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FEATURES those surveyed (many of whom fit in the " Lost-Out" category) were satisfied with the ir income. On the average, the readers estimated they needed $10,000 more a year to live comfortably. Financial difficulty is just one of the disappointments we face. Often it seems that life is full of setbacks. And when these setbacks come, we look for the cause of our di sappo intment. Sometimes, we feel that we've let ourse lves down: " If only I had done better." Other times, we blame those arou nd us for keeping us from making it. HEY HAVE BEEN But the real danger comes called the " Lost-Out when we blame God for our Generation." They disappointme nts: " How could are the generation You have let thi s happen?" following the "baby It's ironic that people, regardboomers." Their less of their religious beliefs, predecessors-those born point the finger of conbetween 1946 and 1964 demnation upward, and --enjoyed unparalleled blame God for their failures. prosperity, an endless climb Our problem is that we up the ladder. place fal se expectations on But now, as this new generGod. We expect Him to fulfill ation graduates from college our every dream. When He and begins its own climb, the doesn't, we play the harsh road is a lot bumpier. Having boss with Him, readily been given much, they ' re expressing our frustration finding it hard to get muc h. with His lack of perfom1ance. Houses are har9er to buy. The athletes featured in this When they use credit cards to issue of Second Look have indulge themselves in the faced disappointment too. same pleasures Brad Budde failed to li ve up the "baby boomers" ~!t@!i!;:rJ!flo., to the expectations enjoy, the interest placed on him dents their finances. as a firstThe seeds of disappointment showed in a recent Rolling Stone magazine reader survey. Only 30 pe rcent of
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round draft pick. Jim Ryun, who held the word record in the mile for 8 years, failed three times to win an Olympic gold medal. And Dave Dravecky, in an interview with Kyle Rote Jr., talks about his comeback from injuries .. . and a brush with cancer. But each of these individuals has an interesting perspective on disappointme nts, and I think you' ll benefit from exploring it with us, as we take a "second look" at disappointments.
-Dave Burnham P.S. Thanks for taking the time to listen to my thoughts. We'd be interested in hearing your thoughts on disappointments, and on every topic Second Look magazine explores. Write to Second Look Lette rs, Box 3566, Grand Rapids, Ml49501 3566.
Dave Burnham is chairman of the International Sports Coalition, an association of sports ministries from around the world. He is also a teacher on the television program Day of Discovery.
4 BACK ON HIS FEET Jim Ryun has beaten some Olympian setbacks By Ken Sidey
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AFEW STEPS SHORT Brad Budde sidesteps Dad's shadow By Karen Rudolph Drollinger
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PARADISE LOST
TRAINING TIPS
The frustration of a close second By John Carvalho
Train for the long runs with Jim Ryun
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THROWN ACURVE
THE UP SIDE OF LETDOWNS
FOR ATHLETES
The right perspective for down times By Dave Burnham
coming setbacks
Dave Dravecky's latest foes: injuries and cancer With Kyle Rote Jr.
BobbyJonesonove~
19 THE QUIZ BIZ Stumpers recalling famous frustrations
Volume 3, Number 2 SECOND LOOK MAGAZINE A DISCOVERY HOUSE PUBLICATION PUBLISHER Martin A. De Haan II; EXECUTIVE EDITOR Dave Burnham; CONSULTING EDITOR Ralph Drollinger; MANAGING EDITOR John Carvalho; ART DIRECTOR Sieve Gier; MARKETING DIRECTOR Craig Finkel; PRODUCTI ON MANAGER Tom Fallen; COVER PHOTO Charlie Riedel Second Look is published six times a year by Discovery House Publishers. Discovery House Publishers is aHi!iated with Radio Bible Class, a nondenominational Christian organizalion whose purpose is lo lead people of all nalions lo failh and malurily in Jesus Chris! by leaching lhe Word of God. Pri nled in USA. Copyrighl C> 1989 by Discovery House Publishers, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Bible quotations, unless otherwise noted, are from the New King James Version 10 1979, 1980, 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.. Publishers. Second Look is produced by New Focus, Inc., Vanir Tower, Second Floor, San Bernardioo, CA 92401 . Subscriplions are available for $15/year by wriling lo Second Look subscriplions, Discovery House. Box 3566. Grand Rapids, Ml49501路3566.
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DISAPPOINTMENTS: COVER STORY
B CK ON HIS FEET Jim Ryun may not have won an Olympic gold medal, but he has beaten the disappointment OR EVEN THE WORLD 'S best athl e tes, the O lympics represent the chance of a lifetime. Years of sacri fice and training culminate in fleeting minutes, perhaps only seconds, of e ffort. And then ... only one wi nne r stands atop the award platfom1. Goi ng for the gold is o ne thin g. Getting it is another. Just ask Jim Ryun. Through not one, not two, but three Olympi ads, he chased the gold. But every time he ran, its g litter rema ined just beyond his grasp. Tokyo, 1964. A boy of 17, Jim had run competiti vely for the first ti me less than 2 years earlier. A cold hampers his efforts, and he fails to make the finals of the I ,500-me te r race. Mexico C ity, 1968. In spite of a series of minor injuries and even a bout with mononucleosis, Ryun is the favorite for the gold. He brings home the silver. Munic h, 1972. Again the favorite. In his first qualifying heat, Ryun tangles with another runner 500 meters from the fin ish. Tapes show c learly that he was bumped by the other runner. But his appeal is denied. To run and lose is tough. But to be
BY KEN SIDEY 4
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refused eve n the c h ance to compete for the gold- unjustly-is the most diffi cult test Ryun has ever faced. OUNG JIM RY UN had never heard of the sport of cross country until he tried out as a sophomore at East High School in Wic hita, Kansas. Jim landed the 2 1st spot on the 2 1man team. But almost immediately, something c licked between hi m a nd running. Within 3 mon th s of running his first race, Ryun was his team 's to p runner and placed sixth in the sta te cross country meet. When the first track meet rolled around the fol lowing spring, he ran the mi le-the glamor race of American track and field- for the first time. He fini shed in 4:32, o nly a te nth of a second behind the defend ing state champ. He never lost a nother high school race. Just 6 weeks after he turned 17 , Ryun ran the mile in 3:59, the first time a high school athlete had broken 4 minutes. "There is simply no way to imagine how good Jim Ryun is or how far he will go afte r he becomes an adu lt," commen ted Dyrol Burleson , one of the country 's best college run ne rs, after the race. The spring of '65 saw Ryun graduate from high school and set a new American record in the mile. He enrolled at Kansas Unive rsity and began closing in on world records. The next year, there seemed to be no honor that the media-shy Kansan d idn't gar-
Ryun won his only Olympic medal- a sliver - in Mexico City in 1968.
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Winning the silver, he claims, wa·s 'a tremendous honor.'
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ner. The AAU ga ve hi m the prestigious Sullivan Award as the nation 's top amate ur athlete; Sports Illustrated put him on its cover as Sportsman of the Year; sportswriters around the globe tabbed him as the world's outstanding athlete. But Ryun a lso began to experie nce the side effects of fame. Fans began to expect a record every time he stepped on the track; he even was booed for winning one race in "only" 3:58.6. It was, perhaps, a foretaste of great e xpectations- and great disappointments-to come. Ryun had captured the world record in the mile in July 1966, but injuries threw him off stride fo r severa l months. Finally, in Jun e 1967 , h e improved his own record by runnin g a 3:51.1 mile. It was a standard that would endure for 8 years (and a time he would never again equal or break). Other setbacks followed. Mononucleosis eventually forced Ryun to suspend training completely for 3 weeks, only 3 months before his second shot at the go ld . This time the path to g lory stood 7,000 feet high in Me xico City. In the th in air, Ryun finished second to Kenya 's Kip Keino. Only a silver medal. Only a silver medal ? G iven the obstacles he faced in the months leading up to the Games and the oxygen-starving altitude, Jim was anything but d isappointed. " Most people don ' t understand the circumstances surrounding Mexico C ity," Jim says . Winnin g the s il ve r, he claims, was "a tremendous honor." He was proud of the race he had run and thankful fo r the chance to partic ipate. What hurt, however, were head lines like " Ryun Fails To Bring Home Gold." " I d idn ' t know how to handle it," Ryun says, "so I tried to put it out of my mind, thinking if I did, it would go away. But it never did, because each time I had an interview, I was reminded that I had fini shed second. That eats on you." In the year that fo ll owed , Ryun reached his lowest point. P lague d by "j unk injuries" and hounded by pressure to perform, he four times failed even to fin ish in major races. When he walked off the track that fourth time, he vowed never to compete again. But the lure of go ld still attracted Jim Ryun . When the Olympic flame was kindled in Munich in 1972, he was there and ready. No one, however, could have pre pared for the tum1oil and tragedy that e nsued there. Terrorists stormed into the O lympic village and took II Israeli ath letes hostage. In a shoot-out that followed, a ll were ki lled. After a day of mourning, the Games continued. And that day, in the shadow of all that had gone before, Ryun took the track for his I ,500-mete r preliminary. Ask Jim about deal ing with di sappointment and he' ll give you two answers: pre-Munich and postMunich. In his pre-Munich days, Jim recalls, "The pressure I felt was not from the media as much as it was internal. I had ingrained in my thinking that I had to be successful to be happy. Once I started to succeed, I wanted to cont inue on ."
What he was running a fter, Ryun says now, was peace of mind. " I couldn ' t clearl y ide nt ify it then, but I was looking for the peace that comes from being acce pted . I think we' re all searc hing for that. I thought I had found that peace based on athletic achievement." What he found was that it lasted onl y as long as his last race. But the Jim Ryun who picked himself up from the track in Munic h had a diffe rent outlook. His search for peace had ended about 3 months prior to the Games. Jim had wa tched some frie nds-who called themselves "born-again" C hristi ans-go through disappointme nts and ha ndle the m with a steadiness and confide nce he envied. Though Jim had gone to c hurch most of his life, "there was a big difference in these othe r people." Jim and his wife, Anne, began reading the Bible to investigate Christianity for themselves. Through the Bible, Jim says, he fo und Jesus Christ was saying to him, "I love you because I love you- not because of the athletic achievements." It was the acceptance Jim had bee n searching for. He and Anne committe d the mselves to follow Jesus. Through that, Jim says, he found the peace that running had never been able to provide. But it didn 't mean that he would never face athletic fai lure again- as Munich so painfull y proved . After the race, Jim and Anne somehow found one anothe r. In a tunne l under the stadium , they e mbraced in tears and prayed a simple prayer: " Lord , wha t happe ned? Please come he lp us, show us what to do." To be honest, Jim says, he expected the prayer to result in his re instate me nt into the nex t round o f competition. Instead a n O lympic o ffic ial told him, "Come back in 4 years." "[The offic ial] was wearing a coat and tie," Jim says, recalling the meeting after the race to decide his appeal. When it was denied , " I wanted to pick him up by the tie a nd he lp him experience some o f the pain I was feeling right then. But I re membered the prayer Anne a nd I had prayed." Hurt, confused, but determined to accept God 's answer, they walked a way. Years later, during the 1984 Ol ympics in Los Ange les, Jim saw the same offic ial again . " I' m sure he had on a diffe rent tie," he says with a laugh. But Jim no longer wanted to grab it. God had answered the simple prayer he a nd Anne had prayed in the tunne l 12 years before-not by giving him another chance at the gold meda l, but by tak in g a way the d isappointme nt of those lifeshaking moments and giving him a foundation fo r his life much more stable than a Tartan track. Today, Ryun lives with his wife and four children in Lawrence, Kansas. Running is still a big part of his life. He travels and speaks at business gatherings, does broadcast commentary on races, and competes in age-group road races and mile runs. His pulse quickens a little every 4 years, he admits, about the time of the O lympics. The memories come back. In a way, they're like scars: reminders of past hurts. But these hurts have been healed.
'I wanted to ... help (the Olympic official) experience some of the pain I was feeling.'
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Training Tips
GETTING UP TO SPEED FOR THE re creational runner, 5K and IOK races prov ide an enjoyable competitive outle t. But if yo u re ally want to compe te at your best in these contests-and not ju st jog le is urely-Jim Ryun offers these tips:
•SPEED TRAINING. Work on speed I day a week. Run a few fast ha lf-miles, with a little rest in between.
•SLOWER PACE. In most races, e veryone runs too fast at the beginnin g . If you try to keep up with the m , you ' ll SUffe r " o x y ge n CHAAUERIEDEL debt" late r in the race. Run at a pace you feel comfortable with. But if you don 't know how to pace yourself, ask a fellow (preferably more experienced) runner ho w fast he's going to run at the start. If it's within your range, keep an eye on him. •MINDSET. Running 's individual nature, with its emph asis on personal performance, can hurt you competiti vely. "I find that if 1 can get my mind off myself, it helps me run better," Jim says. "When I run a race, I try to encourage the other runne rs too." •THE BIG PICTURE. H ave fun pushing yourself, but don ' t lose sight of your long-term running goals. You can press too hard in a race and end up hurting yourself. Keep your original goals • foremost.
" How many gold medali sts do you know?" Jim asks. " Maybe one. Probably none. But how many people do you know who have had some sort of disappointme nt in the ir li ves? How many people do you know wh o have tri e d a nd not wo n? Because o f what happened in my life, I identify with people. I can te ll the m that no disappoint• ment is so big that God can ' t heal it."
Ken Sidey is an assistant editor for Christianity Today magazine. SECOND
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DISAPPOINTMENTS • FEATURE
AFEW STEPS SHORT
Brad Budde had a successful football career.
But compared to his father ... .
