All my life, I wanted to be a head football coach of an NFL team more than anything else.

At times, I even wanted it more than God or my family. I bought right into the world's game plan. In my eyes, being a head coach would give me all the things I wanted, like money and prestige. My goal became an obsession.


Wake-up call

God gave me my first wake-up call in 1972 when I met a small, unassuming Sunday school teacher named George Tharel while I was coaching at theUniversity of Arkansas. He was a man at peace with himself and God. I envied people like George who could relax and enjoy life. By looking at George's life, I started to see that there was another game plan besides the world's. God's plan was not based on money, position or winning football games. Even though I had become a Christian at the age of nine, I had never made God a priority. George helped me see this.

One major process God took me through was being able to trust Him with my career. In 1978, my first year as the offensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, I knew I was one step away from being a head coach.

That changed when we finished the season unsuccessfully and I was offered a job with the San Diego Chargers. The problem was that the position was for a backfield coach.  I would be going backwards in my career and have to work under an assistant coach. My pride got in the way. I took the job but I had no peace about it.


The airport event

I decided to visit George back in Arkansas. I got on a plane, but a snowstorm prevented me from making it to see him. I started asking God, ‘Why? Why are you doing this to me?’

In the airport I met a man who told me his life story and it paralleled mine almost exactly! He had lost the job that he had always wanted and had tried everything to get it back. Then God, in His timing, gave it back to him. God had brought this man into my life to show me what I needed to do. I turned my situation over to God. Within two weeks the offensive coordinator left, opening up the position for me. Two years later, I became the head coach of the Washington Redskins.

I wanted to be happy and successful, and that was the path I had been on my whole life. I discovered that what I was looking for was not something to be pursued. Success and happiness were by-products of a life given over to God. It seems I had to learn that lesson more than once, and in many ways I am still learning it.

Take a look at your life.  How would you describe it? Contented? Rushed? Exciting? Stressful? Moving forward? Holding back? For many of us it’s all of the above at times.  There are things we dream of doing one day, there are things we wish we could forget.  In the Bible, it says that Jesus came to make all things new.  What would your life look like if you could start over with a clean slate?

Living with hope

If you are looking for peace, there is a way to balance your life. No one can be perfect, or have a perfect life. But every one of us has the opportunity to experience perfect grace through a personal relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Praying is simply talking to God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. Here's a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.

Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? You can pray it right now, and Jesus Christ will come into your life, just as He promised. 

Is this the life for you?

If you invited Christ into your life, thank God often that He is in your life, that He will never leave you and that you have eternal life. As you learn more about your relationship with God, and how much He loves you, you'll experience life to the fullest.