Rivalry Week

For those that don't know, I'm a huge fan of college sports. In particular, a huge fan of college sports in the form of the Clemson Tigers. There's a purity in the competition at the collegiate level that the professional sports just don't have. This past weekend was labeled as rivalry week in college football, and my beloved Tigers came out on top in their game against the South Carolina Gamecocks. What else would you expect when a chicken tangles with a tiger? Yet after all the emotion and bickering between the fans, I have to ask the question, "does it really even matter?". I mean, here I am 3 days after the 'big win', and life continues on about the same as at it did last week at this time. I'm not any richer, wiser, or slimmer! Too many people live and die with the wins and losses of their favorite team. Believe me, I've "been there and done that." I like to win as much as anybody! But here are a few things to remember in our Sports saturated culture:

1)It is a game! Most of us are only spectators. Remember that the next time you refer to a win or a loss in the first person. "We" didn't win! "We" watched!

2)Sports are great for developing people and disciplines. Try to take the life lessons that can be learned from them. Don't allow them to lessen life!

3)Enjoy it when you come out on the winning side, realizing that will not always be the case. If you can't handle success, you probably won't have much of it!

Hey remember, if your team comes out on the losing end, it's not the end of the world. There's a great God who will determine that. There's a lot more to life than a ballgame. It's taken me about 43 years to really get a handle on that, and I hope you can arrive at that place a little earlier than I did. It really helps remove that bitter taste of Rivalry Week.