Budde won his share of honors at the University of Southern California and with the Kansas City Chiefs. 8
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MAGINE. You ' re 4 years o ld. A litin an oversized he lmet, jersey, and shoulde r pad s. You gaze a ro und M ic hi ga n S tate Un iversity's massive Spartan Stadium . It's 1963, a nd your dad, offensive guard Ed B udde (sounds like " buddy"), is about to lead the Spartans onto the field for anothe r Big 10 game. The 76,000 screaming fans roar. If you ' re that little boy, those are memories to lead yo u . . . a nd foots teps to follow. Those memo ries will tickle the mind of future Kansas C ity Chiefs offensive lineman Brad Budde. But those footsteps will be tough to follow- his dad is a 6-foo t-5 , 265- pound All -A me rican a nd future All -Pro. Ed a nd Caroly n Budde were teenagers whe n Brad was born a sho rt tim e before his fa the r entered Michigan State on a football scholarship. Years later, in the late 1970s, Brad starred at the Unive rsity of Southern California, and his brother Johnny recentl y fi nished his play ing career as a defe nsive e nd for the Spartans. It must have been inte resting for the Budde family when Michigan State (and Johnny) stopped USC in the 1988 Rose Bow l. Somew here be t ween Budde-b uddy and Family Feud. Success and he redity aside, did Dad force his sons to fo ll ow in hi s foot ste ps? "Dad neve r pushed me into it, but I could see that football had bee n good to us ," says Brad , whose 6-foot-4 frame has trimmed down from hi s 280-pound playing we ight s ince his re tire ment. "Football allowed me to feel good about myself. Up until I got into the pro ranks, it was actually a very positive experience. But then there was the compari son , and things didn ' t go smoothly." The comparison. Try to fo llow a lege nd. Vince Lombard i or John Wooden? Roger Sta ubach or Te rry Bradshaw? No ma tte r how good the performance, whispers become wate rfalls of criticism, cascading down upon the unfortunate heir. Ed Budde, named to the Chiefs Ha ll of Fame in 1983 , played during Kansas City's g lo ry years, the 1960s. Names like Len Daw so n , Buck Buc hanan, Otis Taylor, and Mike Garre tt filled the roste r, and head coach Hank Stram paced the sidelines. The Chiefs made it to the first Super Bowl (losing to the Green Bay Packers), and won
BY KAREN
RUDOLPH DROLLINGER
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Super Bowl IV. They were among the strongest of the American Football League teams that forced the 1970 merger with the older National Football League. " I can remember dri ving to Saturday morning practices with my dad," says Brad proudly. "One day he reached over and messed around with my hair and told me I could be anything I wanted to be. We rea ll y had a close rel ation ship, and it meant so muc h to me when he told me he believed in me." Brad started out right in step with his dad. He bagged numerous honors at USC. He became only the second offensive player ever selected for the Lombardi Award as the top collegiate lineman , and he made first team All -America once and AII -Pac- 10 three times. When th e Chi efs made him their # I draft pick in 1980 (11th overall), it marked the first time in pro football history that a father and son had been drafted in the first round by the same team. The son's professional goal was to mirror his father 's accomplishments-to play in a Super Bowl and make A ll-Pro. Coming from prestigious USC with a pedigree like Brad's, the opportun ities seemed unlimited. And the Kansas City fans, med ia, and front offi ce expec ted nothing less when the Chiefs drafted Brad. Brad took over as the starter at left guard halfway through his rookie year, but his father's footsteps reached farther than Brad's would follow. Two Super Bowls? The Chiefs managed a solitary playoff appearance (in 1986). A 14-year career? Brad played only 8 seasons, with no AllPro honors. " The race doesn't al ways go to the swiftest, or the fight to the strongest," he says, quoting from Ecclesiastes in the Bible. " I don't know why some people succeed and others don' t. But I know I 've had to deal with hurts and setbacks." Success- more elusive th an Randall Cunningham scrambling out of the pocket; harder to hold on to than Eric Dickerson avoiding tack lers. But Brad's view of success doesn't relate to honors or longevity or comparisons with a famous father. He uses a different standard. "Coaches don't contro l my life. Football doesn 't control my I i fe," says Brad, who was eventu ally edged into retirement in 1988 by injuries. " Jesus Christ does. It 's important to keep persevering, and to prepare for whatever you do phys ically, mentally, and spiritually. But the Bible says that God causes it to rain on the just and the unjust. M y job is to prepare, then trust Him with the results." He says preparing spirit ually gives him the endurance to overcome the hurts and comparisons that ari se from the unfulfilled expectations about his professional career- to master even his own feelings of awakening from a dream too early. He terms such hurts and disappointments as "opportunities to grow. " " We don't want pain, hurt, or disappointments, but they help develop us into better people," Brad 10
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RICK WATIMAN
THE BURDB\1 OF GREAT EXPECTATIONS YOUR expectations have a direct effect on how you look back on your life. The wrong expectations, if unfulfilled, can lead to memories of frustration. Evenifyourhopes are fulfilled, you can feel, upon reflection, that you 've wasted your life. Brad Budde's football career holds many fond memories for him. But not because of the fame, the money, the honors, the lifestyle of a pro football player, nor even because he was part of a national championship team while at USC. Instead, Brad says his fondest memories are of his friendships. One example is Anthony Munoz, a USC teammate of Brad's and now an offensive lineman for the Cincinnati Bengals. "A true man of God and the godfather. to my children" is how Brad describes Anthony. Looking back on your life, did your expectations lead to frustration? Could it be that you had the wrong expectations?
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says. " I know they've helped me become a better husband and fat her and fri end." He admits he doesn't I ike the word disappointmellfs, associating th at with th e stin g and sti gma of fai lure. He prefers to refer to them as setbacks that strengthened his character. So now it's transition time. Brad is tackling classes at a local junior college to prepare for a career in physical therapy, adding another credential to go with his bachelor 's degree in public administration and his work toward a master 's in sports psychology. He enjoys being able to spend more time with his wife, Nikk i, and children , Sasha and Beau , in their Capistrano Beac h, California, home, a John El way toss from the ocean. Brad admits to a passing interest in NFL games and stays involved in football by serv ing as the athletic trainer at Laguna Hills High School, a short drive up the freeway. " Believe me, it's difficult sometimes taping a 15-year-old 's ankles and diagnosing his cracked toenails when you' re used to the acclaim a pro athlete usually gets," Brad j okes. But he enjoys the opportun ity to share wi th them what he's learned about life. " We're told as little boys that we can conquer the world," Brad says. " We're told that when we get awards, money, or attention, we will have arrived, and we' ll be complete persons. I got all those things, but I learned in college that they weren't fulfilling." Brad 's friends talked about fu lfillment through a personal relati onship with God. Brad was receptive. "l always seemed to have a heart for God," he says, remembering the warmth and comfort he received as a small boy when he walked into church. But he still had questions (and liked to argue for argument 's sake), so he investi gated Christianity carefull y for himself. " I feel l 've found a true inner strength now, because m y fai th gi ves me a flex ibility and endurance in spite of the hurt s and di sa ppointments," he says. " It's important not to give up, no matter how difficult your circumstances are. I have friends who are undergoing severe financi al difficulties or who have handicapped children. Then I look at my situation. They have it more difficult." Brad recalls the 1986 playoff game against the New York Jets, searching for and finding his wife in the crowd of 70,000. Looking up at Nikki , he made a motion like David slinging his stone at Goliath. It was a personal, intimate symbol of ho w they we re defea tin g th e gi ants in th eir lives-the giants of hurt and disappointments, and unfair comparisons and expectations. Somehow, that still seems like an adequate symbol for Brad ... and better footsteps to follow. •
Karen Rudolph Drollinger, a graduate in j ournalism from the University of Missouri, is a former wom en's pro basketball player, a popular speaker at camps and clinics , and a frequent contributor to Second Look magazine.
FOR ATHLETES
HARD KNOCKS OPEN DOORS Learning how to lose gratefully BY BOBBY JONES In his 12-year pro basketball career, Bobby J ones played with the Denver Nuggets and the Philadelphia 76ers. He was named to the NBA AllDefensive team 10 times and played in four All-Star games. He is currently athletic direct o r fo r Char lo tte (N.C.) Christian School and director of Bobby J ones Basketball Camps. In this article , h e talks about handling disappointmellls in sports.
