One of my best friends is Sue, who coaches at Florida State University. We talk all the time and share our faith, so as you can imagine, she has listened and read a lot of Jim's stuff with me. When this book came out, I made sure that she had a copy. After several weeks, I asked her how she liked it. Her reply was simple - "I can't get past the first page". That sounded kinda strange, but she continued, "Make them virtuous and happy, easy in themselves, and useful to others. That's what I want ." Isn't that what we all want? Trust me, this book will help make that happen. As Jim says, not to get us in to heaven, but to get heaven into us. If allowed, the Holy Spirit will transform our character. This is a book that is truly a curriculum for Christlikeness. I will simply try and relate it to the athletic world. I encourage you to find a friend and go through this with him/her or to blog with other coaches who visit this site. Together, we can be agents of change in the athletic world.

1. Ben operated in the business world and had adopted a set of ideas about what success and happiness are that were all wrong. Do you know or observe any coaches who obey a false narrative about what constitutes a good and happy life?
2. Reread pages 20-21 where Jim lists multiple false narratives about acquiring happiness, e.g., sex, money, and power. In sports, there are numerous false narratives, the biggest of which is winning is the only thing that matters. What are others that you have believed in your career as a player and or coach?
3. In Jim's 6 steps of ruin, #3 is idolatry..."idols do not have to be little images; they can be anything we invest our lives in. The idol serves us by giving us our desires, and we serve it by sacrificing our life energy to it". Ouch! does this remind anyone of our coaching jobs?
4. One of my coffee table books is Bill Bradley's "Values of the Game". It's got a basketball on the cover, and it is an awesome book about virtues of sport. Sin is always ugly. Virtue is always beautiful. So it makes sense that a virtuous person is a light to all. What does a virtuous coach look like? Can you see yourself as being described in this way?
5. I took Jim to meet Coach Wooden, so reading about his trip there was especially fun to me. Dallas Willard and his wife Jane, and Jim's son and brother came on this trip, too. John, Dallas, and Jim are living examples of people who have built their lives around Jesus' teachings. They have all committed to doing the things Jesus commanded, not as LAWS or RULES, but as a new way of life. Read anything you can get your hand on that is written by these 3 people. When we obey His teachings, we begin to look like these 3 men. And we can coach with these principles. Do you truly believe that it can be done in the coaching arena?
6. On page 31 Jim states we should not ask," what will I have to give up to follow Jesus? But rather, what will I never get to experience if I choose not to follow Jesus?" If we choose to pursue winning, and only winning, what we will be giving up?
7. When you write the letter to God, make the following change: "Dear God, the life I want most for myself is to coach as you would coach. For me, this will look like.......

I bet things are getting started for you with a new academic year. Remember, pickling is a slow process! This week, I wish you to be "virtuous and happy, easy in yourself, and useful to others."

Keeping the Faith,

Jane