Chapter One
Day 1
GAME PLAN
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the
truth and the life. No one comes to the
Father except through me."
John 14:6
Play Book Assignment: Read John 3:1-16
Which Way?
Did you ever shoot at the other team's basket during a basketball
game? That's pretty embarrassing. But think of how
embarrassing it would be to run a football all the way to the
goal line-the wrong way! In the Rose Bowl!
Talk about going from glory to goat in five seconds flat!
It happened a long time ago. Before television. Maybe before
radio. It was January 1, 1929, and the University of California
was playing Georgia Tech in the huge Rose Bowl game in
Pasadena, California. Roy Riegles of UC grabbed a Tech fumble
and took off for all he was worth. After all, this was the biggest
bowl game in college football, and he had a chance to make history.
So he ran. And ran. And ran.
All the while, his teammates were running after him, trying
to flag him down. Roy was running toward the wrong goal line.
Finally, just before he would have carried the ball across for a
Georgia Tech touchdown, one of his teammates tackled him. On
the next play, California was sacked in the end zone for a safety,
and they lost the game 8-7.
Ever since then, Roy Riegles has been known as Wrong
Way Roy.
Did you ever think about whether you are going the right
way? In life, that is. It happens to a lot of kids. Read this verse,
and think about what it means: "There is a way that seems
right to a man, but in the end it leads to death" (Proverbs
14:12). In other words, people can think they are headed God's
way only to discover that "Oops!" that wasn't it.
The right way to go is the way that Jesus says to go.
Here's what he said: "I am the way and the truth and the
life. No one comes to the Father but by me" (John 14:6). That
means that if you want to get to heaven, you need to put your
faith in Jesus Christ.
Roy Riegles was so sincere. He was running his hardest. The
nearer he got to the goal line, the more convinced he was that
he was headed in the right direction. He was doing his best and
running his hardest. But he ran his team to a defeat.
Remember Wrong Way Roy and learn. Make sure you are
going the right way. Jesus' way.
Sports History Note
On January 1, 1902, the first Rose Bowl game was played. In
that game, played in Tournament Park in Southern California,
Michigan beat Stanford 49-0.
Instant Replay
Do I know for sure I'm on my way to heaven? If not, who can I talk to about it?
Sports Stuff
Being prepared is the most important part of being a good athlete.
To help yourself be prepared for when you'll get in the
game, study the way a favorite athlete conducts himself. How
he or she responds in a tough situation. How he or she gets
ready for every play. If you pay attention to really good athletes
now, you'll learn great lessons for when you get to higher
levels of play.
(Continues.)
