The Sports Reverends - Season 24/25 - Episode 12 - 2024's Leadership Survival Guide

[00:00:10] Hey, hey, hey, hey, welcome to the Sports Reverends Podcast. My name is Dan and I'm joined with my big bro, the Coach. He's not only a coach on the basketball court, he's also a coach in the stock markets as well.

[00:00:28] I am a reverend in downtown Toronto, also a chaplain for Toronto Fire. And boy, do we got a show for you today.

[00:00:37] You know, a lot of podcasts that will give you something to take away. Some will teach you about money, some will make you laugh, some are about murder mysteries.

[00:00:44] Ours is something more spectacular than any of those things even put together. We actually will share about some of our stories and our experiences of how the toughness of life, the challenges of life, that they actually have a solution.

[00:01:01] They actually have a source that can help you out of those tough situations, that can actually bring you into a better situation than you've ever been, ever before.

[00:01:11] We're talking about our unapologetic faith. So in this show, you're going to hear some high level sports analysis, but most importantly, we're going to hear about our unapologetic faith and how sports and faith have collided in our lives to help bring us out of the mud.

[00:01:26] So if you want the solution to all your problems, keep listening and let's go coach. Why don't you share a little bit about our show today?

[00:01:32] All right. We've got a great show for you today. As always, we're starting off with our quick hitters.

[00:01:36] Talk about our week 12 recap, week 13 picks in the NFL. It's Turkey Day down there. So it's always, you know, Daniel's favorite day.

[00:01:43] And then we're going to talk about a bit of basketball before transitioning into what makes a good leader.

[00:01:51] Why don't you start us off with a quick hitter news?

[00:01:53] All right. We got the Tampa Bay Rays. They have until this coming Sunday to commit to building their $1.3 billion stadium.

[00:02:03] Trop's taking a beating, so let's see. Ex-Giants quarterback Daniel Jones has cleared waivers and is now a free agent.

[00:02:09] And the Utah Hockey Club. Still weird to say. Players were forced. They were forced to walk to the Scotiabank Arena here in Toronto as the team was stuck in traffic on Sunday nights.

[00:02:21] That'd be a good political fodder for more lanes. Javier Mascherano appointed a new head coach of Inter Miami.

[00:02:28] And Sid the Kid. Sidney Crosby is the 21st NHL player to reach 600 goals. Congratulations, Sid.

[00:02:37] All right. Before we go anywhere else, let's handle some business.

[00:02:42] You guys need to check out sportsrevs.com. That is our new Shopify store.

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[00:02:57] So if you want to support the show, this is the way to do it.

[00:03:00] On top of it, you're going to get some quality.

[00:03:02] They're mostly electronic goods or sports and fitness goods that are on there.

[00:03:06] And it's getting ready for Christmas.

[00:03:08] You can buy for your family, your friends, your co-workers, maybe if you like them.

[00:03:13] And maybe you can find something for yourself.

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[00:03:23] Awesome. Awesome.

[00:03:24] All right.

[00:03:25] Last week was not a great week for our predictions.

[00:03:28] Pick green base.

[00:03:29] So one in four.

[00:03:31] Yeah, not great.

[00:03:33] I don't know if PGs are a lucky charm or not.

[00:03:35] But we had Cleveland win, Green Bay win, Seattle win, and both LA teams taking things home.

[00:03:44] So that's okay.

[00:03:45] It's okay.

[00:03:46] Week 13 brings us a bevy of games that we can choose from.

[00:03:49] We'll fly through a couple.

[00:03:52] And we'll see how this goes.

[00:03:54] So Turkey Day on Thursday.

[00:03:55] For those of you taking the day off, you got Chicago at Detroit.

[00:03:58] The Giants at Dallas.

[00:03:59] Miami at Green Bay.

[00:04:01] I think there's two locks and one interesting game on Turkey Day.

[00:04:05] Okay.

[00:04:06] Well, let's start with the real lock.

[00:04:07] The Giants at the Cowboys.

[00:04:09] Cowboys blow them up.

[00:04:10] Come on.

[00:04:10] Let's be real.

[00:04:11] Yeah, I think so for sure.

[00:04:12] The Giants are better at tanking than Dallas is.

[00:04:15] Dallas can't even tank, right?

