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Last year about this time our Tennessee Titans were involved in a heart wrenching defeat in the Super Bowl. All season they had fought back from deficits to win and it appeared as though they were going to pull off another comeback victory over the Rams. Unfortunately they came up about a yard and a half short.
The next evening when the team returned to Nashville they were bused to Adelphia Coliseum where more than 45,000 fans had gathered to greet and honor their team.
People painted their faces. They put on their Titan hats and jerseys. They screamed wildly as the team exited the bus and players were introduced.
When that tribute to the Titans team was over not one fan walked away saying, “That event was a dud. That did nothing for me.”
The event was a great success, not because of the performance, the team didn’t play. It wasn’t their speeches, because few of the players are great public speakers. It was a great success because people understood the purpose. The purpose wasn’t to please the fans. The purpose of the event was to honor the team and show how much they were appreciated.
That is what worship is about. Not about pleasing you and me, but expressing our appreciation and love to our Lord and Savior.
Tim (The Rock) Raines returns to the Montreal Expos at age 41 Apr. 13, 2001.
From THESTAR.COM
MONTREAL (CP) - Tim Raines wasn’t prepared for the deafening cheers from the usually quiet crowd when he stepped to the plate in his first game back in Montreal.
For Raines, it was like being in the World Series and batting with two outs in the bottom of the ninth and the winning run on base.
``It was that type of ovation,’’ said Raines, who spent his first 12 seasons with the Expos before returning this year at age 41.
Raines has been in the World Series, winning it twice with the New York Yankees. But his comeback from lupus might be an even more impressive feat for one of the best leadoff hitters in baseball history. Raines’ career appeared to have ended on July 19, 1999, when the Oakland Athletics placed him on the disabled list with a kidney inflammation. He was subsequently diagnosed with lupus.
``Lupus took me away from the game, and I wasn’t ready to give it up,’’ Raines said. ``That drove me back.’’
Nobody, other than Raines, understood the odds against him better than his wife.
``He didn’t have any muscle and he was up to about 225 pounds from the lupus,’’ Virginia Raines said. ``With all the medication he was taking, his body was so weak that he couldn’t do much.’’
Gradually, Raines was able to reduce his medication to the point where he now just takes three pills a day, along with vitamin supplements.
And so there was a thunderous reception in Montreal last week. It might have been the most gratifying moment for the man known as The Rock.
``I had tears in my eyes,’’ said his wife, Virginia. ``I knew I was going to get goosebumps, I had those, but then I started crying. It was unbelievable. It was fantastic.’’
The cheers continued throughout Raines’ first at-bat.
This was just one human being playing baseball, coming back as if from the dead.
Fanfare of the Lemiuex comeback in NHL, now Jordan too in NBA?
Greatest comeback story is Jesus coming back from the dead in easter story? What does that mean to you?
Do you cheer? Listen to what effect it had on some people in John 20.
“Comeback Kid!” Romans 4:19-25 Key verse(s) 25:“He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.”
Combacks are the things of movies and dreams! Few things cause more instant satisfaction than a comeback. People who overpower a disability or disease–teams that come from behind and triumph–a boxer down in fourteen rounds that pulls a fifteenth round knockout–the politician behind in the polls who pulls out a victory. All of these scenarios represent comebacks that inspire and give us hope that someday we too might overcome a looming obstacle in our own lives. But above these feats there has always been a type of comeback that has impressed me even more than these–the verbal comeback.
Getting behind in a conversation, buried in someone else’s logic and cool reasoning is a maddening thing. You go into the situation confident and come out battered, embarrassed and bested. Although it is a humbling experience, it is also a maddening one to most of us. We long for just that right word, the perfect thought, to pull into the argument and then, when given the opportunity to insert it, we fail because “we just didn’t think of it at the time.” Emotions high, reason, judgement, and thought are pushed aside for the moment. There simply isn’t room when our emotions boil over. We stutter, back-track, even become belligerent in our hopelessness. Then, when all is finished, our logic foiled and the foe strutting away in victory, we think of what we should have said; the comeback that would have fit so perfectly and won the day. Can there be anything more maddening than this?
I have long admired the man who could stay cool and collected when faced with an argument that hit him squarely in the jaw; the type of man who just wouldn’t blink when the situation called for blinking. I remember hearing the story of a young man who had aspirations of become the ambassador to China under President Woodrow Wilson. He was young for the job and had not served in such a high post before. He wrote letter after letter to Wilson describing his qualifications and promoting his abilities. Finally Wilson enlisted his Secretary of State, William Jennings Bryan, for assistance. He asked Bryan to set up an interview with the young man and put “the situation in order.” Bryan set up the interview at the state department and when the young man arrived, he was ushered to Bryan’s austere yet impressively large office. Not known for his shyness or lack of preparation, Bryan greeted the young man and immediately commenced a one-sided dialogue describing the “utter importance” of the office, interjecting how it was perhaps foolish to take on such a burden without the proper credentials and background. The young man seemed to listen intently to each word Bryan spoke. He took notes throughout and then, when it seemed that the one-sided argument was working, the young man looked Bryan squarely in the eyes and indicated that he had was yet convinced the job was just right for him. Bordering on frustration but still in control, Bryan changed his tactic to a more practical bent. He pushed back his chair, smiled and then leaned forward. “You know young man, in order to receive this appointment and succeed in the position there is one thing that “we” don’t have. “‘We’ don’t speak Chinese, do we?” Unperturbed, the young man smiled and moved his face closer to Bryan and whispered. “I don’t know. Try me. Ask me something in Chinese!”
What a great comeback! Although the young man did not get the job he certainly earned Bryan’s admiration. He went on to serve admirably in the State Department under Bryan. His “comeback” was perfectly conceived and exquisitely timed. But, of all the “Rocky’s” of this life we have known, read about or observed, there is one who excelled far beyond all the rest. That was our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Sin lay at our doorstep. The situation was dire. Without a savior we would be consumed by it. Then, from out of nowhere a man appears. He pushes himself between the sin and us and faces off with it. It lunges for him and the fight begins. The struggle is terrific. In fact there has never been another like it before or since. In the end, sin has its way and casts him down. He lays wretched and defeated as he sadly lays within the grave. Where is our Savior we cry? How could such a battle be fought and evil triumph over good? But wait, there is movement there. It may be the fifteenth and final round but there is still hope. He arises now stronger than ever and grabs sin by the throat and throttles it all the while delivering the perfect physical and verbal blows to the foe. Jesus Christ, our hero has won the day. It looked bad for the moment but could there ever have been any doubt? His Father had prepared Him for this day and there would be no denying it. Even the terrible burden of a world of sin was no match for the Son of Righteousness, the eternal “comeback” kid. His comeback, our victory!
Last year about this time our Tennessee Titans were involved in a heart wrenching defeat in the Super Bowl. All season they had fought back from deficits to win and it appeared as though they were going to pull off another comeback victory over the Rams. Unfortunately they came up about a yard and a half short. The next evening when the team returned to Nashville they were bused to Adelphia Coliseum where more than 45,000 fans had gathered to greet and honor their team. People painted their faces. They put on their Titan hats and jerseys. They screamed wildly as the team exited the bus and players were introduced. When that tribute to the Titans team was over not one fan walked away saying, “That event was a dud. That did nothing for me.” The event was a great success, not because of the performance, the team didn’t play. It wasn’t their speeches, because few of the players are great public speakers. It was a...
Tim (The Rock) Raines returns to the Montreal Expos at age 41 Apr. 13, 2001 writes the TheStar.Com.
MONTREAL (CP) - Tim Raines wasn’t prepared for the deafening cheers from the usually quiet crowd when he stepped to the plate in his first game back in Montreal.
For Raines, it was like being in the World Series and batting with two outs in the bottom of the ninth and the winning run on base.
``It was that type of ovation,’’ said Raines, who spent his first 12 seasons with the Expos before returning this year at age 41.
Raines has been in the World Series, winning it twice with the New York Yankees. But his comeback from lupus might be an even more impressive feat for one of the best leadoff hitters in baseball history. Raines’ career appeared to have ended on July 19, 1999, when the Oakland Athletics placed him on the disabled list with a kidney inflammation. He was subsequently diagnosed with lupus.
``Lupus took me away from the game, and I wasn’t ready to give it up,’’ Raines said. ``That drove me back.’’
Nobody, other than Raines, understood the odds against him better than his wife.