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H E NBA is a toug h place to p lay. The physical, me nta l, and spiritua l demands can bring a m a n to th e breaking point. But I'm grateful for my years in pro baske tb a ll. They ta ug ht me lessons I mi ght never have learned any o ther way. One of the biggest lessons involved handling disappointments. Ath le tes don 't like to lose, but every basketball game has to have one losing team. In 1982, th e 76ers were batt l in g th e Los An ge les L ake rs fo r th e NBA Champio nship. We welcomed the c halle nge. It had been a long seaso n, and we we re ready for our chance. But we lost that final series. In the midst of our di scouragement , a minister gave us some w ise coun sel. He told us th at whe the r we won or lost we sti ll needed to thank God for Hi s bless in gs . It wasn' t easy to be thankful in d e fe at , but seve ra l of u s agreed together to do that. It turned o ut to be a g reat idea. A fte r a l l, d efeat ca n have its positive side. It made us stronger, and we learned from it. Yo u don ' t lea rn as
much from s uccess. T he first time I had a shot blocked was more he lp to me as a basketball player than the first sho t I ever made. The nex t season brought us a no the r o pportunity. We marc hed throug h the playoffs, lo s in g on ly one ga me, to sec u re our p lace in th e Championship series. But th is t ime we be at t he Lak e rs, sweeping them 4-0 to win the 1983 NBA Championship. Now, th e sa me pla yers
w h o we re so di sa ppoint ed just I year before, celeb rated th e ir vi c to ry. Anoth e r m ini ste r gave us the same adv ice we had heard in 1982. As we had learned in defeat, we were to have that same g rate fu l a ttitude . Winning was a g reat expe ri ence. We were e lated, and that same group which had met together to thank God in defeat now met to thank Him again.
One c ha llenge in sports is to keep a co nsis tent level o f e nthu sias m. If you ge t too pumped up when yo u w in , you're susceptible to the peaks and valleys that come in competitio n. The act of thanking God helped us keep a level, realistic attitude. Every clay we face diffi c ulti es. Sometim es it seems th at the de feats far ou tnumber the victories. It's easy to get discouraged or overcome w it h di sa ppo in tme nt. Bu t whe n thin gs see m th eir wo rs t , we need to tu rn to G o d w ith thank s . We can tha nk Hi m beca use o f th e Bible's promise, " . .. all thin gs wor k to get he r fo r good to those w ho love God, to those w ho a re the called according to Hi s purpose" (Romans 8:28). What we see as defeats can instead be lessons to strengthen us. In sports, when you're challenged to stretch beyond your perceived a bilities, yo u can raise yourself to a higher level. The same is true whe re fa ilures a nd weaknesses a re concerned. But it ta kes discipline. In hi s letter to the Philippian s, Pa ul desc ribed life in ath letic te rm s. He had v ic tories and defeats; he had succeeded and he had fa iled. But he wrote, " I press tow a rd th e goa l fo r the pt'ize of the upward call o f God in C hr ist J es us" (Phi lipp ians 3: 14). We have to do t he sa me th ing, in sports and in life. We have a goa l to reach. There will be setbac ks and di sapp oi ntm ents, b ut th e goa l re mains-as does the prize. • SECOND
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SAN ALL-STAR PITCHER for the family was there, and it was more important that I be with them during thi s time. San Diego Padres, Dave Dravecky That's when I brought to the doctors' minds the established himself as a model of question about the bump that had been on my arm consistent pelformance and control this whole time. I went to a clinic in Cleveland. pitching. His trade to th e San The doctors there strongly believed that it was, in Francisco Giants in 1987 was fact, a tumor, and they tested to find out what kind considered a key t o th e Giants' of tumor it was. National League West championship drive. Dave KYLE: What was their determination? was expected to lead the Giants back into the DAVE: The tumor itself was considered beni gn, playoffs in 1988, until going on the disabled not the kind that would list- firs t with a invade the entire body. sho ulder injury, th en DISAPPOINTMENTS • INTERVIEW But it was a grow ing for cancer. He talks tumor, thou gh it was with Kyle Rot e Jr. encapsulated a nd about his h ealth locali zed, so the docproblems. tors felt that it had to be removed. KYLE: Much like the The technical term space shuttle Chal for it was a desmoid lenger a few years ago, tumor. It was located things started out great halfway between my for you in 198 8-a shoulder and elbow, on three-hitter against the the outside of my arm. Dodgers your first It had started at th e game-when suddenly base of the deltoid disaste r struck. You in sertion and had went on the di sabled grown upward into my li st with stiffness in deltoid musc le. The your s houlder, and doctors felt that it was then the tumor was imposing on the musdiscovered. When did cle itse lf, and didn 't you first sense somewant to take any thing might be physic hances, so they reccally wrong with you? ommended that the DAVE: It wasn't until tumor be removed. later in the year that I KYLE: What was the lea rned a bout the delay between finding tumor, because until out you had cancer and that point no one diagfinding out the tumor nosed it. The shoulder was benign? had been the concern, DAVE: It normally from the standpoint of tak es the pathology the pain that I was re ports 7 -I 0 days t o having and how it was come through. Fortunlimiting me from ately, our doctors had pitching at 100%. decided to take a frozen That was taken care c ro ss-sec tion of the of in June, when I had tumor itself and get it to arthroscopic surge ry. the pathologist quickly, They went in and so that in the next coucleaned some scar ti sple of days they would sue. In the process they have an idea. found that my bice ps One unique thin g in my s ituation is that my tendon was partially tom, so they repaired that too. wife's cousin is a cancer surgeon in Houston. He From that point, I we nt into rehabilitation. called me to ask permission to talk to the doctor During that period , the Giants tried to get me to who had taken the biopsy. So basically there was come back. I wasn't able to come back over a on ly about a 48-hour period of waiting to find out period of about 6-8 weeks, so they decided to let exactly what we were dealing with. me rest. They let me come home, because my
THROWN A CURVE
Everything was progressing well after Dave Dravecky's shoulder surgery .. until the doctors discovered a cancerous tumor
WITH KYLE ROTE 12
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JR.
Cancer cancelled, Dave is recovering in his hometown of Boardman, Ohio.
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The anxiety level built, to say the least, during that time. B ut the reass urance tha t God was in control ke pt us under control, because we knew that, either way, we would be able to handle it. I got a phone call from my wife 's cousin 48 hours afterward. He said the pre liminary reports showed a desmoid tumor, and if I was going to have any type of cancer, that's the best type to have. KYlf: That's the medical side of the story. But as a ll of us who have been around sports for any time know, the re is a who le othe r s ide to it as well : your relatio nships with yo ur teammates, your friends, your family. How were they affected as you went from the glory of Ope ning Day to ending up the season with such a traum a? DAVE: For my frie nds in baseball, the Giants in particular, it was a tre mendous shoc k. One reason was that sometimes the truth didn 't get reported in th e press. T here we re news ite m s in San Francisco that I had a malignant cancerous tumor and was in the process of getting radi ation treatme nt. So there was quite a bit o f concern from the baseball community. In a ll honesty, Kyle, I wouldn 't be truthful if I said I didn 't have any concern at all. B ut I can honestly say that during that period, for the first time in my life, I experienced peace that surpasses understanding. This was a tremendous relief for our family. The bottom line is in Romans 8:28. It says that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. Our fa mil y rested on that promise. And together we expe rienced peace. KYlf: When you talk about that peace, it's difficul t fo r some people to get a sense of it. They think, "You' re play ing pro sports. You make lots of money. How coul d you not be at peace?" Yet there's a very real hum anness whe n you don't kr.ow what's going on a nd you have a wife and a couple of kids, and they don ' t know what's going on. It sounds like you didn't have a spirit of timidity; you may have had the huma n fea r, but it wasn' t overwhe lming. DAVE: Something I've reflected on through this situation is that no matter how much I have in this life, especially as a professional athl ete, more important than any of th at is my relationship to God. And I know that in that re lationship I am called to obey Him in love a nd to live according to His Word. The peace we fe lt was not the security that the world looks upon: " We ll , he lives in a nice home, a nd he makes a lot of money, so he doesn 't have to worry." More importa nt to me was that my famil y can draw together as a unit and re ly on God 's stre ngth to handle this situation. KYLE: Your kid s, Jo na th a n a nd Tiffa ny. Di d they unde rstand what was go ing on? What was the ir response? DAVE: We asked both of them, " If Dad could no longer play baseball because of this tumor, how wou ld you feel?" My daughter 's response was, "You mean I' d be able to go to the same school all 14
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'?ENNIS OESPRO i s/SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS
The Giants are hoping to have Dave back for the '89 season
'I wouldn't
be truthful if I said I didn't have any concern at all.'