[00:04:17] So let's go.

[00:04:18] Go Cowboys.

[00:04:19] I'm happy and I can't be mad about it.

[00:04:22] I think your second lock is Detroit over Chicago, correct?

[00:04:25] Is that the one you're thinking about?

[00:04:26] Yes, absolutely.

[00:04:28] Detroit's looking like just a buggernaut.

[00:04:32] Now, the last game of the day, Miami-Green Bay.

[00:04:35] That's an exciting game.

[00:04:36] Miami's really up and coming.

[00:04:38] But you have to go.

[00:04:41] Yeah, it's going to be a little chilly in Green Bay.

[00:04:43] I have to go with Green Bay over Miami.

[00:04:46] What do you think?

[00:04:46] Yeah, I agree 100%.

[00:04:48] I think Miami looks good on paper until they actually do something in the playoffs and win

[00:04:56] these tough games.

[00:04:57] I'll always pick against them at this point.

[00:05:00] Great.

[00:05:00] So we're all in connection there.

[00:05:01] We're going to skip the Friday game because it's Vegas versus Casey.

[00:05:04] That's going to be a bug.

[00:05:05] It's too easy.

[00:05:06] Although Vegas does get a couple dubs there, but they cover the spread usually.

[00:05:09] Yeah, I think if this was a Sunday game, it'd be a different story because you had a little

[00:05:14] partying, a little long weekend in Vegas.

[00:05:17] But it's a Friday night, so the guys are going to go hard on Friday.

[00:05:20] Gardner Minshew broke his collarbone.

[00:05:22] That's true.

[00:05:23] That's true.

[00:05:23] Gardner Minshew's out as well.

[00:05:25] Sunday, we got Philly at Baltimore.

[00:05:28] This is a big game.

[00:05:29] Both teams, as they're trying to make pushes for the playoffs and cement their spots.

[00:05:34] What do you think?

[00:05:35] Who's coming on top here?

[00:05:36] It's in Baltimore, by the way.

[00:05:37] This is insane for sure.

[00:05:39] Yeah, I think Baltimore needs the win.

[00:05:42] I think Philly can get by with a loss, especially with Washington's loss to the Cowboys last

[00:05:47] week.

[00:05:48] My heart goes with Baltimore.

[00:05:50] I'm not cheering for Philly, but I think it's a very evenly matched game.

[00:05:54] Yeah, I think it's an evenly matched game, but I think we have to take Philadelphia.

[00:05:57] Injuries just outweighed.

[00:05:59] I think so.

[00:06:01] I think so.

[00:06:02] I'll just say that Baltimore is good at stopping the run.

[00:06:05] That's the only thing.

[00:06:07] I know.

[00:06:08] Do you want to call this one a split?

[00:06:09] Should we make this a bet?

[00:06:10] We could.

[00:06:11] We could.

[00:06:12] We could.

[00:06:13] We haven't done one in a while, and this will actually be a fair bet for once.

[00:06:16] Yeah.

[00:06:17] Okay.

[00:06:17] Let's do the spelling salts.

[00:06:18] Let's do the spelling salts.

[00:06:19] You'll take Baltimore.

[00:06:21] I'll take Philly.

[00:06:22] Yeah.

[00:06:22] And we'll go from there.

[00:06:23] Okay.

[00:06:24] Okay.

[00:06:25] I'm looking forward to going 3-0.

[00:06:28] It's going to be phenomenal.

[00:06:29] It's going to be phenomenal.

[00:06:30] I'm nervous.

[00:06:31] Don't look so convinced.

[00:06:32] All right.

[00:06:33] The next game is the Sunday nighter.

[00:06:35] San Francisco versus Buffalo in Buffalo.

[00:06:39] Who knows who's coming back from the San Francisco team healthy and hail and whole.

[00:06:43] But it's a big game because they are not looking good in the NFC West out there.

[00:06:50] Yeah.

[00:06:51] San France definitely will be more desperate.

[00:06:53] But like you said, who knows who's back?

[00:06:57] I don't know how to call this.

[00:06:59] You convinced me about San Francisco, and I'll see if I can say yes.

[00:07:03] I'm picking Buffalo.

[00:07:04] I'm going with Buffalo.

[00:07:05] I do love Josh Allen.

[00:07:07] He's my fancy QB.

[00:07:09] They're coming off a bye.

[00:07:11] That's a good point.

[00:07:11] So they're going to be healthy, right?

[00:07:13] They're going to be healthy, well-prepared.

[00:07:15] I think even if, you know, the 49ers get some guys back, they're just going to be rusty.

[00:07:20] And there's a lot of pressure on the away game.

[00:07:23] Plus, who toss in as the Sunday nighter, they're away from home.

[00:07:26] I think Buffalo comes out and wins this one by a touchdown.

[00:07:30] Okay.

[00:07:31] I'm with you on it.

[00:07:32] Let's go Buffalo.

[00:07:32] Lock it in.

[00:07:33] Beautiful.

[00:07:34] Let's go Buffalo.

[00:07:34] Lock it in.

[00:07:35] And then just for funsies, Cleveland at Denver.

[00:07:40] Who are you picking?

[00:07:41] At home.

[00:07:42] Mile High Stadium.

[00:07:43] Monday nighter.

[00:07:44] Yeah, I think Cleveland had their magical game last week.

[00:07:48] I know they have a longer break because they played on the Thursday night.

[00:07:52] That's a factor for sure.

[00:07:54] But I'm going to go Denver.

[00:07:55] I really like how Bo Nix is playing.

[00:07:57] I think even though, how was their game last week?

[00:08:01] They had a tough one, I believe.

[00:08:04] They beat up here last week.

[00:08:06] Yeah.

[00:08:07] Oh, no.

[00:08:07] They beat up the Raiders.

[00:08:08] They beat up the Raiders pretty good.

[00:08:09] It was two weeks ago I was thinking of when they had the tough one against the Chiefs.

[00:08:12] Oh, yeah, yeah.

[00:08:13] And they lost on that block.

[00:08:14] Yeah.

[00:08:14] That's right.

[00:08:15] I really like how Denver's playing.

[00:08:17] I think their defense has really stepped up.

[00:08:19] Let's go.

[00:08:20] I'm pretty confident in Denver.

[00:08:21] Yeah, I like Denver as well.

[00:08:22] I think Bo Nix is settling in the role and it's really what Sean Payton wants for our quarterback.

[00:08:28] So.

[00:08:28] Yeah.

[00:08:29] Yeah.

[00:08:29] I think let's go with that.

[00:08:30] So we're taking Detroit, Dallas, Green Bay, split on the Baltimore affiliate.

[00:08:36] That's our bet for the week.

[00:08:37] And Buffalo and Denver.

[00:08:40] Okay.

[00:08:41] That's great.

[00:08:42] That's great.

[00:08:43] Locked in.

[00:08:44] Let's see how we do.

[00:08:44] We'll lock it in.

[00:08:45] We went one and four this week, last week.

[00:08:47] One and four.

[00:08:48] One and four.

[00:08:48] Yeah.

[00:08:48] One and four.

[00:08:49] I think if we get a bagel week on this many games, it would be rough.

[00:08:52] But I think NFL, I love it.

[00:08:55] We're heading to the tail end of the season here.

[00:08:57] Who's going to peak?

[00:08:58] Who's going to fall off?

[00:08:59] It's going to be an exciting stretch run.

[00:09:02] Let's take a look at basketball here.

[00:09:05] We're quarter into our way of a season.

[00:09:07] It's crazy.

[00:09:08] Isn't that amazing?

[00:09:09] It's just flown by, flown by.

[00:09:12] And the bottom half here of the Eastern Conference, we got the Hawks, Charlotte, Toronto, Philly,

[00:09:17] and Washington.

[00:09:18] Of those five teams, did we expect any of them to be there?

[00:09:23] Maybe.

[00:09:25] I think Philly was the only one we didn't expect to be there.

[00:09:29] But we did say they're going to be slow to start and then catch up and make it into the next tier.

[00:09:35] Now, will they?

[00:09:37] Now, will they is a difference.

[00:09:38] Three and 13 is a tough, tough place to be right now.

[00:09:42] You got Maxi calling out Embiid for being late to meetings and for that kind of leadership thing,

[00:09:47] and that can't happen.

[00:09:49] You're already seeing dissent.

[00:09:50] Paul George is another bone bruise.

[00:09:52] I don't know.

[00:09:53] They're going to be a tough spot to make the 10th position.

[00:09:57] Joel Embiid has yet to win a game this year.

[00:10:00] I saw a tweet just from a random person.

[00:10:03] They're like, I've played three basketball games this season.

[00:10:06] There's three more than Joel Embiid.

[00:10:08] So, yeah, it's kind of funny.

[00:10:10] I think the Hawks kind of had a really hot start.

[00:10:13] They have fallen off the way.

[00:10:16] I think, did you want to do the trophy now because we're talking about Eastern Conference?

[00:10:19] Or do you want to wait till the end?

[00:10:21] Let's wait till the end.

[00:10:22] We'll keep going.

[00:10:23] Washington, I think, is really underperforming, but they have a really young roster.

[00:10:28] But at the wraps, I saw somebody said they're ethical tankers.

[00:10:34] They are guys who are trying hard, playing well, just lost a few games.

[00:10:37] I think they've lost about four games by a grand total of like six points or something like that.

[00:10:42] Another buzzer beater loss on Monday night.

[00:10:45] To the Detroit Pistons.

[00:10:48] I believe that's their 10th road loss.

[00:10:50] They're 0-10 on the road.

[00:10:51] Young team.

[00:10:52] That's what happens.

[00:10:52] And they're broken.

[00:10:53] They're so hurt.

[00:10:54] They're so hurt.

[00:10:55] Yes, that's true.

[00:10:56] But the only real negative about the Eastern Conference is four teams are above 500.

[00:11:03] Four out of 15.

[00:11:04] That's awful.

[00:11:05] That's incredible.

[00:11:07] But that means there's a lot of opportunity for teams to move up and down really quickly.

[00:11:11] Yeah, 100%.

[00:11:12] Yeah, let's flip over to the west side here.

[00:11:14] In the bottom five, we've got the T-Wolves.

[00:11:16] A little bit surprising.

[00:11:17] Sacramento, Portland, Utah, and the New Orleans Pelicans.

[00:11:21] Does anything surprise you?

[00:11:23] Yeah, that's the...

[00:11:24] We were really...

[00:11:25] I was really wrong so far on New Orleans.

[00:11:28] Wow.

[00:11:29] They're looking...

[00:11:31] Even with...

[00:11:31] Even when they had Zion, they didn't look great.

[00:11:33] And that was a problem.

[00:11:35] You thought with, you know, DeJounte Murray jumping in, they would look really good.

[00:11:39] And Brandon Ingram, who'd want to play for a big contract, would kind of step up.

[00:11:43] Hasn't happened.

[00:11:44] And sitting last in the west with four and 14, that's a terrible, terrible percentage there.

[00:11:50] Are they going to be trade line movers?

[00:11:54] Deadline movers?

[00:11:55] I don't know.

[00:11:56] Yeah.

[00:11:56] You know, I think that's a great call.

[00:11:58] I think Brandon Ingram is probably going to be moved at the trade deadline because he's an expiring contract.

[00:12:03] Maybe he moves Zion as well.

[00:12:05] Guy can't stay healthy.

[00:12:06] Maybe he just needs a change of pace.

[00:12:09] Yeah.

[00:12:11] Needs a dietitian.

[00:12:11] Well, he needs his mom to keep him on the diet plan.

[00:12:16] Well, you know what?

[00:12:17] I think that's the biggest thing.

[00:12:18] I think his mom might be the problem with all their good cooking because they showed a picture of Zion and LeBron James in his face.

[00:12:27] And it's just unbelievable how well LeBron has taken care of his body.

[00:12:32] I'll give him props for that.

[00:12:34] And it's just unacceptable for Zion.

[00:12:36] Like, he should be shredded.

[00:12:38] He should be in shape.

[00:12:39] And this is the cause of his injuries.

[00:12:42] It's sad.

[00:12:42] Yeah.

[00:12:43] It's just a waste of talent for sure.

[00:12:45] Let's flip over to the top five.

[00:12:47] We got Oklahoma, Golden State, Houston, the Lakers, and Memphis sitting in the top five positions here.

[00:12:54] Any of those surprise you?

[00:12:55] Well, I think, yeah.

[00:12:57] Basically, two through six.

[00:13:00] I can't believe they're the top teams, right?

[00:13:02] We had Golden State as bubble.

[00:13:04] We had Houston barely as bubble.

[00:13:06] Not making it.

[00:13:07] LA as bubble.

[00:13:08] Memphis is bubble.

[00:13:10] And the Clippers not making it.

[00:13:12] Yeah.

[00:13:12] Yeah.

[00:13:13] Good.

[00:13:14] James Harden, honestly, he's been a joy to watch.

[00:13:18] The way he's been moving the ball, the way he's been playing, he's been a joy to watch.

[00:13:23] And I've completely flipped on how I feel about James Harden.

[00:13:28] He just likes being in the West better.

[00:13:30] Maybe.

[00:13:31] Maybe.

[00:13:31] Maybe.

[00:13:31] Maybe.

[00:13:32] And shout out to our boy, Norman Powell, who's been just absolutely dynamite.

[00:13:37] Tearing it up.

[00:13:38] That's great.

[00:13:38] Yeah.

[00:13:39] I love to see it.

[00:13:40] Former Raptor, who still loves Toronto.

[00:13:42] Yeah.

[00:13:43] I think the, you know, New York getting, New York blowing out Denver the other night was a big surprise.

[00:13:49] Yeah.

[00:13:49] Yeah.

[00:13:49] You have to see, you know, Murray's got to step up big time, I think, for this team to do anything.

[00:13:54] And I don't know if he can.

[00:13:55] I really don't know if he can.

[00:13:57] That Team Canada showing was very poor.

[00:14:00] He hasn't really done much in the, he has done some in the playoffs, especially in the championship run.

[00:14:04] But like, he's just inconsistent.

[00:14:06] It's all been Jokic.

[00:14:07] Yeah.

[00:14:08] And them missing Aaron Gordon last nine games has been showing how, how much he means to that team.

[00:14:15] But yeah, you're absolutely right.

[00:14:16] It's on Jamal Murray to be the difference maker.

[00:14:20] He hasn't even been at an all-star level when he should be at an all-NBA level.

[00:14:24] So I don't know what's up with him.

[00:14:26] That's about leadership, right?

[00:14:27] We can talk about leadership later, but you know, it's about leadership.

[00:14:29] And last thing, last question here before we talk over here.

[00:14:34] Can Wemby win defensive player of the year?

[00:14:35] Can he beat out Rudy Gobert and win defensive player of the year?

[00:14:40] You know what?

[00:14:40] He's averaging three blocks a game.

[00:14:41] I sure hope so.

[00:14:43] He is an absolute monster.

[00:14:45] He is.

[00:14:46] He is just galvanizing the Spurs franchise.

[00:14:50] Like how promising is their future now?

[00:14:53] This guy's unbelievable.

[00:14:54] Game changer.

[00:14:56] Both ends of the floor.

[00:14:57] Even with the defensive award, it doesn't factor in like Rudy does nothing on the offensive side.

[00:15:04] Yes.

[00:15:05] Zero energy.

[00:15:05] Right?

[00:15:06] He does it.

[00:15:06] And Wemby does everything.

[00:15:08] He does it all.

[00:15:09] Shooting, down low, rebounding.

[00:15:11] Just unbelievable.

[00:15:12] Looking forward to a couple of VPs that are going to hinder his name for sure.

[00:15:15] And a couple of DPOIs.

[00:15:17] All right.

[00:15:18] I think we have something very special in the first quarter of the season to hand out.

[00:15:23] I'll let you roll with it.

[00:15:26] Because you don't have to give it a name.

[00:15:28] And we'll see how this goes.

[00:15:57] Yes.

[00:15:58] To Brooklyn Nets head coach.

[00:16:02] Jordy Fernandez.

[00:16:29] Jordy Fernandez.

[00:16:31] Now also the head coach of the Brooklyn Nets has galvanized this team.

[00:16:35] They had a huge comeback win against the fiery hot Golden State Warriors on Monday night as well.

[00:16:42] And he got his players.

[00:16:44] The players that are no-name guys.

[00:16:47] If I named four out of the five guys that had the most minutes that game.

[00:16:51] All right.

