How Christ Can Be Your Eternal Life Coach

In the game of life, you don’t always get to play the position you want. Remember that Christ—your eternal life coach—always has the best play in mind.

One day during a high school track practice, one of my teammates asked me how I could believe in Christ when there are so many suffering people in the world. Initially I faltered, racking my brain for a response. But after a moment, the Spirit gave me the words to say to my teammate: “When our coach gives us a hard workout and we’re tired and in tons of pain, is he giving us that workout because he’s angry with us or doesn’t love us? Of course not. He wants us to get better, stronger, and faster. That’s exactly what Jesus Christ wants for us too.”

That analogy has stuck with me and helped me see my trials with more clarity. In a BYU devotional address, “Ordinary Lives, Extraordinary Miracles,” Professor Lawrence P. Vincent shares similar sentiments. He explains that throughout his career as a professional opera singer, he and his family struggled through many trials of faith. At one point while living in Europe, Professor Vincent completed several auditions in the hopes of securing a job with a prominent opera house so he could support his family. Each audition was followed by rejection. The search continued for three years before Professor Vincent was offered a role in Othello at the Vienna Volksoper—an opera house whose renown outshone every house that Professor Vincent had previously auditioned at. Through this experience, Professor Vincent learned to allow Christ to act as the professor’s eternal life coach—he worked hard and patiently waited until Christ knew it was time to put Professor Vincent in the game.

Sometimes coaches give their athletes hard workouts that cause temporary growing pains but ultimately lead to long-term strength. Sometimes coaches keep their athletes out of the game and sitting on the bench until the critical moment when the athletes’ talents can truly shine. Such was the case for Professor Vincent. The same is true for us when we find ourselves waiting for the miracles and opportunities that we’ve been dreaming of. When you find yourself feeling discouraged or sidelined, remember that Jesus Christ is your eternal life coach. The trials he allows will make you stronger. The opportunities he postpones are divinely timed.

Read Professor Lawrence P. Vincent’s full speech, “Ordinary Lives, Extraordinary Miracles,” to learn more about how Christ is at your side to help you reach your potential.

Source: speeches.byu.edu

—Brooklyn Bird, Latter-day Saint Insights

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Find more insights 

Learn more about Christ’s divine plan for your life in Elder Ronald A. Rasband’s talk “By Divine Design.”

Read Professor Keith J. Wilson’s BYU devotional address “B-Y-You Matter to Him” to better understand Christ’s investment in your success.