•••
the time?'' And all Jonathan was concerned about was whether Dad was going to be home every day to play football with him. My wife a nd my childre n were more concerned about whether I was going to be healthy and still be able to spend that precious time with them. To them, baseball didn 't mean a thing. And I agree. My re lationship to my wife and to my c hildren is more important than baseball. KYLE: Yo u mentioned the di sappointment your da ughte r fe lt in hav ing to move from place to pl ace. T hat brin gs to mind th e trad e th a t occ urred in my career. I re member be ing sold by Lamar Hunt, my team ow ne r, to a nother team, and how I fe lt like meat o n a hook. Having done so well in San D iego, how did you handle the trade to San Fra ncisco? DAVE: It was a disappointment in a way, because a week prior to the trade I had read in the paper that the Padres had take n my name off the trad ing list. My wife and I both felt that it would be okay to think about settling down in San Diego for a few more years. We had purchased a new home and had moved into it right before the trade took place. The press had stated tha t there was comme nt from the team to the e ffect that I wouldn 't be traded. Obvio usly, we were re lieved and pretty pleased. And then a week late r, all of a sudden, boom! I was gone. KYlf: I guess be ing told you' re not going to be traded is like a manager getting a vote of confidence fro m the team owner. That means the ax is about to fall. DAVE: (Laughing) Exactly. But it was di fficult, because I had made many ties in San Diego. Some of my closest frie nds live there. Plus, the organization had treated me so well. I felt like I was part of a famil y that would ne ver be di srupted. Baseball , unfortunately, like all sports, is first and foremost a business. And we as athletes have to deal with it. I had to reali ze that God was in control, a nd San Fra ncisco was whe re He had c hosen to place me. KYlf: How have you found the change between San Diego and San Francisco? DAVE: It was great meeting C hristia n teammates: Allee Hamm aker, Scott Garre lts, Bre tt Butle r (who came over as a free agent). The impact that those guys have been able to make on that team is incredible. KYlf: Our readers may experience the para llel to this. Many companies seem to have the policy of moving people every couple of years, and those families go through real trauma. It was no different for you, especiall y with all the friends you had in San Diego. A lot of people can re late to the stress of having to go through such a change. But you speak of acceptance no matter what the circumstances are. DAVE: And under the worst of circum stances too. We fail to recognize tha t God can work through an y situatio n He c hooses, a nd it's no t always going to be a good one. Certainl y my situatio n with the tumor hasn 't
been one of the most positive that I' ve ever ex perienced, yet I kn ow that God can use it for His glory. The key is having that right attitude, allowing God to be your source of strength, and showing a willingness to accept the next step God has for you. KYlf: How have the Giants' team officials reacted? DAVE: They've been very cooperative, and have had a positive attitude. Their whole approach is " Don ' t rush it. Take your time. When we get to the point where we have to make a decision, we' ll go from there." KYLE: Afte r all you've go ne through, no w you ' re not " perfect" in the public's eye. Has your brokenness and being wounded strengthened your ability to talk to people about what God has done for you? Are people able to relate to you any better because now you ' re not the All-Star shutout pitcher, yo u' re a human being who's suffering? DAVE: Prior to this most people looked at Dave Dravecky as an individual who was successful and made it to the bi g leagues, with financial rewards and the opportunities to be in an All-Star Game, two playoffs and a World Series. They were probably thinking to themselves, "Sure, you can talk about God, because everything going's good for you. But what about me? I can' t get a job. My kids are hungry." This has opened the door for me to share with people. The important thing now is that people, especiall y in the Christian community, are watching my attitude through th is. It's been so exciting, being able to tell what God has done in my life th rough this ordeal -experiencing the peace and that bond He has created in trusting and obeying Him, relying on Him entirely as the strength that has gotten me through. But it always points to Him and what He has done for me. KYLE: I want to follow up on one of the comments you just made, because I think it's something everyone can relate to. In your life, you haven' t needed perfect circumstances to enable you to reach out to others. It 's not so much a platform of perfection or performance that's im portant, but it 's more availability. Given that, what would you say to every other person out there w ho may be stru ggli ng and thinking, "Gee, once I get my life together, once I get rid of all these problems, then I can help people." It sounds like you've taken the attitude of having a ministry in the midst of anything. DAVE: I went through those personal struggles too, Kyle, thinking I wasn't prepared to share what God has done for me. Like you said, it 's just that availability. The bottom line is that all you have to do is share from the heart what God has done. In all circumstances, good or bad, God can use us as vehic les, as long as we make ourselves available. That's what Christianity is all about- a persona l re lationship with God throu gh Jesus Christ. Re ligion is all the other hogwash that interferes with that relationshi p.
In San Diego: 'There was comment from the team that I wouldn't be traded. And then all of a sudden, boom! I was gone.'
•••
You don't have to be the most educated indiv idual to talk to people about Christ, because Christ's message is love, and to reach out and love people is more important than anything else. KYLE: Sounds like you're saying that while you could never avo id di sappointing circumstances, you never have to li ve a life of disappointment with Christ. DAVE: Never. KYLE: One danger when people go th rough a frustrating circumstance is that they isolate themselves and withdraw from their community of friends. It sounds like it was important to you to maintain contact with your friends. DAVE: I've learned a lot from the way people have reached out and given of their ti me. Ore l Hershiser, the day before he left fo r Japan, gave me a phone call , just to see how I was doing. Frank Tanana, whom I met years ago at a conference in San Diego, called me to make sure that everything was going okay and to reassure me that he'd be pray ing for me. There was a whole list of players and people who reached out to me. That showed me that we have a spec ial God, because He touched those lives, and they've reached out to help me. I've learned that when anyone needs that support and encouragement, and all it takes is a phone call, I can do the same things that others have done for me. KYLE: It sounds like all of us have a role in disappointment. You can be the person who is the object in disappointment , and there's a certa in role there. The c lose c irc le of friends has an important supporti ve role, not just in praying but in actual contact with you, like Orel and Frank did. While they may not be there with you in person, they can encourage you in the knowledge that despite all the many things that are going on in their lives, they' re still balanced enough as human beings to keep in touch. DAVE: And as you said , Kyle, although we may ex perience disap pointment, God never di sappoints. My ro le, as the one experiencing the disappointment of the im pact this has on my career, has been to know that He's in control, while also reali zing that He uses other people as well to help to pull me th rough. Although at times things might not be the way we would want to see them, God is always there to take care of us and give us that strength. KYLE: Next time I see you out on the mound, or whatever, I' ll remember two things that you've helped re-emphasize for me. One is tha t God never disappoints. But second, we reall y do need each other- not onl y on the mountaintops, but in the valleys. • A former pro soccer player and three- time winner of ABC-TV's "Superstars" competition , Kyle is also a TV sports commentator and pop ular speaker from Memphis, Tennessee. His interviews with sports personalities appea r in each issue of Second Look. SECON D
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For the teams that come close to winning it all, second place offers only frustration HE SCENE is a fa milia r one. An e lated mob of athletes streams from the dugo ut. Together they ;"o rm a bo unc ii1g mass of cele bration. As they leave the field , the star gives the c usto ma ry as ide to a nearby camera: ''I'm going to Disneyland!" The scene on the oppos ing side is a bit more restrained. You might see a dazed team member sitting o n the bench, blankly staring into s pace. Or a frustrated teammate throwing a bat to the ground. Or someone glumly walk ing toward the locker room, fording the sea of celebration. For every wi nne r in s ports, the re are many losers. Of course, you think first of the team that lost the championship, those objects of the ca me ra's painful pan s. But th e n back t rack throug h the playoffs, and you find more di sappointme nt- playoff semifinalists, early-round losers, those who bare ly missed the playoffs, those who were eliminated sometime during the preseason. Still, hardest hit are the athl etes who barely fell short, who didn' t have to process the pain of disappointment until the very last game, who came so close to tasting victory, only to have things go sour o n them at the end. For them, the pain of losing is compounded by the realization that victo ry was just out o f reach. A s an offen sive tackl e for th e Cleveland Browns, Cody Ri sien a nd his teammates tw ice have come with in one game of the Super Bowl. In 1987, the Browns lost to the Denver Broncos FRED VUICH
Barely missing two Super Bowls made Cody Risien and those Browns guys blue.
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in overtime afte r Denver quarte rback John Elway led a 98-yard touchdown drive to tie the game late in the fourth quarte r. Then, in 1988, Risien watched as running back Earnest Byner fumbled the ball on his way to what would have been the winning touchdown. " I had a perfect view of what was go ing on, and I knew we were go in g to score," Cody recalls. " I could feel the exh ila ration- We're going to sco1-e!-and then all of a sudde n, the ball was on the ground, and I thought, I can't
believe it." For pro baseball player Tommy Herr, the disappo intme nt came from a blown call in the six th game of the 1985 World Se ries. Every baseball fan is fami liar wi th the ni nth-inning gaffe by umpire Don De nkin ge r. He called Jorge Orta of the Kansas C ity Royals safe at first, wh ile replays showed Orta c learly was out. T hat sparked a comeback by the Royals, and Herr and the St. Louis Cardinals, only three outs away from winning the Series, los t the championship in the seventh game. " It was a fee ling of devastat ion," He rr recalls. "We felt like we ha d played our hearts out , and then to have it taken away from us on a bad call was something that we never did recover from." Tommy even blames the Cardinals' poor play in 1986 on the disappointment of losing the 1985 Series.
BY JOHN CARVALHO A blown call in the 1985 World Series shot down Tommy Herr and the Cardinals.
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'It was a feeling of devastation.' -Tommy Herr
••• FRED VUICH
He c laims th at d isappointme nt c ut far mo re deeply tha n S t. Lo ui s' loss in th e 1987 World Series to the Minneso ta Tw in s . "Aga in s t Minnesota, we didn ' t have the fee ling of devastation. We fe lt pro ud of our accompli shme nts as a team. We were playing without our best offen sive player, Jac k C lark, a nd a lso w ithout a health y Terry Pe nd leton. We felt pretty proud that we took Minnesota to seven games and even had a c hance to win the Series." Even in hi s frustration, Herr at least could look back on the Cardinals' victory in the 1983 World Series. But Risien and his C leveland teammates have never been to the S uper Bow l, so the nearmisses are that much more unnerving. " I would say I grieved for a coupl e of weeks," Cody recalls of 1988. " I cou ldn 't read any of the press buildup to the S upe r Bowl. A couple of times I tried, but I kept thinking that we s ho uld have been there. It wasn ' t until after the S uper Bow l was over that I could put it to rest. " Any di sappointment is hard to overcome, but pro athletes must also face the de pression of the fans. Tommy remembers the difficulty of facin g the heartbroken St. Louis· fo llowers. " It was kind o f humili at ing, having to answer the questions and so forth ," he says. " I got a little tired of it. I was experiencing emotional pain m yself, and I really didn't want to have to go out and deal with it in public, but that was some thing we all had to do." Cody a lso haa to confront hi s c ity's frustration. " I know ho w disappointed th e fans were," he says. "Cleve la nd is s uch a g reat city to play in. They're so much behind you. And the n, to see the disappointm e nt o n everyo ne's face, yo u feel somewhat responsible." The experience left both Cody and Tommy with a jaundiced view of sports' stress o n winning and losing. "Even if we had won the Denver game and gone o n to win the Super Bowl, we s till would have to do it again the nex t year," Cody says. " It's all so te mporary. That 's whe re I aga in reali zed that m y identity can' t be caught up in o ur wonloss record." Tommy adds, "Sometimes too much emphasis is put on winning and losing." He sees thi s obsess ion 18
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Cody (left) and Tommy have put the disappointment behind them, but St. Louis will always be haunted by the missed call at first base (right).
'I would say I grieved for a couple of weeks.' -Cody Risien
•••
filte ring down into youth sports, placing added stress on young athletes. "As lo ng as you're work ing hard in practice and seeing improvement, yo u sho uldn ' t e ncounter great disappointment if you don't have as many wins as you'd like." The veteran major leaguer applied thi s principle last season a fter he was traded from the Cardinals to the you ng Minnesota Twins who had beaten Tommy's team the season before. In 1988 , th e Twins won more games tha n they had in the ir c hampionship season, but they still fini shed seco nd to th e powerful Oakland Athl e ti cs in th e American League West. "That ball c lub pl ayed the ir he arts o ut last year," said Herr, since traded to the Philadelphia Phillies. "Th ey went ou t and re prese nted themselves and the Twins o rgani zatio n well. It was just o ne of those situations where the other team was be tter. Oak land had the bes t record in baseball , and we had to tip our caps to them. But in no way does that reflect poorly on th e Twins." Risie n likew ise re fu ses to be des troyed by defeat. S pea king from ex perience, he adds, " Losing is never fina l, a nd it 's no indication of , yo ur self-worth. Everyone gets so into sports in this cou ntry that we have a te nde ncy to lose o ur pers pective on reality. Really, it 's onl y a game." A nd Ri sie n reali zes th at, s ho uld the Brown s win a S uper Bowl, the fee ling may not be all it 's cracked up to be . "Somet imes, after a big game, the nex t day I fee l such a frustratio n. I geared up so much to play agai nst a high-caliber opponent and had such hig h expectations, and if I' ve done the job and we've won, the fee ling is so fleeti ng. It doesn 't sati sfy me like I thought it would." Thi s season's c hampi ons sho uld heed Cody 's words. In sports today, the c hampionship team will have a difficult time even mak ing the playoffs next year, much less repeat. And should last year's winners be fortunate enough to make the final s, the joy of their previous victo ry won' t he lp as they watch the newly crowned vic tors- the bo uncing mob o f celebrati on and the star filming a Disney land comme rcial -w hile one o f the now ex-c hampi on's team me mbe rs s ta res blankly into space, and anothe r throws a bat in frustration . . . •
1.
17. Which future NBA star
2.
made two free th rows that seemingly won the go ld medal for the U.S. basketball team in the 1972 O lympics, until the Soviet Un ion's controversial last-second basket won it? A. Elvin Hayes B. Doug Collins C. Bobby Jo nes D. Ed Ratleff
Who lost 18 consecuti ve ga mes as a pitc her fo r the New York Me ts i n 1963? (Hint : He's currently a manager in the major leagues.) Former Cy Youn g Awa rd w inne r Mik e Ma rs ha ll tied an American Leag ue record in 1979 fo r most games lost in a season by a re li ef p it c he r. How many ga mes did he lose? A. 10 B. 12 c. 14 D. 18
'•
3. Who
pitched 12 perfec t inn in gs fo r th e Pitt sbu rg h Pirates, onl y to g ive up a hit a nd lose th e ga me in th e 13th inning? A. Harvey Haddi x B. Bob Friend C. Bob Moose D. Bob Veale
4.
