He Never Missed a Game 

Bob Richards, the former pole-vault champion, 
shares a moving story about a skinny young 
boy who loved football with all his heart. 

Practice after practice, 
he eagerly gave everything he had. 
But being half the size of the 
other boys, he got absolutely nowhere. 
At all the games, this hopeful athlete 
sat on the bench and hardly ever played. 

This teenager lived alone with his father, 
and the two of them had a very special relationship. 
Even though the son was always On the bench, 
his father was always in the stands cheering. 
He never missed a game. 
This young man was still the smallest of the 
class when he entered high school. 
But his father continued to encourage him but 
also made it very clear that he did not have 
to play football if he didn't want to. 

But the young man loved football 
and decided to hang in there. 
He was determined to try his best at every practice, 
and perhaps he'd get to play when he became a senior. 
All through high school he never missed a practice 
nor a game but remained a bench-warmer all four years. 
His faithful father was always in the stands, 
always with words of encouragement for him. 
When the young man went to college, 
he decided to try out for the 
football team as a "walk-on." 
Everyone was sure he could never 
make the cut, but he did. 

The coach admitted that he kept him on 
the roster because he always puts his heart 
and soul to every practice, and at the same time, 
provided the other members with the spirit 
and hustle they badly needed. 

The news that he had survived the cut thrilled 
him so much that he rushed to the 
nearest phone and called his father. 
His father shared his excitement and was sent 
season tickets for all the college games. 
This persistent young athlete never missed 
practice during his four years at college, 
but he never got to play in a game. 

It was the end of his senior football season, 
and as he trotted onto the practice field 
shortly before the big playoff game, 
the coach met him with a telegram. 
The young man read the telegram and 
he became deathly silent. 
Swallowing hard, he mumbled to the coach, 
"My father died this morning. Is it all right 
if I miss practice today?" 
The coach put his arm gently around 
his shoulder and said, 
"Take the rest of the week off, son. 
And don't even plan to come back 
to the game on Saturday." 

Saturday arrived, and the 
game was not going well. 
In the third quarter,when the 
team was ten points behind, 
a silent young man quietly slipped 
into the empty locker room and 
put on his football gear. 
As he ran onto the sidelines, 
the coach and his players were astounded 
to see their faithful teammate back so soon. 
"Coach, please let me play. 
I've just got to play today," 
said the young man. 
The coach pretended not to hear him. 
There was no way he wanted his worst 
player in this close playoff game. 
But the young man persisted, and finally 
feeling sorry for the kid, the coach gave in. 
"All right," he said."You can go in." 
Before long, the coach, the players and everyone 
in the stands could not believe their eyes. 
This little unknown, who had never played 
before was doing everything right. 
The opposing team could not stop him. 
He ran, he passed, blocked, and tackled like a star. 
His team began to triumph. The score was soon tied. 
In the closing seconds of the game,this kid 
intercepted a pass and ran all the 
way for the winning touchdown. The fans broke loose. 
His teammates hoisted him onto their shoulders. 
Such cheering you never heard. 

Finally, after the stands had emptied and 
the team had showered and left the locker room, 
the coach noticed that this young man was 
sitting quietly in the corner all alone. 
The coach came to him and said,
"Kid, I can't believe it. You were fantastic! 
Tell me what got into you? How did you do it?" 

He looked at the coach, with tears in his eyes, 
and said, "Well, you knew my dad died, 
but did you know that my dad was blind?" 
The young man swallowed hard and forced a smile, 
"Dad came to all my games, 
but today was the first time he could see me play, 
and I wanted to show him I could do it!" 

Like the athlete's father, 
God is always there cheering for us. 
He's always reminding us to go on. 
He's even offering us His hand for 
He knows what is best, and is willing 
to give us what we need and not simply 
what we want. GOD has never missed a single game. 
What a joy to know that life is 
meaningful if lived for the Highest. 
Live for HIM for He's watching us in the game of life!