Kevin Kelley head football coach for Pulaski Academy, Little Rock, Arkansas

No Punts Allowed

Kevin Kelley is the head football coach for Pulaski Academy, located in Little Rock, Arkansas. But Kevin Kelley is not your ordinary high school football coach.  He has made his mark on High School football by never allowing his team to punt.

Coach Kelley read the research of a Harvard professor who analyzed 2000 high school football games and came to the conclusion that a team is statistically better served if they never punt the ball away. Coach Kelley embraced his statistical research and so his team never punts.

So how successful has he been?  He's won three state championships, has an 86% win percentage, and is playing for their fourth state championship on Saturday night.

But now, here's the point of this article and how it applies to you.  Don't be content to do something just because everyone else is doing it.  Be an independent thinker.  Think outside the box.  Get out of your comfortable ruts.  Don't be pressured to conform when you are convinced something else is right and expedient.

The Lord needs such people in his church...people who will think, plan, brainstorm, and take calculated risks to effectively inform the world of the good news in Jesus!  Be one of those people!

P.S. Here's to wishing coach Kelley a successful game on Saturday night!

Steve Higginbotham

Things to be most thankful for

I Am Thankful For...

In 2013, Harris Polls conducted a survey to discover the things for which people are most thankful. The results of the poll revealed the following:

What People Are Most Thankful For In 2013:

1. Health of your family - 85%

2. Family relationships - 84%

3. Technology makes it easy to stay in touch with family and friends - 76% 4. Good technology is easily accessible - 68% 5. Your own personal economic situation - 62% 6. Work situation - 60% 7. It's safe to walk on the streets - 53% 8. The way people treat each other - 35% 9. The economic situation in the US - 17% *

That was 2013. For what are YOU most thankful NOW?

The blessing for which we should be MOST thankful is the GIFT of God’s Son, who died on the cross that we may have salvation from sin and eternal life.

Consider the “golden text” of the Bible (John 3:16):

• “For God” – the Greatest Giver

• “So Loved” – the Greatest Motive

• “The World” – The Greatest Number

• “That He Gave” – The Greatest Act

• “His Only Begotten Son” – The Greatest Gift • “That Whosoever” – The Greatest Invitation • “Believes in Him” – The Greatest Response • “Should Not Perish” – The Greatest Deliverance • “But Have Everlasting Life” – The Greatest Reward

JESUS is the blessing for which we should be MOST thankful because He saves us from the greatest peril and promises to us the greatest reward!

The “Greatest Response” (“believes in Him”) means much more than intellectual awareness or agreement.

Wayne Jackson explains: “Biblical faith involves the [acceptance] of historical facts, the disposition to trust the object of the faith, and a willingness to be obedient to divine requirements.”

The Greatest Response is FAITH that prompts us to place our faith and trust in Jesus (Acts 16:30-31), turn from sin in repentance (Acts 17:30-31), confess Him before men (Romans 10:9-10), and be baptized (immersed) into Christ for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38). The response of faith will also be demonstrated in FAITHFULNESS throughout one’s life (1 John 1:7).

“Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:15).

Won’t YOU accept the greatest Gift on His terms and live out the rest of your days in trusting obedience motivated by loving gratitude?

David A. Sargent