by Shannon Caughey

The most consistently successful coaches I know focus on more than teaching skills or coming up with good competitive strategies. They emphasize the right way to do things—and not just things specific to their sport. These coaches address what condition to leave the locker room or dugout in when they are the visiting team. They instruct their athletes to speak respectfully to authority figures and to express gratitude to bus drivers and custodians. They coach their athletes in issues of character and values that go beyond sports, not just in attributes that improve competitive performance.

These coaches understand that their position and influence offer them the chance to have a unique role with those they coach: being a guide. They want to guide their athletes in living the right way through growing as the right kind of people. In fact, this is an important dimension of being a Psalm 23 coach. We’re continuing our series of devotions on Psalm 23 and considering what it looks like to be a coach who mirrors how the Lord leads and shepherds us. In previous devotions we’ve seen that the Lord is our provider and restorer. Picking it up in the second half of v. 3, Psalm 23 points to how our Good Shepherd is also our guide: “He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.”

Anyone who has spent time with sheep will tell you that they need guidance. Left to their own devices, sheep will tend to wander off and get themselves lost or in dangerous situations. In Isaiah 53:6, the prophet observes, “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way…” We need the Good Shepherd to rescue us from the consequences of going our own sinful way, and we need him to restore us to his flock. The Lord Jesus does this for us when we respond in faith to him. He then guides us along the right paths: the way that leads us to becoming who God created us to be and living according to his good design. 

The Lord guides us “for his name’s sake.” In Scripture, God’s name goes beyond what he is called. “Name” is shorthand for the whole of who God is: his character and purposes. As we follow the Lord’s guidance, we bring honor to God’s name because we live according to his character and purposes, reflecting who he is. And we point others to the way that leads to life in Christ.

As a coach who is being guided by the Lord as your shepherd, how do you then shepherd your athletes effectively by being a guide to them? Two thoughts:

1. Understand the best position from which to guide your athletes effectively.

Often shepherds guide their flock from the front. The sheep follow as their shepherd directs them verbally and models for them what taking the right path looks like. But sometimes shepherds guide from beside or behind the flock. If their sheep are prone to distraction or are dealing with fatigue, the shepherd will come up beside or behind them to correct, urge on, or even pick up those who struggle. As our shepherd, the Lord guides us from all of these positions. Through his Word and example, he leads us on the right path. When we get distracted or weary, the Lord is right there beside us to redirect us away from wrong paths. He is always ready to encourage us and urge us on.

As you coach, much of the time you will guide your athletes from the front: teaching them about the right way, and modeling the character and values you desire to instill. There will be times, though, when you need to come alongside an athlete who is headed down the wrong path so that you can redirect them toward the right path. Or you may need to come up “behind” certain athletes to pick them up and encourage them when they are struggling. Regularly ask the Lord for wisdom regarding which position is best for effectively guiding your athletes collectively and individually.

2. Cultivate the trust needed for your athletes to follow your guidance.

The reason sheep are willing to be guided is because they trust their shepherd. In John 10:14-15, Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me…and I lay down my life for the sheep.” We trust and follow Jesus because we know who he is—Son of God, Messiah, Christ, Lord of all—and we know what he’s done in sacrificing his life for us because he loves us. Reflecting Jesus as our good shepherd, coach your athletes with the same type of character and sacrificial love. You cultivate trust with them as they see and experience Christ through you—even if they’re not yet at a place in their spiritual journey that they recognize it’s Jesus in you they’re seeing. The more your athletes trust you, the more they will follow your guidance. And this leads to even greater opportunities to influence them for the Lord and his glory.

Coach, look to the Lord daily to guide you along the right paths for his name’s sake. Then be a Christ-reflecting guide to your athletes, helping them compete and live the right way.

For reflection: Praise the Lord that he is your shepherd who guides you. Ask God to grow you as a shepherding leader who guides your athletes in ways that honor Christ.