Attitude Determines Altitude

 

Legendary college basketball coach John Wooden is quoted as having said, "Things work out the best for those that make the best of the way things work out." I have always admired the no nonsense, keep it basic coach that Wooden was, his accomplishments speak for themselves, but his work ethic and philosophies on life are more of what intrigue me about Coach Wooden. For me this quote sums up John Wooden's attitude towards adversity, setbacks, and even defeat. You can either look at a flat tire and sit there thinking I'm stuck, or you can open the trunk, get out the tools and the spare and start fixing your flat. By the way, how we perceive adversity is an underscoring theme of Flat Tire Ministries, in case you haven't figured that out by now. The title of today's FTM thought for the week is "Attitude Determines Altitude”, for me "making the best of the way things work out" has so much to do with our attitude, which in turn has so much to do with how we succeed in life.

 

Find me someone that takes a setback and wallows in it and I will most likely show you a person with a negative attitude. "Half empty glass" folks just can't seem to look at the glass and see the remaining liquid as the focal point of their mindset. A common theme in the lives of those who take on a negative outlook on life's circumstances is that they tend to underachieve and ultimately do not advance up the ladder of success in whatever areas of life they pursue. I challenge you to find me a successful entrepreneur who saw failure as final, I believe you will struggle with that search. Hence the title today, our attitude and outlook on life's situations and circumstances is a huge determining factor in how successful and fulfilled our lives will be. 

 

When we take on a positive mindset there is a chain of mental triggers that are invoked inside our minds. Paul, the author of the Book of Romans, explains it in this manner, "... we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;  perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us." Romans 5:3-5. Maintaining a positive attitude in the face of loss or failure may appear futile or even toxic to some, yet the positive attitude isn't related to the negative experience that is taking place, but it is all about the hope that God has instilled in us that tells us whatever happens to us, can never be as big as the One who is living in us! (I John 4:4). When I think about the pessimistic view of the half empty glass mentality, I really struggle understanding how it could appear half empty. I can't see empty, if I was handed a glass with nothing in it at all, I would be thinking "okay I've got a glass now let’s go find something to put in it." I just can't focus on the hardship or struggle, and I believe those who rise and overcome are the very ones who don't allow a defeat to define them as a person. 

 

There is a song from the late 1990's by a band named Chumbawamba that over and over again declares, "I get knocked down, but I get up again, you are never going to keep me down", which embodies the theme of today's Flat Tire Thought. I may get knocked down, but I'll get up again paraphrases our title today, regardless of how many times I get knocked down, I am not going to allow it to keep me down. My attitude is going to assist me in my altitude in life. When I climb a mountain, I may slip and I may even tumble back down, but I won't allow that to determine whether I ascend the mountain or not. My mindset is that the knowledge I gained through my tumbling down the hill experience will now assist me when I get to that spot in the mountain as I resume my ascent. "And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up." Galatians 6:9.

 

As I reflect on Coach Wooden's words of wisdom, I am convinced that his attitude was a major determining factor in the altitude to which he propelled the UCLA Bruins basketball program. The list of accolades includes four perfect 30-0 seasons, and 88 game winning streak, 38 straight NCAA tournament victories, and ten national championships, with seven of those ten being consecutively. The item that isn't often discussed is that John Wooden coached thirteen seasons at UCLA before they even made it to the NCAA Tournament. That year and the next two his teams lost their first-round game. Throughout those first sixteen seasons I feel certain that Coach John Wooden lived by the sentiment of his quote I shared today. Most certainly things worked out the best as Coach Wooden made the best out of what life handed him and his teams. 

 

Keep your head up, keep pushing ahead, and by all means keep your attitude at a high altitude!

Coach Carter

 

 

Graduation Message

Teacher, Coach, as I have stated numerous times throughout my teaching and coaching career, those two nouns are interchangeable. If you are a good teacher then you probably spend a great deal of time coaching your students to not give up when things are tough and to always do their best. Transversely, if you have experienced a great deal of success as a coach, you undoubtable have spent a great deal of time teaching the X's and O's of the game, the intricacies of a technique, the plays that seem to always work, and then exhuming a tremendous amount of time and effort into practicing those learned skills to perfection. I just don't see how one of these positions can be mentioned without the other. So, with that being said, I'd like to share a message with graduating seniors of the class of 2024. 

