Every athlete plays sports because they have a burning desire to get in the game. Sure, professional athletes love money and fame, but you would be hard-pressed to find one who did not love their sport. However, coaches have a responsibility to put the people in the game who will put the team in the best position to win. In the 2010s, one professional basketball coach, Greg Popovich had an aging team, and he is credited with starting “Load management” for his players. Load management is a nice way of saying they are resting the old guys. Coach Popovich was resting his starters one game and his reason for the roster substitution, he listed, “Too old.”

It is one thing for a coach to rest a player, but it is another thing for a player not wanting to get in the game. Fans everywhere look down on players who get to do what they love but choose to sit out because they are “tired.” What if God had a position He wanted you to play and you said, “No, I am just sitting on the bench?” There is a story in the Bible that this exact thing happened in the book of Genesis. We all know the “Great Cloud of Witnesses” hall of famer, Abraham, but we do not hear much about his dad. Abraham’s dad had his number called by God to get in the game, but he decided to sit it out. Read what happened.

“Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, the wife of his son Abram, and together they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Canaan. But when they came to Harran, they settled there” (Gen 11:31).

We cannot say why the Bible says Terah was going to Canaan; however, it is likely God was leading him to the future promised land. We do know Terah intended to go to Canaan but fell short. Notice Terah started strong as he headed to Canaan, but God’s Word says when he got to “Harran, they settled there.” Terah could have been taking a rest, but he never moved on from there. Thankfully, God’s plan does not rely on one person, so Abram (later changed to Abraham) was told “Leave your father’s family and go to the country that I will show you” (Gen 12:1).

The question for you is, do you have a “Harran” you are tempted to settle in? I hope you get in the game and keep in the game God called you to!