE 5:

"Run the Race"

by Shelley Small


No one ever sets out in a race to lose – no one intentionally sets herself up for failure.  But have you ever taken part in something where you didn’t give your COMPLETE effort?  Maybe it was a scrimmage or a practice, a local tournament or even a national qualifier – or maybe it was even a conflict with a teacher or friend.  Seeing the outcomes of those situations might make you wish you could do them over again.

You might go for that ball that dropped just outside your reach, you might warm up a little more intensely; maybe you’d put in a few more minutes of preparation for that test or speak more kindly to your friend.  If we could just see ahead to what our actions produced, I imagine we’d all do many things a whole lot differently.

God has put us in this race called “life,” not to watch us stumble and fall, but to be our coach every step of the way.  We are to “run with perseverance the race marked out before us.” That’s a mighty task, but one that God has fully equipped us to perform.

We don’t always get a second chance in life like we might in a volleyball match, so we need to approach each day as a race running in a way that shows our total effort and commitment in EVERYTHING we do.  In volleyball, we are called to play to honor God and give “all-out” effort on every ball:  TOTAL RELEASE. 

I Corinthians 9:24-27 says: 

Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize?  Run in such a way that you may win.  And everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things.  They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.  Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I buffet my body and make it my slave, lest possibly, after I have preached to others, I myself should be disqualified.

In other words, expend all your energy and all your efforts in everything you do.  Play in a way that sets you apart from others.  Your rewards on earth will be special, but your rewards in heaven will reach far beyond anything you could imagine. 

When I was at Baylor, I wrote a song to all the athletes there who were involved in FCA.  It was called “Run to Finish.” 

The race started

The minute you said “go”

The day you opened up your heart to Him

Now everybody’s watching

It’s a long, hard road ahead

But you’ve got the drive, you’ve got the desire

So run that race for Him

 

Fix your eyes on Jesus

Don’t you ever look down

Break through those barriers of sin

Jesus endured the cross

And we can endure the trials

Run the race

Run to finish

 

No one said

That it would be easy

The narrow road is the harder one, you see

The finish line

Seems almost unattainable

But He’ll give you the strength

He’ll light your way

So give it all you’ve got

 

Fix your eyes on Jesus

Don’t you ever look down

Break through those barriers of sin

Jesus endured the cross

And we can endure the trials

Run the race

Run to finish

It’s crunch-time for most of us.  We’ve all seen goals reached and some we’re still reaching for. 

We’ve got to leave everything on the court when we play, and have NO regrets. 

With a few weeks to go, let’s all play to win, honor God, and run that race with endurance and perseverance.

 


PEAK PERFORMANCE 4:

I'm a Believer

by Shelley Small


A few years ago, there was a rag-tag group of softball players who were struggling through another season of losses.  They were the first team to participate in the fast-pitch program at their 5A high school, so they were competing against more experienced, well-established teams across the area.  The majority of these players hadn’t played fast-pitch for long; in fact, some of them hadn’t even been in athletic programs at all.  Their coach was in the same boat they were:  she had been a college volleyball player and coach and had only played fast-pitch softball a few times.  The school and the community had been waiting for years to start a fast-pitch program, and the expectations to succeed were high.  Needless to say, there were many people who were less than excited to know that a former volleyball player was taking the helm as the softball coach.

While losing most of their games the first two seasons, the coach and her players learned a great deal and challenged each other to take a step forward, even in defeat.  The coach never stopped encouraging her players.  She motivated them to reach beyond their potentials, pushed them to work out in bitter cold weather when all the other outdoor teams had gone home, made them participate in weight training and work on cardiovascular endurance when they didn’t understand the point, and believed in them even when their parents and the community wouldn’t.  She assured them that they could beat ANYONE.  While that seemed a little crazy at first, the players gradually began to believe her.  They adopted the story of David and Goliath and prided themselves on being the “Davids” of the district.  They relished their role as the underdog, and by the end of that second season, they were gaining a confidence that would pick up steam and momentum through the following season.