 

Graduation Day is upon us across these United States of America and with that said I'd like to offer a resounding "Congratulations" to each graduate in America and beyond! Sticking with the teacher/coach analogy, those graduating this spring have been in practice mode for the past seventeen or eighteen years. You have had a plethora of "coaches" throughout your formal education ranging from parents, to teachers, to mentors, and for those that entered the playing fields of sports a vast number of literal coaches. During my tenure in the classroom and on the athletic fields of the sports I coached, I gave credence to a phrase that hopefully inspired at least a small percentage of those I taught/coached. "Never give up, never quit, and always do your best", was my challenge as we practiced and trained. That challenge invokes a great deal of personal sacrifice, you have to be able to endure hardship, obstacles, even brick walls that stand in your way without ever giving up. Paul summed it up like this, "I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified." I Corinthians 9:27. Now your "practice" in the classroom is coming to an end and it is time to take your practice to the next stage of your life's journey. 

 

I often refer to post-secondary plans in my conversations with students, which in the athletic realm would be comparable to the athlete's game plan. Some students will choose to attend a four-year university directly out of high school, while others may make the choice to attend a community or technical college. Others will make the decision to join the military ranks and serve our country which is an honorable decision for sure. For some, the training and certifications gained during the practice stage of their education will provide them an opportunity to move directly into the workforce. Regardless of the path your journey takes you on next, I would like to impart a set of challenges to you. This trio of life challenges won't guarantee you success, but they will most certainly give you a better opportunity to succeed. 

 

1. Be a life-long learner. Always maintain a thirst for knowledge. Just as a professional athlete must continue honing his or her skill set, pursuing advanced certifications and degrees will keep you at peak level on the game field. Read, study, and obtain knowledge every day. "Listen, my son, accept what I say, and the years of your life will be many. I instruct you in the way of wisdom and lead you along straight paths. When you walk, your steps will not be hampered; when you run, you will not stumble. Hold on to instruction, do not let it go; guard it well, for it is your life." Proverbs 4:10-13. Your unquenchable thirst for knowledge will open doors of opportunity and provide you with a better understanding of the world and of who you were purposed to be. 

 

2. Determine how you will make this world a better place. An athlete's contribution to the success of the team requires placing others before self. One of the best athlete's I have had an opportunity to be associated with, would run off the court after a game and ask his grandfather, "How many assists did I have tonight?" It wasn't about how many points he scored individually, but it was all about how many other people he could assist in scoring points themselves. And as I stated, he was most likely one of the best athletes I have had the privilege to watch grow up. "Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others." Philippians 2:4. Regardless of the degree you earn or the career field you choose, you will have a choice to make. You will choose to help others or to help yourself. Acts 20:35 tells us, "In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said “It is more blessed to give than to receive." Gandhi had it right, "Be the change you want to see".

 

3. "Never give up. Never quit. And always do your best!" As a coach that has always been my mantra, we didn't always win, but we were never going to give up in trying to win. Failure is not an option. Giving up is giving in which is what this world will tell you to do. Don't listen to the world and don't allow your head to tell your heart what to do. Don't quit, the stories of men and women who have been on the brink of quitting, but persevered and reached success are countless. And, when you show up to the game or clock in for the job, always give your best! Someone is watching you and they will rise or fall to your level of performance. You are a leader, lead them up! "Whatever work you do, do it with all your heart. Do it for the Lord and not for men. " Colossians 3:23.

 

As the pomp and circumstance of graduation concludes, I encourage you to not look at this as an end. This is just a chapter of the book of your life, and as you turn that page the paper is blank. Write the story you want to write and don't allow anyone to write it for you! Let the journey begin! 

Coach Carter

 

 

 

Consistently Constant

 "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." Hebrews 13:8. If you sit back and reflect on it for a moment there really isn't much in life that we can label consistent. The labor market fluctuates and the pay for the jobs that are available scale from mediocre to unreal. The cost of living keeps going up with utilities, groceries, and gas prices giving the appearance of a rocket ship blasting off to outer space. Relationships ebb and flow with the divorce rate ever inching up, while the measure of right and wrong becomes increasingly blurred in our society. If anything could be said to be consistent in our world today, it would have to be that inconsistency is the only constant we have. 

