The Outside Reflecting The Inside

The Outside Reflecting the Inside

I know all the things you do. I have seen your love, your faith, your service, and your patient endurance. And I can see your constant improvement in all these things. Revelation 2:19

When I took over the Indianapolis Colts, I came preaching a manner of football that was slightly different from what they had played before. In the past, they had Peyton Manning, an extremely talented, young, aggressive quarterback and an attacking defense. Both were positive aspects of the team, but I wanted us to play differently.

On offense, I wanted us to focus on taking care of the ball—no turnovers. That meant, at times, that we needed Peyton to be less aggressive, not to take unnecessary chances. There were times we were better off settling for a field goal if it meant we weren’t taking the chance of throwing an interception.

Similarly, on defense, our scheme was predicated on taking care of each person’s responsibility, sometimes by “staying at home.” That is, not every guy was to immediately run to the ball, including some positions that were used to doing only that. The scheme required self-discipline and trust in the plan and each other.

Our guys said the right things during that first year, and we made the playoffs, but in a 41–0 playoff loss, it was clear their words didn’t truly indicate their hearts—their actions didn’t mirror their words.

It’s not that they didn’t mean well or weren’t being truthful, but rather, in their core, their beliefs didn’t quite match up, so in crucial situations they would revert back to old habits. Over the next seasons, we kept working until they believed and their words matched their actions.

Ultimately, our actions really do indicate the state of our hearts as well as the extent of our faith in the living God. If we truly believe that we are seeking God and His will for our lives, that should be reflected in how we conduct ourselves on a daily basis.

Uncommon Key > The state of our faith in Christ will be reflected in the extent of the Christlike quality of our thoughts, words, and deeds. Be sure the outside matches the inside today.