Do The Stands Always Know More Than The Field

Earlier this year I attended a football game at the University of Louisiana at Monroe with my good friend Dennis Wills. With funnel cake in hand and the rain pouring the stage was set for a great college football game. However it didn't take long for me to realize that the best referees, the best coaches, and the best players were apparently in the stands not on the field. I found it very entertaining to listen to a bunch of guys that were sitting in the stands talk about how bad the coaches, players, and refs were. Of course this was coming from a bunch of guys who looked like they couldn't jog ten yards without an oxygen mask attached to their face.


It amazes me how many people sit on the sidelines of life and constantly complain about those that are willing to step onto the playing field of life. You must realize that there is no risk involved in sitting on the sideline. There is no chance of failure, ridicule, disappointment, or embarrassment by sitting in the stands. However the opposite is true for those that are willing to step onto the field. They constantly expose themselves to the possibility of failure, to the ridicule of others, and to the disappointment of expectations. Anybody can sit in the stands and complain, but it takes special people that are willing to step onto the field and make a difference in the situation.


We see this play out in so many areas of life. People complain about the government, but then they never vote. They complain about the crime in their neighborhood, but they never join the neighborhood watch. They complain about kids that are always in trouble, but they never take the time to be a mentor to one. They complain about the less fortunate being neglected, but they never volunteer at a local shelter. They complain about Christian principles being abandoned by the majority, but they never give any time of their life to help change the tide.


So today I want to congratulate those that have stepped onto the playing field of life and are endeavoring to make a difference in the world in which you live. So the claryism for today is to get out of the stands and get onto the field and help change the world in which you live.



david