By Michael A. Milton
2 Corinthians 4:1, 5-18
Ask former Kentucky Coach Guy Morriss about having a plan to go all the way through the fourth quarter. Last season, LSU appeared headed for a second straight league loss. The score was 30-27 with only seconds left on the clock. LSU was way back on their own 13-yard line and the blue-clad crowd was roaring for they could smell victory. In the final seconds, LSU quarterback Marcus Randall did what he had practiced so many times but never knew if he would ever really get a change to do in real time: Randall passed to Michael Clayton at the 25, and LSU called a timeout with two seconds left. LSU Coach Nick Saban gathered his team on the sideline and told them to do what they had been conditioned to do: go into the final desperation pass mode, which they had practiced and prepared for. Randall rolled right to avoid a ferocious on-coming defensive rush, and then he heaved that football sixty yards in the air. As the ball flew over the field, it seemed that time stopped; for in that time, a crowd was already taking down the goal posts, the Kentucky coach was doused with Gatorade, and fans were rushing the field. But then the ball came down, was tipped by Kentucky's defensive backs, and fell into the hands of an LSU wide receiver that broke a tackle and scored the winning touchdown. The Gatorade drenched coach was in disbelief, the players were left with mouths gaping open in shock, fans sat in shocked silence, and a funeral pall was suddenly cast over the Kentucky stadium. But LSU, in this case, was conditioned for such a fourth quarter. 2
Advertisement
Are you conditioned for the fourth quarters of life? There are many "Fourth and Long" times in our lives:
- "Honey, I have been promoted, but it means we will have to move . . . but if I don't move, I will lose my job."
- "Mom . . . yeah, Mom, it's me. Yeah, I know it's late . . . Mom, I am in jail."
- "Bill, I'm leaving you . . . I just need my freedom. I hope you understand. By the way, I want the kids."
- "Sally, the tests . . . were . . . positive . . . I'm sorry."
"Fourth and long" and the clock is ticking. The question is: can you make it through the fourth quarter? Are you conditioned for adversity in your life?
In 2 Corinthians, a letter written by Paul to the church in the cosmopolitan city of Corinth, a letter sometimes called "the painful letter" because of its confrontational nature, Paul reveals that he has faced the fourth quarters of life. Indeed, chapter four and the beginning of chapter five of 2 Corinthians is a veritable declaration of faith by Paul. He is reciting his own faith, his own resolve that no matter what comes, he will be ready to go through the fourth quarters of life because of his faith in Jesus Christ. Listen to the cadence of the creed: