The Wrong Direction

Do you ever suspect you are headed in the wrong direction? What do you do? Do you stop and get new directions? Do you just turn around? Do you aimlessly wander? We all need solid directions from time to time, especially when we discover we are going the wrong way.

Decades ago there was a football player named Roy Reigels who ended up with the nickname: "Wrong Way". He earned the name.

Just before half time there was a fumble and Roy recovered it. In picking up the ball he was hit and spun around a few times before he found his stride and sprinted toward the goal line. It was exhilarating he later reported as he sped toward the end-zone hearing the crowd yelling "Go! Go!" It would only be after his fateful run that he learned that what they really were screaming was "NO! NO!" Roy was tackled by his own teammate just before he would have crossed the goal line and scored for the opposing team.

Once he realized what he had done, he was totally humiliated. In the locker-room, all he wanted to do was find a hole to crawl into. After the coaches pep-talk (without even one mention of the fiasco that had just occurred) the coach told the team to get back to the field. Everyone left the room but Roy.

The coach asked Roy why he hadn't gone out with the rest of the team, and he told his coach that he was too embarrassed to show his face after such horrific failure. His coach looked at him and said, "Roy, this game isn't about you. It's about something far bigger. Now, get out there and play."

His coach later would say that Roy "Wrong Way" Reigels played the best half he had ever seen anyone play. It was like the failure transformed him.

It's a true story. Look it up.

Failure sometimes has a way of doing that in our lives. It can transform us: if we do the right things in response to our wrong direction.

Here's a prayer for all of you who have been bumped and spun around and now could be called: "Wrong Way".

Dear Lord,

I want to begin with a confession.

I have failed. But I recognized that failure is an event,

not a person. I am not a failure.

I come to You in my humanity and surrender to Your Lordship.

I confess that life is not about me,

but You and your kingdom.

Help me to see my failure through Your eyes

and not to fear new challenges in the future.

In Jesus Name,

Amen.