Be Prepared

The more we know about what we are doing, the more we can usually get people to listen.

I found that especially true in coaching. Players would listen because of the respect they needed to show initially to us as coaches. However, when it became apparent to a player that a coach didn’t really know what he was talking about, the player tuned him out.

I always appreciated Coach Noll’s approach. He wanted all of us on the Steelers staff to be sure that we understood what we were teaching the players. We were teachers first, and our goal was to prepare our players for as many situations as possible—to be able to think and be prepared for whatever might happen.

The same is true when God tells us to go out and speak about Him. He wants us to be ready when someone asks us why we believe what we believe. Why we accepted Jesus Christ into our lives. Why we follow Christ and try to live—hopefully it shows—as He wants us to live.

So be prepared. Any moment could be a time when He works through you to change a life for all eternity.

His Promises

If someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it. But do this in a gentle and respectful way. . . . Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ.

The LORD replied, “Don’t say, ‘I’m too young,’ for you must go wherever I send you and say whatever I tell you. And don’t be afraid of the people, for I will be with you and will protect you.”

You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.