Gospel-Centered TeammatesChikamu

Gospel-centered teammates speak well of their teammates privately

Yesterday we learned through the life of Jonathan and his friendship with David that Gospel-centered teammates don’t have a hidden agenda. A great way to assess your motives is to take inventory of how you speak about your teammates when they are not around. That’s our topic for today’s devotional. 

As David continue to grow in popularity amongst the people, King Saul was increasingly jealous and wanted to kill David. It would have been so easy for Jonathan to start piling it on his friend David. “Oh yeah dad, that’s only half of it! You’ll never guess what he was doing a couple weeks ago. And did I ever tell you what I saw him do when we first became friends?” This was Jonathan’s chance to reclaim his spot. Teaming with his father, the current king of Israel, would go a long way in helping him leapfrog David on the way to the throne. 

He did not take the bait. 

What does this mean for you? Gospel-centered teammates don’t lurk behind the scenes looking for an opportunity to capitalize on the misfortune of others. When necessary and appropriate, they advocate for their teammates behind closed doors. Anyone can champion a teammate in public. It takes a Gospel-centered teammate to do it when no one else is watching. 

Gossip is a deadly disease that sucks the life out of a team’s culture. More importantly, it makes ambassadors of Jesus look really bad when they are piling it on others behind their backs. Let’s throw away the old and dated playbook that encourages athletes to speak negatively behind their teammate’s backs and trust what the Word of God encourages us to do when faced with the opportunity to go negative. Let’s look toward the example of Jonathan and practice being a Gospel-centered teammate by lifting others up—especially when they’re not around. 

Questions to consider:

1. When your teammates are not around, do you speak well of them or talk negatively?
2. If others are gossiping, do you join in through laughter or your own gossip?
3. What would it look like for you to lead the charge in lifting teammates up in the presence—and their absence?