``He didn’t have any muscle and he was up to about 225 pounds from the lupus,’’ Virginia Raines said. ``With all the medication he was taking, his body was so weak that he couldn’t do much.’’
Gradually, Raines was able to reduce his medication to the point where he now just takes three pills a day, along with vitamin supplements.
And so there was a thunderous reception in Montreal last week. It might have been the most gratifying moment for the man known as The Rock.
``I had tears in my eyes,’’ said his wife, Virginia. ``I knew I was going to get goosebumps, I had those, but then I started crying. It was unbelievable. It was fantastic.’’
The cheers continued throughout Raines’ first at-bat.
This was just one humanbeing playing baseball, coming back as if from the dead.
Fanfare of Lemiuex in NHL, now Jordan too in NBA?
Greatest comeback story is Jesus coming back from the dead in easter story? What does that mean to you?
Do you cheer? Listen to what effect it had on some people in John 20.
Perhaps one of the greatest examples of comebacks in recent years has been the comeback of San Francisco Giant pitcher Dave Dravecky. During his major league career Dave pitched in the All star game, in the national league championship series and in the World Series.
In 1988 doctors removed a cancerous growth in Dave’s pitching arm, he was left with little hope for a return to baseball. But doctors and trainers would watch in awe as God and a loving family gave him the courage and grace to mount one of the most amazing comebacks, the world of sports -- and an entire generation has ever witnessed.
On August 10th, 1989, a sell out crowd watched Dave breeze to a victory over the Cincinnati Reds, in his first major league game in over a year, during the game Dave received 12 standing ovations from the crowd.
Five days later, his still mending arm was broken as he pitched to Tim Raines in the bottom of the sixth. In his own words Dave said, "my arm felt like I’d been hit with a meat axe."
When a second lump was discovered and the arm that had helped Dave Dravecky reach the pinnacle of baseball success was amputated to stem the tide of cancer, he refused to give up or lose heart. Once again his faith in God pulled him from defeat to victory as Dave has used the story of his comebacks to share the message of Jesus Christ.
I was watching ESPN’s “Who’s Number One: The Greatest Comebacks of all time.” And they were talking about the professional cyclist Lance Armstrong. In 1996, he was diagnosed with stage three testicular cancer. It had spread to his lungs, his abdomen, and his brain. His doctors told him that he would never race again. They told him he had less than a 50% chance of living. But after two years of treatment, the cancer was gone. The following year, he raced in the 1999 Tour de France, and he won First, he comes back to beat cancer. Then he comes back to beat his competition and win the championship. It’s considered one of the most inspiring comebacks in professional sports.
In his book Comeback Churches, Ed Stetzer said:
Comeback churches cast a compelling vision for outreach. They made intentional, strategic efforts to move outward.
** - The main reason a church does not grow is that it doesn’t want to grow.
Everyone in the church should be engaged in three ways:
They should be pray-ers.
Pray by name for those the church is trying to reach.
They should be bring-ers.
The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon. About half the congregation will bring someone on a Friends Day.
You may recall that on Easter Sunday I made reference to Charles Schulz’s comic strip PEANUTS. The fact that I have to identify it as “Charles Schulz’s comic strip PEANUTS” just shows you how much things have changed. In the circles where I grew up, you could quote “PEANUTS” with no more introduction than you if you’d said, “SHAKESPEARE” or “THE BEATLES.” Anyway, in one strip, Linus runs up to Charlie Brown and says, "Charlie Brown, I just saw the most unbelievable football game... What a comeback The quarterback threw a perfect pass to the left end, who ran all the way for a touchdown The fans went wild Thousands of people ran onto the field laughing and screaming They were so happy they were rolling on the ground and hugging each other It was fantastic” And Charlie Brown – Good Ol’ Charlie Brown – says, “How did the other team feel?”
From the Top 10 Comebacks of all time:
Gary Player had won The Masters golf tournament three times in his career, but during the 1978 version, he did not have the start he hoped for. After the third day, he was trailing the leader, Tom Watson, by an almost insurmountable seven strokes. He was sitting in 10th place. Watson won the tournament the year before and was clearly in the driver’s seat for another green jacket.
However, Gary Player had different ideas. With three other players breathing down his neck on the final day, Player made the turn at two under par and buried six birdies in his final nine holes to take the lead and the win by one stroke with an unexpected score of 64.
