Here is a great feel-good story out of Milwaukee:

Milwaukee Madison senior Johntell Franklin, who lost his mother, Carlitha, to cancer on Saturday, Feb. 7, decided he wanted to play in that night’s game against DeKalb (Ill.) High School after previously indicating he would sit out.

He arrived at the gym in the second quarter, but Franklin’s name was not in the scorebook because his coach, Aaron Womack Jr., didn’t expect him to be there.

Rules dictated Womack would have to be assessed a technical, but he was prepared to put Franklin in the game anyway. DeKalb coach Dave Rohlman and his players knew of the situation, and told the referees they did not want the call.

The referees had no choice. But Rohlman did.

“I gathered my kids and said, ‘Who wants to take these free throws?’” Rohlman said, recounting the game to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “Darius McNeal put up his hand. I said, ‘You realize you’re going to miss, right?’ He nodded his head.”

McNeal, a senior point guard, went to the line. The Milwaukee Madison players stayed by their bench, waiting for the free throws. Instead of seeing the ball go through the net, they saw the ball on the court, rolling over the end line.

“I turned around and saw the ref pick up the ball and hand it back to the player,” Womack said in the Journal Sentinel. “And then [McNeal] did the same thing again.”

Said Rohlman: “Darius set up for a regular free throw, but he only shot it two or three feet in front of him. It bounced once or twice and just rolled past the basket.”

“I did it for the guy who lost his mom,” McNeal told the newspaper. “It was the right thing to do.”

Update: Here is the video report (length: 6:24).

 
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C. J. Mahaney offers some wise reflections on Michael Phelps, marijuana, and rest for restless souls.

The photograph of Phelps reminds me of myself prior to conversion, a competitive swimmer (of slightly lesser skill), a sinner (of greater degree), held captive by sin, pursuing the fleeting pleasures of this world. And sadly, in my case, pursuing sin with passion. So what was Phelps searching for in that bong pipe? What emptiness in his soul was he trying to satisfy? …

This is what I find so striking: A man whose chest has been covered with gold medals, has achieved international fame, showered with awards, and blessed with an incomprehensible amount of money, still feels compelled to press his face to a bong.

It was Augustine who said that the soul is restless until it finds its rest in God. So true. Only God can satisfy the soul. Only the gospel of Jesus Christ provides forgiveness of sin, and therefore it is here in this gospel that we find rest for our restless souls.

Study the unflattering picture of Michael Phelps to be reminded of the deceitfulness of sin and the superficiality of fame and money. But also study the picture to be reminded of the message of Christ and him crucified for restless sinners like you, and me, and Michael Phelps.

Related posts:

• C. J. Mahaney Goes to the Dentist
• C. J. Mahaney on Dissatisfaction in Preaching

Indianapolis Colts head coach Tony Dungy announces his retirement.

Dungy, 53, told his staff and some players on Monday morning after taking a week to discuss his options with his wife, Lauren. He will be succeeded by associate head coach Jim Caldwell.

Dungy coached the Colts for seven seasons, including the 2006-07 season when he became the first African-American coach to win the Super Bowl. At the time, he said he was just as proud as being an evangelical coach in the big game as he was of making black history.

Dungy said he wanted to spend more time with his family in Tampa, where he coached for six seasons, and do more work in the community.

“I think I’ve got a responsibility to be home a little bit more, be available to my family a little bit more and do some things to help make our country better,” Dungy said. “I don’t know what that is right now, but we’ll see.”

I have really appreciated Tony Dungy’s testimony over the years. Whether winning or losing, he has shown a great attiude at all times and presented a strong testimony for Christ.

Related articles:

• Tony Dungy No. 1 on NYT Bestsellers List
• Tony Dungy: Asking ‘What’ Instead of ‘Why’
• Tony Dungy Speaks about the National Day of Prayer

You know it’s Monday when …

the Monday night football game is pre-empted by a Gidget film festival.

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With the 2008 Olympics winding down, I thought I would go with an OLYMPIC THEME for this week’s Quick Takes.

Did You Know?