“Expect to Win” became the motto for the third season – the senior year for many of the team members.  They didn’t just HOPE to play well or not be embarrassed; they didn’t just HOPE to come close to beating the good teams; they EXPECTED to win every single game, even if they were the less talented team.  What they lacked in talent, they made up for in hard work, positive attitudes, and unselfish character.  With the countless hours of training in the weight room, the miles around the track, the practices on the windy, cold field in the dead of winter, this team had sacrificed a great deal and were beginning to silence the line of critics who surrounded the program like a chain link fence.  More importantly, they were proving to themselves that they really were winners!

When it was all said and done, that bunch of recreational softball players worked their way from being the doormat of the district to playing in the 5A Regional Semifinals, ranked 9th in the state of Texas. 

They didn’t get there by some miracle or fluke.  They got there by believing in themselves and each other and by taking to heart the positive words of encouragement from their coach.  They became a TEAM who lived by this quote:  “A group becomes a team when each member is sure enough of herself and her contributions to praise the skills of others.” 

If you’ve ever had a bad game, or played a much stronger, more talented team, or if you’ve ever felt your team’s mistakes spiraling out of control, try the one thing that doesn’t take any skill:  ENCOURAGEMENT.  Paul encouraged the Corinthians, even when their behavior didn’t warrant it.  Jesus encouraged Noah to keep building, even when there wasn’t a cloud in the sky.  In Jeremiah 29:11, Jesus encourages us, too:  “I have good plans for you, not plans to hurt you.  I will give you hope and a good future.”  That’s the greatest encouragement we could ever receive.

Stay positive.  Encourage each other, even if you don’t feel 100%.  Be a believer – in yourself and in your teammates, no matter what the scoreboard says.

“Great thoughts coupled with intense actions produce unbelievable results.”  Just ask those softball players.

 

 

 


PEAK PERFORMANCE 3:

Winning and Losing

by Shelley Small


Our whole society revolves around winning and losing.  Elections, lotteries, Super Bowls, scholarships, games, entertainment awards, popularity contests and reality shows . . . if you win, you’re a success;  if you don’t, you’re a failure.  In volleyball, nobody ever started a match for any other reason but to win. 

However, ANY team risks failure by entering the contest in the first place.  Some athletes play it safe:  they play to NOT LOSE – to just maintain.  This philosophy makes them think that they’ll never be losers, but they do remain very average, very mediocre. Sometimes a team has to suffer a number of losses in learning what it takes to win.  If in the process of losing, they LEARN their weaknesses and learn areas that need to be strengthened, as they continue to work these areas each week, they will improve and not stay “average.”  The characteristic of a winning team is this:  a group of players who are willing to lose everything, playing with reckless abandon – with all they have – to lose themselves that their team might win.  Nobody can perform like that and still remain average. 

God does not want us to do anything in a “lukewarm” or average manner, including the way in which we compete.  In Colossians 3:23, we are called to “work at it with all your heart, as for the Lord and not for men.”  In other words:  Play to WIN.  Don’t play to NOT LOSE.  The skills will come.  The offense will click, and the defense will soon work like it’s designed to, but in the meantime, play unselfishly and don’t be satisfied with being average. 

“What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things.  I consider them rubbish that I may gain Christ.”  Philippians 3:7-8

 In reality, there is definitely a great deal more at stake than just winning a match, but while we’re here let’s be the kinds of athletes that exemplify how God wants us to compete in life. 


Peak Performance 2:

Live Out Loud

by Shelley Small


There’s a catchy song that Steven Curtis Chapman wrote a few years ago called, “Live Out Loud.”  It’s one of those fist-pumping, acoustic guitar-driven tunes that you can’t shake out of your skull.  Being a musician, I often “listen past” the lyrics to the instrumental parts of songs, but these words caught my attention.

