Kindness Shown on a Basketball Court

John 13:34-35 (NIV)

34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

I read this true story of love and kindness earlier this year. I think you will find it well worth reading!

If you had to choose one word to describe Kevin, it might be "slow." Kevin didn't learn his ABCs as fast as other kids. He never came in first in the schoolyard races. However, Kevin had a special rapport with people. His bright smile and big heart won him plenty of friends.

When Kevin discovered that the pastor at his church, Randy Jessen, was putting together a boy’s basketball team, his mother let him participate. And soon basketball became a center of Kevin's life. He worked hard at practice. While the other boys practiced dribbling and lay-ups, Kevin shot baskets. He had a special spot near the free throw line. He threw and threw the ball, and it occasionally went in! When that happened, Kevin raised his arms and shouted, "Look at me, Coach!"

The day before their first game, Coach Randy gave each player a bright red jersey. Kevin was number 12. He scrambled himself into the sleeves and wore that jersey almost every day. One Sunday morning, the church service was interrupted by Kevin's excited voice. "Look, Coach!" He lifted his gray wool sweater to reveal the red jersey underneath with number 12 on the front. Nobody minded the interruption; the church knew Kevin and loved him.

I'd like to be able to tell you that the team did well. Actually, they never won a game that season -- except for the night it snowed and the other team never showed up. At the end of the season, the boys played in the church league's tournament. As the last-place team, they drew the unfortunate spot of playing against the first-place team -- boys who had never lost a game all year.

The game went as expected, and near the end of the fourth quarter Kevin's team stood nearly 30 points behind. It was then that one of the boys called timeout. "Coach," he said, "this is our last game and Kevin's never made a basket. I think we should let him make a basket." The team agreed. Kevin was instructed to stand at his special place near the free throw line and wait. He was told that when he was given the ball, he should shoot.

Kevin was ecstatic. He ran to the floor and waited. When the ball was passed to him he shot -- and missed. Number 17 from the other team snatched the rebound, dribbled down the court for an easy lay-up. But a moment later Kevin got the ball again. He shot -- and missed. Number 17 repeated his performance for another two points. Kevin shot a third and fourth time with the same result.

But then the other team seemed to figure out what was going on and the next time they snatched the rebound, they threw it to Kevin! Kevin shot...and missed. But now every rebound came to him and he threw and threw toward the basket.

BOTH teams had circled Kevin by this time and all of the boys were shouting, "Kevin! Kevin!" The crowd took up the chant. Soon everyone in the gym was shouting for Kevin! Coach Randy was sure the game should have been over by this time and he glanced at the clock. It was stopped at 4.3 seconds! The timekeepers were standing by their table shouting with the crowd, "Kevin! Kevin!" The world had stopped for Kevin. He shot and shot and finally one of his shots took a crazy bounce on the rim and...went in! Chaos reigned! Everyone stood and cheered as if one boy had single-handedly won a world championship. Kevin's arms sprang up in the air and he shouted, "I won! I won!" His team escorted him off the court, the clock ticked down and the game was over.

That day an undefeated team retained their perfect record. But everybody won. Everybody! Because everybody had participated in a crazy conspiracy of kindness, a simple act of mercy, that was so compelling, so powerful, that I'm sure all of heaven rejoiced!

What a great story of showing love. Let’s make today the day that we show our love and by doing so show God’s love to someone who needs it.

Dear Lord, thanks for the love that You showed to us by dying on the cross. Help us show that love to those around us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

The Right Thing to Do.

Romans 12:10 (New American Standard Bible)

 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor;

Darius and Johntel have a lot in common.

They are both talented high school seniors. They both love basketball. They are both captains of their respective high school basketball teams.

But on one Saturday night in February, they were forever linked in the minds of all who were present for a mutual act of courage, sportsmanship and respect.

The remarkable moment came during a game between Darius's small town Illinois team and Johntel's big city team in Wisconsin -- a game that almost wasn't played.

Just hours before tip-off Johntel's mother lost her five-year battle with cervical cancer.

Her death was sudden and devastating to all who knew her, and Johntel's coach wanted to cancel the game. But Johntel insisted that the game should be played, and so with heavy hearts his teammates prepared to honor their captain's wishes and to play -- and hopefully win -- without him.