• City officials fired 1,100 rain rockets Friday afternoon and evening to fend off any rain clouds before the Opening Ceremony. The rockets contained silver iodide to disperse rain and clouds before the event.
• Ever wonder how they get the camera to follow the Olympic divers so perfectly from the diving board to the pool? It’s easy – they just drop the camera. Basic physics at work; Isaac Newton would be proud. (I dropped my wife’s camera once. It didn’t work out so well.)

Rick Phillips affirms Shawn Johnson’s graciousness in her second place finish for the women’s all-around. “She’s only spent her whole life dreaming of winning that gold medal. Then she comes in second to her roommate, Nastia Liukin. During all of the interviews she conducted herself with cheerful dignity and grace. In particular, she clearly recognized that it was Liukin’s night to shine and did everything possible to make it a dream night for her friend. She didn’t talk about herself, she didn’t talk about her disappointment, but only how proud she was of her deserving friend … I don’t know if she is a Christian or not, but she certainly has conducted herself in the way that Christians should.”

And, speaking of gymnastics, here are a couple quick takes from previous Olympic years.

First Perfect 10 in History (Video length: 0:51)

Nadia Comaneci’s 1976 Compulsory on the Uneven Bars was the first perfect 10 awarded in Olympic gymnastics. You will notice the scoreboard reads 1.00 instead of 10.0. That’s because the scoreboards were not yet designed to display the number 10 (it had never happened before!).
 

Nadia Comeneci’s 1976 Uneven Bar Routine Perfect 10
(Video length: 0:40)

 

Nadia Comaneci’s 1976 All-Around Balance Beam Perfect 10
(Video length: 3:14)

 

And here is a neat performance from Olga Korbut in the 1972 Olympics.
(Video length: 0:40)

I shared the following story about Olympic runner Derek Redmond in my sermon Sunday as an illustration of the Holy Spirit’s encouragement in the believer’s life. (“Encouraged by the Holy Spirit,” taken from Acts 9:31).

The Greek word for encouragement is “paraklesis.” It literally means “to be called to one’s side,” and so it is the picture of someone coming alongside you to give you help, comfort, encouragement and strength. Jesus used a related form of this word as a name for the Holy Spirit in John 14:16: “Parakletos,” which means “a helper, comforter, encourager or advocate.”

This story of Derek Redmond and his father is a beautiful illustration of someone coming alongside another to help and encourage.

(Video length: 2:20)

Derek Redmond was running in the 400-meter race in the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. He already held the British record in this event. In the previous Olympics he had been forced to withdraw 10 minutes before the race because of an Achilles tendon injury. Now four years later he was here, ready to compete, determined to win a medal in the 400. His father was in the stands watching.

During the semi-final heat, Redmond was only 175 meters away from the finish line, when his right hamstring suddenly popped and he fell to the ground. As all the other runners raced past him, Redmond knew that once again his Olympics dream had been snatched away from him. But Redmond was determined to finish the race, so he got back on his feet and started hobbling towards the finish line. He was in visible pain with each step, and it was unclear whether he could even make it.

Suddenly, his father gets out of his seat and jumps onto the track, running around the security guards, and comes alongside his son on the track. He puts his arm around his son’s waist and encourages him to keep going. And as 65,000 people in the stadium rise to their feet in applause, father and son make their way around the track to the finish line together. Redmond did not win his Olympic medal. But with the help of his father, he finished the race.

NBC has been very protective of any online video of the Olympics this year. As fast as people can post the videos on YouTube, NBC keeps pulling them down. But you can see the official video of the lighting of the torch at NBC’s site. You will have to give them your zip code and cable provider in order to view the video, but no other personal information is required. If you like fireworks, you will definitely enjoy this video. (Remember, the Chinese invented fireworks!)

After you view the video, come on back here and leave a comment! Here is the link (opens in new window): Video of 2008 Olympic Torch Lighting at Opening Ceremony in Beijing

OLYMPIC EDITION.

• No more perfect 10′s. The scoring rules have changed. There will be no perfect 10′s for gymnastics at the Olympics this year.
• Olympians to Watch. Christianity Today highlights several Christian athletes participating in this year’s Olympics.
• The TOP TEN Greatest Olympic Moments. (Summer Olympic moments only.)

