Never Underestimate Teamwork

Teamwork is important to a marching band's excellence, just
as it is for a football team, on the gridiron.

One of the best things about competitive sports, especially team sports, is observing how principles that contribute to athletic success also relate to everyday life. Athletes in sports like golf or tennis are basically on their own, vying for victory one-on-one. But in most other sports, the team dynamic is an integral part of what Wide World of Sports used to call “the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.”

Taylor Decker, an All-American offensive tackle at the Ohio State University, emphasized this in explaining why he chose to return for his senior year and helped the Buckeyes to another very successful season. He could have left after his junior season and taken his talents to the National Football League but opted to complete his last year of collegiate eligibility.

“A huge reason I came back (was) for that brotherhood, that camaraderie in the locker room,” Decker said. “That’s what makes it fun. Because workouts aren’t really fun, and practice isn’t really fun, but doing it with your guys, doing it with people you love, that’s what makes it fun.”

These key ingredients for effective teamwork – camaraderie, mutual support, and merging of complementary skills – are crucial to a winning effort, not only on the gridiron, basketball court, baseball diamond and soccer field, but also in the business world, the military, music, even in marriage and parenting.

Living in the age of the “selfie,” when many people seem preoccupied with themselves, we’re at risk of devaluing the importance of teamwork. Everyone seems to be screaming, “Look at me!” Few are saying, “Look at us.” But in reality, living and working in isolation can limit us in more ways than one.

The Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes addresses this powerfully. It states, “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work” (Ecclesiastes 4:9). Watching a football game, we see this demonstrated as offensive linemen join together to open holes for running backs and to protect the quarterback. But we also see it every day in our own lives.

My first job in journalism was serving as editor of a small community newspaper. I was the entire editorial staff, the proverbial “cook and bottle washer.” I did everything from covering city government and school board meetings to writing wedding announcements and obituaries. It was an excellent learning experience, but I felt relieved several years later when the publisher agreed to let me hire an assistant to share the load.

As a father, it’s been my joy and privilege to team with my wife in raising our children and now, pitching in to help with the grandkids from time to time. That’s one reason I so admire the resolve of single parents, striving by themselves to do the job of parenting that’s best done by mom and dad together.

The biblical passage continues, “If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up” (Ecclesiastes 4:10). We often see this in action on the football field, when a player is tackled or knocked down and a teammate extends a hand to help him back to his feet. But daily life also has a way of knocking us down, too, and it’s encouraging when a “teammate” – whether at work or in the home – offers a hand to help us back up.

A final portion of the Ecclesiastes passage relates to the gridiron, but I’ve experienced it many times and in many ways during my own life: “Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken” (Ecclesiastes 4:12). This is one of the values of business partnerships. The principals not only share in the financial investment, but also team together to overcome obstacles, combat adversity, and share their respective talents and gifts in the pursuit of common goals and objectives.

This principle holds true spiritually as well. As Hebrews 10:24-25 admonishes us, “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another….”

Another new year is bearing down on us, and some of us will be setting goals or resolutions to grow spiritually and become more effective ambassadors for Jesus Christ. We’d be wise to recognize this can’t be done in a vacuum, that as we see throughout the Scriptures, spiritual growth and service to the Lord also is a “team sport.”

Who are you going to team with in 2016 to become all you can be for God?

A Matter of Testing and Trusting

Have you seen those team building exercises some companies use where staff members line up in two parallel rows while a colleague turns his or her back to them, and then drops backward, trusting the group to catch them before they hit terra firma?

I’ve never tried this – I think the back of my head is allergic to smacking the ground. But it’s an interesting test of trust. “Do I really trust these guys to catch me before I fracture my skull?” “Will Josh say, ‘Oops!’ and let me slip through his hands because of our disagreement last week?”

This definitely isn’t something you’d want to attempt with a group of strangers you have no reason to trust. They might think it’s hilarious to watch you bonk your head. But even with people you know, it’s preferable to have a trusting relationship established before you put it to the test. Do they like you? Are they reliable? Are they strong enough to catch you?

Which raises an interesting consideration: Do you find these folks trustworthy because you’ve already put their trust to the test? Or do you try to establish trustworthiness first before testing it?

In some respects, it’s probably both. The initial time we fly on a jet, we can’t know from personal experience the aircraft will get us there safely. But we know jets do fly, and most of them do arrive at their destinations without problems. And we generally place our trust in established airlines with strong safety records. Which is why if you’re wanting to give away frequent flyer miles on Malaysia Airlines, I’m not interested. No thanks.

Marriage is another of those trust-then-test endeavors. Everyone exchanges vows with idealistic sparkles in their eyes: “He’s going to make me so happy!” “She’s going to be everything I ever dreamed!” Uh, maybe – maybe not. Months or years later, couples often think, “Sure, I said for better or worse – but I didn’t know it was going to be this worse!” They start off with unlimited, unquestioning trust, but when put to the test, it falls short of their expectations.

Faith in God can be both trust-then-test and test-then-trust. Years ago I had a skeptical friend that liked the idea of having a God he could rely on to guide his business, but didn’t assume the Bible was true. Basically, his attitude was, “God, if I’m supposed to believe in You and what the Bible says, prove it.”

Bill would arrive at the weekly prayer meeting with a list of prayer requests, usually about some project or problems he was dealing with at his company. He’d ask the other men in the group to pray for his needs, then report the following week on if and how the prayers had been answered.

Finally, after testing both God and biblical principles in how he operated his company, Bill committed his life to Jesus Christ, concluding both God and the Bible could be trusted.

This approach worked for Bill, but I wouldn’t recommend it. Only one place in the Scriptures does God authorize His followers to put Him to the test. After instructing believers to bring the tithe (God’s portion of their resources) to the temple to provide for those in need, He says, “Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it” (Malachi 3:10).

Here God invites His people to give freely, assuring them He can more than make up for what they have generously contributed for helping meet the needs of others. But in most instances, the Scriptures urge us to trust first and then discover the Lord indeed is worthy of that trust.

Years ago I adopted a passage I consider my “life verse” – Proverbs 3:5-6. It says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.”

Over the years, more times than I could ever recount, this promise has proved true in facing a variety of personal and professional needs: Career direction, marriage and family challenges, financial struggles, health issues, unexpected emergencies. Many times I’d run out of options and had idea what to do next. At such times, often in ways far beyond my understanding, God provided direction and the answers we needed.

Another verse makes a similar declaration: “Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He will do it” (Psalm 37:5). Sometimes we don’t see God at work in our lives because we’re not truly committed to Him and refuse to trust Him. That doesn’t mean He won’t respond to our needs, but when we turn to Him in trust – what the Bible calls “childlike faith” – then He eagerly responds and says, “Now watch and see what I can do.”

What – or who – are you trusting in today?