“Be perfect, therefore, as your Heavenly Father is perfect.” — Matthew 5:48
Coaching Perfection
It is said that nothing, except death and taxes, is certain in life. Added to that list of absolutes in our results-driven society should be the numerous coaching changes that occur annually like clockwork. Because of the big-business atmosphere that collegiate and professional sports offers, it is no wonder that coaches are held to a seemingly unfair performance standard of perfection.
When teams inevitably fail to meet the high expectations of fans, boosters and alums alike, the proverbial rope of grace becomes tightened. And with so much money, for so many people at stake, that rope often becomes a noose for coaches and their staff, inescapably signaling the end of yet another coaching regime.
Similar to coaches, as Christians, we’re called to strive for the high goal of perfection. The Gospel of Matthew (5:48) sets the gold standard: “Be perfect, therefore, as your Heavenly Father is perfect.” For mortal man, this seems unobtainable, and in many ways it is. Fortunately for our frailty — in contrast to the grace period often given to coaches — the Apostle Paul conveys that God continually offers an arm of grace to the genuinely repentant individual.
And so we too, regardless of our failings, must exemplify the model of Paul: “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on…”
— Matt Dunn
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