The other night I was watching my son at basketball practice and the coach was teaching the guys some different plays. I began thinking how these basketball plays can translate into church world. The plays that were being run were for the whole team, but the position I noticed the most, and coincidentally was the one my son was playing, was the position of Power Forward. Here is what I gleaned from the practice:
Point Guard– The job of the point guard is to call out the play while running down the court and then he has to trust and expect that the other players have learned their plays and are in the proper position. If any one of the players is out of position or has not memorized the play then the end result could be chaos or failure. The Point Guard has to be loud and clear and direct the traffic on the court He has to be decisive and make decisions on the fly. Consequently, he has to expect his team to follow him and adapt to his changes.
Here is the same paragraph but with the Church references in CAPS:
Point Guard (Lead Pastor) – The job of the point guard (LEAD PASTOR) is to call out the play (VISION) while running down the court (LEADING THE CHURCH) and then he has to trust and expect that the other players (PASTORS AND STAFF) have learned their plays (KNOW THEIR JOBS) and are in the proper position (BE DEPENDABLE). If any one of the players (PASTORS) is out of position (WRONG SEAT ON THE BUS), or has not memorized the play (LAZY AND DOES NOT GET THEIR WORK DONE), then the end result (SUNDAY AND THE SOULS WE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR) will be chaos or failure. The Point Guard (LEAD PASTOR) has to be loud and clear (DECISIVE AND BOLD) and direct the traffic on the court (KEEP THE TEAM MOVING TOWARD THE VISION). He has to be decisive and make decisions on the fly. Consequently, he has to expect his team to follow him and adapt to his changes.
Power Forward – A large majority of my son’s plays position the Forward under the basket to pick up the rebounds and then either put the ball back in the hoop or kick it out to the point guard to start the transition to offense. Many times, the Forward is responsible for setting picks for every other player, especially the point guard. The Forward always needs to keep his eye on the ball and be one step ahead to determine where to set the pick or to position himself to get the rebound. Also, the Forward is expected to be scrappy and to do some “dirty work” if necessary.
Here is the same paragraph but with the Church references in CAPS:
Power Forward (EXECUTIVE PASTOR) – A large majority of my son’s plays position the Forward (XP) under the basket (RIGHT NEXT TO THE ULTIMATE VISION OR GOAL) to pick up the rebounds (PICK UP THE VISION / GOAL WHEN IT MISSES THE MARK A LITTLE) and then either put the ball back in the hoop (FIX THE LITTLE MISTAKES AND PUT THE VISION / GOAL BACK ON COURSE) or kick it out to the point guard (GRAB THE VISION AND GIVE IT BACK TO THE LEAD PASTOR FOR RE-TOOLING) to start the transition to offense (PICK UP THE BROKEN VISION / ASSESS / STRATEGIZE / START AGAIN) or re-set the play (RE-TOOL THE SAME VISION AND START AGAIN). Many times, the Forward is responsible for setting picks (DEFLECTING CRITICISM OR ATTACKS) for every other player, especially the Point Guard (LEAD PASTOR). The Forward (XP) always needs to keep his eye on the ball (VISION) and be one step ahead to determine where to set the pick (ANTICIPATE PROBLEMS AND HEAD THEM OFF) or to position himself to get the rebound (DETERMINING WHERE PROBLEMS WILL BE AND BE READY WITH AN ANSWER TO FIX AND RE-TOOL THE VISION). Also, the Forward is expected to be scrappy (KICK SOME BUTT AND FIGHT FOR THE TEAM) and to do some “dirty work” (KICK MORE BUTT AND BE READY TO TAKE THE FALL FOR THE GOOD OF THE TEAM. THE XP SHOULD NEVER SEEK THE LIMELIGHT AND DO THE BEHIND THE SCENES STUFF NECESSARY TO ACCOMPLISH THE VISION.) if necessary.
