The Glory Days of High School Sports

“All human work which does not begin and end in the Lord Jesus must be a non-success.” C.H. Spurgeon

My dad coached me in every sport and every year since I began playing organized sports. Yet, after my sophomore year when he led my High School team, which he had built and coached since I was in 8th grade, to the championship and lost, my heart grew arrogant towards him as a father and a coach. Both my 8th and 9th grade years we had won the state championship (Junior Varsity). My sophomore year was the first year playing on the Varsity team and we ended the season at 23-4. We dominated teams! As the starting point guard, I thought I was the "man"! Yet, in the state finals we got outplayed and out-coached – and I was furious. I led the team in scoring throughout the playoffs and was our leading scorer in the championship game. Obviously the loss was not my fault, but the coach’s! Well, at least that's what I thought!

This led to a very horrible off-season that ended with my dad's resignation as head coach. Thus, I played under a different coach for the first time in my life that year and realized, “It wasn’t the coach…it was my own pride that lost the game.” After my junior year, which ended the same as the previous year (losing in the state finals), I sat down with my dad and sought forgiveness for my pride and actions. I told him that I would play for nobody but him. After accepting my apology and forgiving me he asked me a question that has forever stuck in my head. He didn’t point fingers and tell me off, he didn't say, "I told you so." He simply said, “Ryan, you have to ask yourself this question…are you humble enough to ________? Ryan, are you humble enough to win a championship?” Right then and there I knew that question was going to define my life. Every endeavor in my life I knew I was going to ask myself the question, “Am I humble enough to ________?”

So, my senior year I switched teams and played for a private school with my dad as the head coach. We dominated again that year going 19-5 and even beat the #1 team in the state (we were the only team to do it). Yet, throughout the season, that question was on my mind. I definitely had arrogant moments/games, but the question was always there. We made it to the state finals again…we played a team we had never beaten. We outplayed them in the first half. We were tied at the end of the 3rd quarter. We fell apart in the 4th and lost the game…but here’s the God part.

With about 90 seconds left in the game, down by 15, I got fouled and went to the line to shoot 2 free-throws. I looked over at our bench and saw the 5 guys who had barely played all season and would probably never play in a championship game like this again. Here I was, a seasoned high school player with an amazing high school career that I was blessed to have. I asked myself in that moment, “Am I humble enough to win or LOSE a championship?”

My teammate approached me before the free-throws, “Are you going to miss the second free-throw on purpose?” I turned to my dad and yelled, “Put all 5 guys in the game…I’m making both free-throws!” I did, he did, and we lost the game. It was the hardest moment in my high school athletic career. My last game. My last chance. The way people would remember me going out...yet, my dad’s question had wrecked my heart…I had learned to be humble in my athletic experiences.

Here’s the point: in our lives, in our interactions, in our pursuit of living for God, we MUST ask ourselves the question, “Am I humble enough to ______?” When that question dominates our thoughts and hearts, it doesn’t matter our success or failure. What matters is if our heart is correctly postured towards God in a humble way. “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Are you humble enough?

Better than I deserve,

Ryan Lambros