It was also a welcome word when Paul, writing to the Romans, made a point of honoring and applauding the work and service of a woman who was a fellow-servant of Christ—Phoebe. He said:

I commend to you Phoebe our sister, who is a servant of the church in Cenchrea, that you may receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints, and assist her in whatever business she has need of you; for indeed she has been a helper of many and of myself also. (Romans 16:1-2)

Not only does he commend her, however, Paul challenged the church at Rome to receive her with honor and assist her in her service of Christ. Paul’s appreciation of Phoebe, whose name means “radiant,” was not only as a sister in Christ, but because of her apparently tireless work in being a help to others—including himself. We could learn from Paul’s example, for we would do well to take note of those women of Christ who give of themselves in service to Christ and others, and celebrate their marvelous contributions to kingdom work.

Bill Crowder, Sport Spectrum Chaplain

In many lines of work, extra effort is the key to success. Going further than what is demanded, giving that “old college try,” going above and beyond the call of duty—all are expressions of the kind of extra effort that is often necessary if we are going to get to where we want to go. But it is not true of getting to heaven. No amount of extra effort, human ingenuity, or religious activity can pave the way to relationship with God. Trying harder is not the answer. Doing more is not the answer. Being more religious is not the answer. The answer is not in anything we can do—it is completely about embracing what Christ has done. That is why Paul wrote:

For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Relationship with God and the way to heaven are not attainable by human activity—no matter how much extra effort we try to apply to the situation. Jesus did what He did because what we can do could never be enough. It is a matter of God’s free gift of forgiveness and eternity—and a gift is not the product of our effort, it is the result of Christ’s effort on our behalf. The question is not, what more must I achieve. It is simply, will I believe. Will you?

Bill Crowder, Sport Spectrum Chaplain

In life, however, love is far from nothing. In fact, you could build a case that, in some ways, love is everything! In the 1960s, The Beatles sang, “All You Need Is Love,” and Jackie DeShannon sang “What the World Needs Now Is Love.” Not much has changed. Still today, the overwhelming theme of popular music and the overwhelming desire of people’s hearts is to know true, lasting, meaningful love. This passion resonates with the teaching of the Bible. In a chapter devoted to the beauty of love, the apostle Paul wrote, “But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love”

(1 Corinthians 13:13). And of all the expressions of love ever displayed on this planet, none could ever surpass God’s love-gift to us—His own Son. In the most familiar verse in the Bible we read:

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

To know how desperately we need love, and to know that God has loved us with an enduring, forgiving, everlasting love is a wonderful thing. If you want to know more, click on the image below for a free download of the booklet “How Has God Loved Us?” (Q0102). It might be the most important read you ever make. And join us tomorrow on Sports Spectrum radio as we take a look at more real issues of life and sports.

Bill Crowder, Sport Spectrum Chaplain

My all-time favorite quote says, “The dream that all men should live as brothers is held by men who have no brothers.” It is a tongue-in-cheek assessment of sibling rivalries—and I am sure that applies to sisters as well as brothers. Sibling rivalry was ratcheted up to a higher level last Saturday at the ladies finals of the Wimbledon tennis tournament. Venus and Serena Williams met for the title, and they put on a terrific show. How intense is this sibling rivalry? Coming into Saturday’s match, Venus and Serena were 10-10 all time against each other—dead even. Listening to their press conferences after the match, however, I felt that you could clearly see that Venus and Serena (who won) were much more siblings than rivals. They spoke of each other with affection and respect, and that was a refreshing thing to see.

Not all sibling rivalries are so healthy, however. The very first siblings—Cain and Abel (first sons of Adam and Eve)—were also rivals, or, at least, Cain was. In Genesis 4, these two siblings both offered sacrifices to God. Abel’s offering was accepted and Cain’s was not (because, according to Hebrews 11, Abel offered his sacrifice by faith). Cain’s response was to murder his brother and then lie about it when confronted by God. When challenged by God about Abel’s whereabouts, Cain responded with those now-famous words, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Genesis 4:9) The fact is that, yes, we are our “brother’s keeper”—and not just for our siblings. We are challenged by the Bible to put self in the second place and seek the welfare of others (Philippians 2:1-4), and that commitment to selflessness is part of what makes life worth living. Mutual respect and love for others can mark our lives out as distinctive in a world relentlessly focused on self. And that can dramatically alter all of our relationships—including our sibling rivalries.

Bill Crowder, Sport Spectrum Chaplain