 

Where consistency provides comfort and peace, inconsistency creates uncertainty and anxiety as we strive to map out our days. For those who are "planners" nothing rocks the boat more than unexpected events impacting our best mapped out plans. On the other hand, those that roll with the flow as life presents itself, may find it challenging to see the bigger picture of finding God's purpose for their lives in an inconsistent world. Not having a vision and a plan to reach that vision has the potential to keep you sitting in a spot and never moving forward. 

Today's verse reminds us that in a world filled with inconsistency, there is one thing that remains constantly consistent, Jesus Christ. Regardless of the rising waves of uncertainty that rock our tiny boat when a storm hits, we can rest assured that the same God who spoke this world into existence, is the same God who will steady our course and see us through the storms of life. Coupled with that knowledge we can also find comfort and peace knowing that His promises are true forevermore. If you are weary, downtrodden, or oppressed know that God is with you, He always has been, and He will be each day of your life's journey. 

 

When I think about the image that the author of the Book of Hebrews wanted us to retain from the declaration that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever it is one of consistency. No doubts, no uncertainty, but 100% faith that God is with us always and if He is with us who could ever be against us that we should ever feel alone? (Romans 8:31). The visual image that comes to my mind is that of the rising and setting sun. If there is one thing that we could say is a constant, it would have to be the sun. We rise each day at sunrise, we set our calendars based on the earth's position in relationship to our planet, and we go about each day working from sun up to sundown. Even when storms take over the sky and we can't see the sun, we have the comfort and assurance of knowing that behind the storm clouds the sun is prepared to shine through. God's "Son"shine is always with us, yesterday, today, and forever! 

Coach Carter

Shining Through

Funny how inspirations for the Flat Tire Ministry thoughts just seem to pop into my head right out of the clear, blue sky. Today's FTM literally came to me yesterday as I was driving home after a spring shower ended. The sky was not clear nor was it blue, but the inspiration definitely was provided by looking off to the horizon and the gray cloud cover that existed. As today's title suggests, as I peered off towards the cloud covered sky, a small break in a section of the clouds opened up and in that particular area the sun burst through with a shimmer of sunlight. As the clouds dissipated, more and more glimpses of the hidden sunlight appeared through the dense cloud cover. It was a beautiful site to witness. The bright light shining through the dark rain clouds provided me with a comforting reminder that God is with us in our adversities and afflictions, whether we can see Him or not is irrelevant, God is there and if we keep our eyes and our hearts open we will eventually witness His light of love and hope shining through the darkness of our situation.

Dark skies, dark clouds, or dark times are all inevitable. We have become conditioned to a basic understanding that if the skies become dark, more than likely rain, wind, lightning and thunder are on the way. When the storms hit we also are conditioned to find cover or stay inside until the weather subsides. Recently, a friend's family members who live in Oklahoma had to deal with the possibility of the storm clouds turning into a devastating tornado. Fortunately, they were spared the blunt impact of that storm, to God be the glory! In life, storm clouds enter our lives in much the same fashion, but many times the duration of our life's storms long outstays its welcome and it can become a challenge to see God's light in the midst of our storm. 

We all experience storms in life. The impact of your storm can be comparative to that of a rain shower in May where we seek temporary shelter to avoid getting wet, or at times, a storm in our lives leaves us scared, alone, and uncertain about the future. A tornado like storm disrupts, destroys, and leaves a trail of destruction, much like the tornadoes of life that leave us wondering if we will ever experience peace again. Fortunately, we have the ability to see God's light shining through any magnitude of storm that this life blows our way. 

“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” John 1:5. When Jesus entered the world as a man, He was identified as the "Light" of the world (John 8:12). We will live a life that encounters darkness, some storm clouds will be short term and for some the darkness of life's storm may feel like a cloud that circles overhead following us everywhere we go. Regardless of what type of storm you are encountering, the closer your relationship is with God the better equipped you will be to endure and even thrive for God in your storm. His light will shine through and His light will illuminate the darkest of storms. 

Today, I encourage you to seek God's light in the midst of your storm. Life's storms are inevitable, yet so is God's light! May the light of God's love come shining through your storm clouds today! Seek Him, He is near! He is the Light that will come shining through!

Coach Carter