Week 5 - Roadblocks to a Teachable Spirit

MONDAY — Read the passage with your team.

     1 My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart,   2 for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity.  3 Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.  4 Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.

     5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.  7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil.       8 This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.

Proverbs 3:1-8

What does this passage have to say about a teachable spirit?

Why is that important? 

TUESDAY — Discuss the passage with your team.

1) This passage teaches us about three potential obstacles to developing a teachable spirit.  The first of those is evident in verse 1, in the form of a warning.  What is that warning?  What reward are you missing if you forget God’s commands (v 2)?

2) What can you do to remember to listen to God and follow his teaching?  Share with your teammates some ways that you’ve learned to successfully “keep his commands in your heart.”

WEDNESDAY — Discuss the passage with your team.

3) The second potential roadblock to a teachable spirit is described in verse 5.  What are you commanded to do?  What are you commanded not to do?  What does it mean to “lean on your own understanding,” and why would that keep you from having a teachable spirit?

4) What does trusting God have to do with listening to Him?  What difference would it make in your life if you could completely trust that God loves you and works for good in your life?  Do you trust that?  Is that trust evident in how you live?  Is it evident in how you ask in times of stress, risk, or major decision?

THURSDAY — Discuss the passage with your team.

5) Verse 7 mentions a characteristic that could keep you from wanting to listen to anyone else, even God.  What is this trait, and how is this a barrier to developing a teachable spirit?

6) This passage tells us not to believe that everything we think is true, and not to think that we “know it all.”  These habits keep us from being teachable.  How can these roadblocks impact a team?  If you believe that everything you think is true, what will your relationship with your coaches be like?  What problems will this cause in relationships with teammates?  If you believe you already are an expert at the skills of your sport and don’t listen much to the teaching and suggestions of others, will you improve?  Will you learn how to work effectively with teammates?

7) What one change could you make now, in order to begin to listen and respect the opinions of others?  Will you allow your coaches and teammates to pray for you in your efforts to do so?

FRIDAY — Discuss sport applications of teachability, and pray together.

· Ask your athletes to briefly reflect on what they’ve learned about a teachable spirit this week, and to repeat some of those things.  (Remind them of some of the Biblical truths about teachability you’ve discussed, if necessary.)

· Ask your team, “Based on what we learned about a teachable spirit this week...What does a teachable athlete do?”  Do not settle for vague answers; challenge your athletes to go beyond general qualities of a teachable athlete, and to determine what those qualities look like in action.

· Add the results to your team’s list of descriptions of the “teachable athlete”, and be sure the list is displayed somewhere that is constantly visible, as a reminder to the team.

· Pray together as a team.  Encourage your athletes to pray for your team’s growth in regard to the discipline of a teachable spirit — especially in relation to some of the issues and challenges that you discussed together this week.  Challenge them to also ask for forgiveness, when applicable.  Give time for athletes to request prayer (regarding teachability or anything else), and pray together.