Hal l of Farner Wa lter Johnson was in vo lved in 64 1-0 ga mes. How many of those did he lose? A. 10 B. 15 c. 26 D. 3 1
5.
Wh ic h C hi cago C ubs pitcher set a maj or leag ue record by yielding hit s to the first seven batters in a game? A. Burt Hooton B. Bill Bonham C. Steve Stone D. Ferguson Jenki ns
G.
W hi c h New Yo r k Yankees pitcher gave up the horne run to Bill Mazeroski th a t wo n th e 1960 Wo rld Seri es for the Pi rates? A. Ra lph Terry B. Art Ditrnar C. Whitey Ford D. Jim Coates
7. Which Hall of Famer set a World Series record by hitting into three double plays in one game? A. Mickey Mantle B. Willie Mays C. Ty Cobb D. Yogi Berra
that 1972 U.S. team? A. Hank lba B. Pete Newell C. Bobby Knight D. John Wooden
19.
Stumpers recalling famous frustrations
Whe n Ch ris Eve rt in 1987 failed to win at least one tourn ament in tennis' Grand Slam (the French, Australian, a nd U.S. Opens and Wimbledon), it broke a long streak. How many years in a row had Evert won at least one major tou rnament? A. 10 B. II c. 12 D. 13
20. "fired" for making two errors in the second game of the 1973 Wo rld Series?
9.
Which of these players was on the losing team in six World Series? A. Gil Hodges B. Pee Wee Reese C. Duke Snider D. Don Baylor
10.
Which member of th e St. Louis Cardi nals failed to get a hit in 22 at-bats in the 1968 World Series? · A. Dal Maxvill B. Mike Shannon C. Tim McCarver D. Lou Brock
11.
In 1988, th e Los Angeles La ke rs became the first team to wi n consecuti ve NBA titles in 20 years. Name the last team to lose consecuti ve NBA Champ ions hi p fi nals.
8. Who was the Oakland A's 12. The Mil wa ukee Bucks second base m an w ho wa s
18. Who was the coach of
wo n a co in toss with the
Phoeni x Suns for the right to draft Lew Alc indo r (now Kareern Abdui-Jabbar) as the # I pick in 1969. Whom did the Suns take with the second choice?
In 1986, Bob Tway holed a bunke r sho t on the fina l hole to beat me in the PGA Championship. In 1987, Larry Mi ze sank ·a 140-foot chip shot on the second playoff ho le to beat me in T he Masters. Who am I?
13.
Who was th e Lakers head coach who was seriously inj ured in a bicycle accident in 1980, givi ng Paul Westhead th e o pportunit y to lead the Lake rs to th e ir firs t NBA Championship since 1972?
14. What head coach of the Los Angeles Rams was fired after coaching only two preseason games in 1978?
15.
Which NFL team has lost all four Super Bowls in which it has played?
1G. Who was the first coach to lose in his first two Super Bowls? A. Don Shula B. Tom Landry C. Bud Grant D. George Allen
Answers:
1. Ro ge r Craig; 2. C. 14; 3. A. Harvey Haddi x; 4. C. 26; S. B. Bill Bonham; 6. A. Ralph Terry; 7. B. Will ie Mays; 8. Mike Andrews (And rews, though uninjured, was placed on the disabled list the nex t day); 9. B. Pee Wee Reese; 10. A. Dal Ma xv ill ; ll. T he La ke rs ( 198 3 and 1984); 12. Neal Walk ; 13. Jack McK inney; 14. George Allen; 15. The Minnesota Vikings; 16. A. Don Shul a; 17. B. Dou g Collins; 18. A. Hank lba; 19. D. 13; 20. Greg Norman. SECOND
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19
'
r
\
.-.LL.SPORT
Even the top players-{clockwise from top left) lsiah Thomas and Bill Laimbeer, Brian Bosworth, and Jose Canseco-bottom out sometimes.
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DISAPPOINTMENTS: PERSPECTIVE ROM THAT FIRST youth league game to the pro championship finals, all athletes crave the excitement of winning. Realistically, most of us have more dismal memories-fumbles, missed shots, strikeouts, lost championships, and the immediate disappointment of losing. M y high school football team lost a playoff game in the final seconds. T he clock ran out with our team on the ! -yard line. I wanted to cry or hit something. I honestl y thought I would die. I had dreamed of w inning the championship game. Just one more play and we would have made i t. Oh, how it hurts when our expectati ons aren't fulfilled! The final gun had wiped out our hopes. Would the sun ever shine again? We doubted it. Everyone experiences the disappointment of shattered dreams or unfulfilled hopes. No one is immune. We seek happiness-good health, prosperity, and recognition. It seems fair to think that God would want to help us achieve such sati sfaction. I f we're trying to live a good life, why shouldn't we expect God's hel p? But what happens when God doesn't help and we can't control our circumstances? Disappointment grips our spirits, and we can get angry wi th others, oursel ves, or even God. We reason, " If there is a God, He must not care about me." But God does care about you, as the Bible demonstrates. In Luke 24, two people, perhaps a young couple, are having a conversation as they wal k home. T hey had a dream for their lives. They dreamed of a protector, someone who would bring peace to thei r land and prov ide for their needs. But things had not worked out. Now nothing made sense. Jesus Christ, who had risen from the dead th at
THE UP SIDE OF LETDOWNS You can overcome setbacks with the right perspective
BY DAVE BURNHAM
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2 1
very morning, joins this couple and talks with them. They don't recognize Him immediately, but before this enc;ounter with C hrist is over, their lives will be changed forever. As we join the story, Jesus begins with a question, "What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad?" (Luke 24: 17). Their response is immediate. "Are You the only stranger in Jerusalem, and have You not known the things which happened there in these days?" (v. 18). In other words, "Are You the only person around here who doesn't know what's going on?" A few days before, thi s couple had been a part of a victory parade. They had seen Jesus enter Jerusalem. Great crowds seemed to honor Him by cheering and providing a carpet of palm branches. It was an exciting time. But it all fell apart just as quickly. Jesus was arrested, put on trial, mocked, crucified, and buried in a borrowed tomb. How quickly the cheers had changed to j eers. Now these two are on their way home, and a stranger asks them a ridiculous question. Jesus' response is vital in helping us unde rstand how God cares about our disappo intments. Here Jesus, the Son of God, who knows our hearts and thoughts, is being challenged. He could have revealed Himself at that point: "Jesus? You 're talking to Him! " His response, instead , is a simple question: " What things?" (v. 19). It's like He's saying, "Tell Me what's bothering you." It didn't take them long to express their confusion concerning Jesu s. They described His ministry: He "was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people" (v. 20). They knew he had died (vv. 20,21 ). They had heard reports that His tomb was e mpty and angels said He was alive (vv. 22,23). They added, "And certain of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but Him they did not see" (v. 24). They were still perplexed. His resurrection had not become a reality to them. Pieces of the puzzle didn't fit. Like the young couple who prayed for a child, only to have the infant die after a few brief hours. Did God answer the ir prayer, only to snatch the new baby out of their arms? Doesn' t God care? Or the athlete who prayed before a big game, only to have his team lose on a bad call by a referee. Is that fair? Doesn't God care? Or the young father who devoted his life to serving as a teacher on the mission field, only to die in a tragic car accident soon after arriving. What will happen to his family? Doesn't God care? We all have faced that question: Doesn't God care? It may arise from the loss of a loved one, the unfortunate timing of an event, or a setback that never should be allowed to occur. And we may be like the couple in Luke 24. We know the facts about Christ, yet have never experienced the reality of His resurrection. We go through the religious traditions, including Easter, the celebration of the resurrection, but it means nothing in our lives. How did Jesus change the couple's disappoint22
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HOW DISAPPOINTMENT LEADS TO FULFILLMENT
We all have faced that question: Doesn't God care?