We live in a loud society, turning up the volume on dials all around us to drown out the noise of something else.  We can’t pull up to a stoplight without feeling the pulsating bass of the stranger’s stereo in the car next to us.  Television advertisers make sure that their commercials will be several decibels louder than the regular program that’s being watched at the time.  Ipods and cell phones are permanently attached to people’s ears.  It’s noisy around here! 

 What if we actually tried to LIVE out loud?  What if our actions spoke louder than our words?  The Bible tells us that listening and doing are two actions that go hand in hand.  James 1:22 says, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves.  Do what it says.”  James goes on to say, “. . . faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead,” and “. . . a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.”

 You have an incredible platform on which to “live out loud.” Being an athlete allows you countless opportunities to show your true colors through your actions and your words.  If you pray in your huddles before a match but taunt the other team when you put a ball away, the consequence of your actions has taken a distant second to your own glorification.  If you listen to your coaches during Cross Training, only to give 50% of your effort in practice, your actions ARE speaking loudly – but what message is being sent?  If you’re not out on the court during a match and you think you should be, do you pout at the end of the bench or continue encouraging your teammates?  To really find out how you “live out loud,” examine the way that you react in a heated or uncomfortable situation.

There is an old song that says, “You’re the only Jesus some will ever see.”  I don’t know about you, but that’s a pretty humbling thought to me.  We only get one chance for a first impression.  An official may only call one Victory match all season.  What impression would you like to leave on her or him?  Another person’s impression of a Victory team or coach or parent should be a positive one that stays with him or her for a long time.  James Kent said: “Nothing is so potent as the silent influence of a good example.”  Our “silent influences” should speak VOLUMES about our Christian walks.

Like the Steven Curtis Chapman song says:

“Wake the neighbors – Get the word out

Come on – Crank up the music, climb a mountain and shout

This is the life we’ve been given – Made to be lived out

So LIVE OUT LOUD!”

Live to Win!

Shelley Small 



Peak Performance 1:

“Dare to Be Different”

by Shelley Small

December 27, 2006


It’s almost time.  After a short Christmas break, it will soon be time to take the court in a Victory uniform.  What does that mean?  What’s the big deal?  The big deal is this:  when you signed on as a Victory player, you signed on to be “different.”  You committed to play volleyball this season with a cross on your back.

Each one of you is part of the Victory program for a reason.  You may have no idea what that reason is right now – you may be here to improve and play at a higher level for your high school team or to go on to play college ball, or maybe just to enjoy the sport of volleyball while developing some friendships along the way.  For whatever reasons you are here, you’ve got some responsibilities to keep in the front of your mind.   

If you didn’t know it at tryouts, you surely know it now:  Victory dares to be different than any other clubs in the country.  It is our prayer as a staff that you dare to be different each and every time you step on the court and that you keep in mind that the cross on your uniform gives you special opportunities to be an example and a witness to those who you compete against. 

To set yourself apart from players on other clubs, remember that you are to be a light – an example – to everyone in the gym.  Players and coaches alike will have their eyes on you and your reactions to all kinds of situations on and off the court.  Don’t look at this as added pressure that you should feel.  It’s a unique and special opportunity that will make other coaches and players say, “What’s that team all about?  What makes them different?”  Things won’t always go your way during matches, but your reactions to adversities of all kinds will go a long way in being an example to others.  If an official makes a bad call and you react in disgust or anger, what makes you any different from any other player in that gym?  If an opposing player taunts you after putting a ball away, how will you react?  If you don’t get to play as much as you think you should, how could you make a positive difference and add something to your team? 

II Corinthians 5:20 tells us to be “ambassadors for Christ.”  That’s what we are here at Victory.  We can’t be ambassadors unless we are always conscious of Who we are playing for and how we should react to various situations.  God has blessed you with a great deal of talent.  As we get ready to kick off our season, it’s time to focus on how best to use it to glorify Him.  Be a spark on your team – be the constant encourager who never gives up.  Remember:  there will be people in every gym who will have their eyes on you, so dare to be different.

Live to Win!

Shelley Small