God's Coaching #75

God's Coaching #75

Women’s figure skating has always been a beautiful, elegant sport. But in the weeks leading up to the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway, it got ugly. Really ugly. Two days before the US National Championships in Detroit, Michigan, skater Nancy Kerrigan was attacked backstage by a man with a metal baton. The attacker clubbed Nancy’s right leg, forcing her to miss the competition, which her rival, Tonya Harding, won.

The next month Tonya’s ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly, and several other men pled guilty for their roles in the attack. On March 16, 1994, Tonya pled guilty to a felony charge of conspiracy, although she denied having full knowledge of the attack before it occurred. Both Nancy and Tonya competed in the Lillehammer Olympics. Nancy overcame her injury to win the silver medal, while Tonya finished eighth. That March, to avoid jail time, Tonya agreed to a plea bargain. Later that summer, the US Figure Skating Association stripped Tonya of her 1994 national title and banned her for life for failing to comply with “the concept of sportsmanship and fair play.”

What’s the Score?

Regardless of how involved she was in the attack, Tonya failed to conform to certain laws—both moral and civil. Sadly, this is a problem for all humans. Each of us has failed to conform to God’s laws. This problem is called sin. A true understanding of sin is extremely important for all Christians. If we don’t understand sin and how it affects us, we won’t understand how desperately we need a savior.

The Bible says sin entered the world through Adam and Eve’s disobedience in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3). Every human has inherited a sin nature from Adam (Romans 5:12). We all fall short of God’s perfect standard (Romans 3:23). Sin affects us completely. We sin in actions, words, thoughts, and desires. What’s worse, sin separates us from God because he is holy. But in an act of amazing grace, God sent his own Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the penalty for our sins by dying on the cross. God will declare guilty and eternally punish all those who do not put their faith in Jesus. But for all who do, God will forgive their sins forever!

On the Ball

Some sins are obvious—like hitting an opponent with a baton. Other times our mistakes are harder to see or understand. Ask God to help you be aware of even your little sins. Pray for him to forgive all the bad things you do.

Coach’s Comment

When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned. Romans 5:12