•••
YOU CAN PUT di sappointme nt to work for you, if you will let it bring you to Jesus Christ. He has promised ne ver to leave nor forsake those who trust Him (He brews 13:5,6 ; John 6:37; John 3: 16). Feeling bad can be a plus. Jesus didn't come to save winne rs. He came to save s inne rs - those who in their personal distress recognize their need of God and their failure to trust and Jove Him above all else. He won't g ive you everything you want, when you want it, the way you want it. But He will give you everything you need as you let Him coach you, father you, and shepherd you through life. And in the end, you can be sure that He will not disappoint you. lf you want to come to Him, you can pray words like these:
Lord, !' m disappointed in myself and everything else. I' ve sinned aga inst Yo u. But I believe that You died f or my sins, and that the Father raised You from the dead. Now the best I know ho w, I trust You as my Sa> iOJ·. Please come into my life and f org i ve me . Make me Your child. Help me to trust Yo u for everything I need. Thank You. The Second Look staff is always ready to help you with a ny questions you may have about your relationship with God. Write to us at Second Look, Box 3566, Grand Rapids, Ml • 49501 -3566.
me nt? May be He could have done something spectacular to grab their attention. At the ope ning ceremonies of the Summer Olympics in Seoul, when the Olympic fl ame was lit, three jets thun dered overhead, pouring out the Olympic colors. The impact was transfixing. Maybe that 's how God should speak to us today. He could use thunder and lightning, or spell out a message in the clouds. That way we would know that He really cares-that He is still working in our lives despite disappointments. What did Jesus do? Verse 27 te ll s us, " He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself." Amazing. He opened the ir minds and hearts by opening the Bible to the m. He said, in essence, " You have re li gious knowledge. You go through the motions. But you don't see what God's Word is saying." Later that day, when Jes us e ncounte red other di scouraged and disappointed disciples, He used the same method. Luke 24:44 quotes Him as saying, "These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms conce rning Me." The phrase, "the Law of Moses and the Prophets
and the Psalms," is s imply the Hebrew way of saying "the Scriptures." The Scriptures taught that Jesus, who would give the~ life and hope, would also know difficulty, suffe~·mg, and even death. He was well-acquainted w1th son·ow, but He was not de feated by it. In the midst of our shattered dreams Jes us invites us to tell Him the burdens of our h~art. He und e rs tands; He's b ee n there. And peace comes-not from the remova l of diffic ulty but from expectations based on the principles of the ~ ible. T his kind of peace, from a new perspective, IS what Jesus was referring to when He said, "My peace I give to you; not as the world g ives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid" (John 14:27). It's the kind of peace that tells you that your life has purpose, that you are more than able to face today's problems, that even athletic defeats can teach you lessons about life. This is no de featist attitude; the Bible a lso g ives us a pers pective on power. The apostle Paul wrote, " I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (Phi lippians 4: 13) . That's not talking abo ut physical power. It means that He g ives us the stre ng th to achieve to the best of our abilities so that we can honor God with our courage and our commitment to excelle nce. The strength that He g i~ es us can handle di sappointment-we may expenence defeat on the playing field, but never defeat of spirit. One powerful perspective is Jesus' promise in Hebrews 13:5, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." What a wonderful encouragement to know that we're not alone and He has not left us. In the midst of your disappointment, it 's important to know that God still cares, and that throug h His Spirit He is ab le to be there with you as your Savior, your Lord, but a lso your Friend. This perspective changes the way you think and li.ve. It changed the li ves of those discouraged, d1sappointed disciples. When you have a pe rsonal re lationsh ip with God through Jesus Christ, the power of His resurrection gives you a courage and a confidence today that nothing can de feat. ~o what is the proper way to respond to disappomtme nt? Here are a few words of insig ht: 1. State the facts. Be honest with God about what's go ing on. Don ' t hide your feelings. Face reality. Tell Jesu~ where you hurt. 2. Examine the Scriptures. God does have a plan. Don't just pick out one Bible verse to cling to. See how the overall context of the Bible reveals God's purpose for your life. 3. Observe Jesus' life. As you read the accounts of His life, note how He demonstrates His concern and care for you in every situation. 4. Be confident. Jesus is ri sen from the dead. Because He is alive, we can know Him and the power of His resurrection. (See Ephesians I: 18-21.) God is trustworthy. And Christianity is not just a re li g ious tradition; it 's a pe rsonal faith in a Christ who actually conquered death. When you believe it, you e xperience it. And that 's the greatest victory of all. •
BIBLE STUDY
ASECOND LOOK AT DISAPPOINTMENT In his article, Dave Burnham states that disappointment stems from unfulfilled expectations. Should you then do away with your hopes? Hardly. Keeping hope alive is your lifeline. To abandon it is not a worthwhile solution. Here are some biblical guidelines for dealing with disappointment.
1. PREPARATION. Pray about it. ~ead
Philippians 4:5-7. How can we overcome di sappointments, accordmg to verse 6?
What does God promise us as a result of praying, according to verse 7? W~i~e d?wn a disappointment you're facing ri ght now. As you do , apply Ph1hpp1ans 4:5-7, and talk to God about it.
2. CONTEMPLATION. Think about it. R~ad the foll?wing verses. Next to each, jot down notes on what you thmk your mmdset should be in dealing w ith di sappointments.
Acts 7:60 I Corinthians 4:5 2 Corinthians 5:9 Philippians 4:8 Philippians 4: II Philippians 4:19 Note the di sappointment you referred to in Section I. Which of the above verses most app li es to your situation? Why?
3. CONVERSATION. Talk about it. Read James 5:12. What principle in communicating does it re fer to? Why is thi s important in talking to God about our di sappointments? Read Matthew 18: 15. What should you do if your disappointment was caused by another person 's failure? Read Galatians 5:22,23. Which of these characteri stics are the most difficult for you to exhibit when confronting someone? As you consider the di sappointment you're currently facing, name one P.erso~ you need to talk to. (It could be someone directly invol ved in the s1tuat10n, or someone you can talk to openly.) Make it a point to speak to that person within the nex t week.
4.1NCORPORATION. Live with it. Read Romans 8:28. What does God promise about di sappointments? ~ow re~d the next verse, Romans 8:29. What is one purpose for d1sappomtments?
Memori ze .Romans 8:28. As you do, think about what the verse is saying . How does It apply to the disappointment you're experiencing now?
-Ralph K. Drollinger SECON D
LOOK
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HERE'S THE PAIN. WHERE'S THE GAIN? It's tough enough to lose. But living with the pain of such setbacks may seem like more than we can endure. Everybody has to lose sometime, but does it have to hurt so much?
Second Look Magazine addresses a variety of life's tough questions- like disappointments - with a fresh approach.
TAKE ASECOND LOOK AT THE REAL ISSUES IN SPORTS ... AND LIFE.
The real issues In sports ... and life
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