30 August 2021, Adapted from John C Maxwell, Daily Inspiration for Leaders.
Scripture: Luke 10:1
Message:
Its not difficult to see the importance of having well-trained capable reserve players who sit on the bench in sports.
In rugby sevens it is the team with a strong 12-man squad that has the most chance of winning an HSBC 7’s title and a World Title at the end of a long season.
That is because, if their speedster or play-maker is injured, or their frontrow power runners are out of steam and have to be rotated off, another speedster, another playmaker, and another power forward are sitting on the bench ready to.
This can be said for the positions in netball, touch rugby, tag and many other team sports.
In major league baseball the teams who win championships do so because they have more than just a good pitching rotation and solid fielding. They possess a bench and a bullpen with strong players who can substitute or pitch hit.
In NBA players and fans have long recognised the impact of the bench by talking about the all-important sixth man, the person who makes a significant contribution to the team’s success yet isn’t one of the five starters on the basketball court. And football coaches express the need to have two skilled quarterbacks on their rosters.
A great starter alone is simply not enough if a team wants to go to the highest level.
Any team that wants to excel must have good substitutes as well as starters. That’s true in any field, not just sports.
You may be able to do some wonderful things with a handful of people, but if you do want your team to do well over the long haul, you’ve got to build your bench.
A great team with no bench eventually collapses.
Prayer: Lord we ask you to surround us with the spirit of teamwork today. We pray that as we lead teams at home, in the church, village and workplace, we learn to appreciate and value all team players for the special skills, knowledge and experience you have blessed them with. In Jesus name, Amen.