What they weren't prepared for was Johntel's appearance in the gym mid-way through the first half.

As soon as he saw him, Johntel's coach called a time out, and players and fans surrounded the grieving young man to offer love and support. The coach asked him if he wanted to sit on the bench with the team.

"No," Johntel said. "I want to play."

Of course his team was thrilled to have him.

But because Johntel wasn't on the pre-game roster, putting him in the game at that point would result in a technical foul and two free throws for the opposing team.

Johntel's coach was OK with that. He could see that this was the teenager's way of coping with his loss -- the points didn't matter.

The opposing team understood the situation and told the referees to let Johntel play and to forget the technical foul. The referees argued that a rule is a rule, and the free throws would have to be taken before the game could proceed.

For possibly the first time in basketball history, officials had to force a team to accept and take the technical free throws.

As team captain, Darius volunteered to take the shots.

One would have expected he was looking for an opportunity to keep his team close in a hard-fought game against a big city school. Or one could even assume he wanted a chance to add a couple of points to his personal statistics.

In either case, one would be wrong.

Darius took the ball from the official, looked at the basket and calmly shot the ball.

Now, basketball purists know that the free throw line is 15 feet from the basket. Darius's first shot only traveled about 4 feet. His second shot only traveled 2.

Immediately Johntel and his teammates understood what Darius was doing. They stood and applauded the gesture of sportsmanship as Darius made his way back to his bench. So did all of the big city fans.

"I did it for the guy who lost his mom," Darius told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel after the game. "It was the right thing to do."

For those who are concerned about such things, Johntel's team rode the emotion of the night to a 15-point victory. But as the two teams met after the game for pizza and sodas, nobody on either side was too concerned with wins or losses or personal stats.

"This is something our kids will hold for a lifetime," Darius's coach said. "They may not remember our record 20 years from now, but they'll remember what happened in that gym that night."

Dear Lord we pray that we would have the compassion to those around us just as we have read in todays story. In Jesus’ name, Amen. 

Giving a Chance to Others.

Matthew 7:12 (New International Version)

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

Jason was a senior at Greece Athena High School in Rochester, New York. He has had some tough breaks in life. But most of the other kids at his high school treaedt him with respect. He tried hard. People liked him. He has been pretty visible the year as manager of the varsity basketball team. He is autistic.

His autism has been a major “bad break” for J-Mac, as his friends call him. Autism is a brain disorder that typically shows itself in problems with socialization and communication. Some people find it hard to be around persons with autism.

J-Mac has the good fortune of attending a school that does everything possible to integrate students with developmental issues into the mainstream of life. Coach Jim Johnson even added him to the team roster for the final basketball game of the season. He hoped to get him in the game for a few minutes. He wanted J-Mac to have the experience. To get a team jersey. To cherish a memory. But he had no idea things would turn out as they did.

With Greece Athena well in the lead and four minutes left on the clock, Johnson put J-Mac in the game. And the kid did the unthinkable! After missing his first two shots, he scored 20 points in three minutes – 18 by draining three-point shots from the perimeter. The team carried him on their shoulders in celebration.

“This is the first moment Jason has ever succeeded and been proud of himself,” said his mother. “I look at autism as the Berlin Wall, and he cracked it.” Her greater dream for her son is that he can get a high school diploma.

Hooray for Jason. Hooray for the attention this story has gotten not only in local news but in national media. And hooray for the encouragement and hope this heartwarming episode will bring to families dealing with similar challenges.

But I’ve not heard many folks applauding the coach for his decision to give J-Mac a chance. So my kudos go to Jim Johnson. He paid attention to a kid who needed a break. Made him team manager. Took the chance of putting a uniform on him and putting him into a game. What a gutsy call by the coach!

“I’ve had a lot of thrills in coaching and I’ve coached a lot of wonderful kids, but I’ve never experienced something like this ever in my life – you know, other than my own family things,” Johnson said. “My emotions, I couldn’t stop crying.”

Thank God for people who give other people a chance.

Dear Lord we thanks You for giving each of us a chance. We pray that we would always look for those around us who need a chance. In Jesus’ name, Amen.