A couple weeks ago I posted about baseball player Josh Hamilton’s Christian testimony in a post called, It’s Not About Baseball. This week I learned about Fernando Tatis of the New York Mets who returned to baseball in order to help his community build a church.

Fernando Tatis’ return to major league baseball after a two-year absence had little to do with his desire to play the game, the New York Mets left fielder said Monday. It had mostly to do with his desire to build a church.

“In my town [San Pedro de Macoris in the Dominican Republic], we needed to buy land to build a church,” he explained … “And I said to my family, the only way that we can buy the land is if I come back to baseball and make the money to buy the land to build the church for our town.”

Now, he’s the Mets’ starting left fielder for a playoff contender. And the church his community wanted to build opened its doors three months ago. “You put something in your mind and when you see the reality, and when you see the church is so beautiful, so big … it‘s amazing,” Tatis said.

See related post:  It’s Not About Baseball

Josh Hamilton of the Texas Rangers set a first round record in the Home Run Derby Monday night with 28 home runs. Josh recently returned to baseball after five years of drug addiction that nearly took his life. He credits God and Christ in helping him overcome his addiction. Here is the video from the Derby:

(Video length: 5:04)

And here is Josh’s testimony printed in ESPN last year around this time.

How am I here? I can only shrug and say, “It’s a God thing.” It’s the only possible explanation. There’s a reason my prayers weren’t answered during those dark, messed-up nights I spent scared out of my mind. There’s a reason I have this blessed and unexpected opportunity to play baseball and tell people my story …

Every day I’m reminded that my story is bigger than me. It never fails. Every time I go to the ballpark, I talk to people who are either battling addictions themselves or trying to help someone else who is … A father will tell me about his son while I’m signing autographs. A mother will wait outside the players’ parking lot to tell me about her daughter. They know where I’ve been. They look to me because I’m proof that hope is never lost.

They remind me that this isn’t really about baseball … I’ve been called the biggest surprise in baseball this year, and I can’t argue with that. If you think about it, how many people have gone from being a crack addict to succeeding at anything, especially something as demanding as major league baseball?…

This may sound crazy, but I wouldn’t change a thing about my path to the big leagues … You’re probably thinking, Bad decisions and addiction almost cost him his life, and he wouldn’t change anything? But if I hadn’t gone through all the hard times, this whole story would be just about baseball. If I’d made the big leagues at 21 and made my first All-Star team at 23 and done all the things expected of me, I would be a big-time baseball player, and that’s it.

Baseball is third in my life right now, behind my relationship with God and my family. Without the first two, baseball isn’t even in the picture. Believe me, I know.

See related post:  It’s Not About Baseball (2)

John MacEnroe called it, “The greatest match I’ve ever seen.” I agree. Rafael Nadal’s 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-7 (8), 9-7 win over Roger Federer in the 2008 Men’s Wimbledon Finals on Sunday will go down as one of the best tennis matches in history. Nadal and Federer played the highest quality tennis for nearly five hours as they both fought for victory in the closely matched contest.

I was also impressed with each player’s comments immediately following the game. When asked to share his thoughts on the match, Federer responded: “Yeah, I tried everything. Got a little late and everything, but look, Raf is a deserving champ, and he just played fantastic today.” And when asked what it was like beating Federer on center court in one of the greatest finals ever, Nadal was quick to credit Roger: “He’s still number one. He’s still the best. He’s still five times champion here, and right now I have one.”

Graceful losers and humble winners are hard to come by these days, but Federer showed a lot of grace after the most difficult loss of his career, and Nadal showed a lot of humility after the most important win of his career. Both of these guys have a lot of class, and I can’t think of two tennis players I would rather see at numbers one and two in the world right now.

Related articles:

• Roger v Rafa – the best final ever?
• Nadal Ends Federer’s Reign at Wimbledon

Check out the great pictures of the Celtics Victory Parade yesterday over at The Big Picture: 2008 NBA Champs – Celtics Rolling Rally. It doesn’t look like anyone in Boston went to work on Thursday.

See related post: Celtics-Lakers: Let the Finals Begin!