[00:16:52] You wouldn't be able to really tell me much about four of them.

[00:16:55] You'll know about Dennis Schroeder.

[00:16:57] But that's it.

[00:16:58] That's all you can say.

[00:16:59] The rest of the guys were basically no-name guys but hungry to play.

[00:17:03] And that's because this amazing coaching performance so far by Jordy Fernandez.

[00:17:09] So shout out the first Revy Award.

[00:17:11] Jordy Fernandez.

[00:17:12] Boom.

[00:17:13] Jordy, have your people get in touch with our people.

[00:17:14] We'll send you the award.

[00:17:15] Yeah.

[00:17:16] I'd love to see that.

[00:17:17] All right.

[00:17:18] All right.

[00:17:19] That's the basketball wrap for today.

[00:17:20] On to some more business.

[00:17:22] Change and invest.

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[00:18:35] All right.

[00:18:36] Now time for the fun part.

[00:18:37] The real talk section of our podcast.

[00:18:39] Now what I called it was, what does it take to be a leader?

[00:18:43] And, you know, typically when you think of a leader, you get one picture in your mind

[00:18:49] and it's the rah-rah guy, the guy who builds you up.

[00:18:52] But I think there's many facets that come to being a leader.

[00:18:55] You look at all across sports, there's different types of leaders from guys who show it and work

[00:19:02] hard and just stay quiet to the boisterous kind of guys.

[00:19:05] I'm sure in your workplaces, you have leaders who you like and dislike for various reasons

[00:19:09] and on different sports teams from the guys you've played with to who've coached you.

[00:19:16] So let's start with this question here.

[00:19:18] Is there a mold or requirement for what is being considered a good leader in your opinion?

[00:19:25] Yeah, there definitely has to be someone who leads by example.

[00:19:30] I think someone who will do what is asked, is willing to do what is asked and not just designating it.

[00:19:41] I think someone who leads that way is, especially when it comes to sports, obviously different

[00:19:44] situations means different opinions.

[00:19:46] But when it comes to sports, when it comes to faith, I think, yeah, being able to lead

[00:19:52] by example is a huge one.

[00:19:54] Huge one.

[00:19:55] That's what I'll say.

[00:19:56] I think that's great.

[00:19:57] I think, you know, an easy example is Tom Brady, right?

[00:20:00] Last draft, last pick of the draft, he showed that he could do it.

[00:20:05] He bided his time.

[00:20:06] He put in the work.

[00:20:08] I think players would understand that this is a guy I want to follow because he's right

[00:20:13] here sweating beside me.

[00:20:14] He's still, you know, running as hard as he can, running the drills, doing the things

[00:20:19] to excellence.

[00:20:21] And whether you're a CEO or a quarterback or, you know, even just a leader in your own

[00:20:27] volunteer programs, I think leading by example and showing people that you're willing to do

[00:20:33] the dirty work is huge because there's many people out there who think they're above it

[00:20:38] all, right?

[00:20:39] And if you're the guy, if you're the leader on the team or your group or your workplace

[00:20:44] and you're staying late to get stuff done because it needs to be done for tomorrow or

[00:20:49] you're the one cleaning the toilets for whatever program you're getting done or for the next

[00:20:54] day or you're the one digging deep to get something completed, people see that.

[00:20:59] And they're like, man, if this is my boss, if this is my leader, this is my captain doing

[00:21:04] this, how can I ask any less of myself in your...

[00:21:09] Go ahead.

[00:21:10] Go ahead.

[00:21:10] Yeah.

[00:21:11] I think, you know, I see a guy like Jokic who isn't a vocal leader, but he, between the

[00:21:19] lines, is an absolute beast of a leader.

[00:21:23] He will show you all of his hard work.

[00:21:26] People try to paint the picture that, oh, he doesn't even love basketball.

[00:21:28] No, I think Jokic absolutely loves basketball.

[00:21:31] I think he's a connoisseur of the game.

[00:21:34] He will, is so detailed oriented.

[00:21:37] It's incredible.

[00:21:38] And he'll show that on the court by the way he plays.

[00:21:41] And, you know, I, maybe I can transition this a little bit too.

[00:21:46] Like, I kind of look at ministry.

[00:21:48] I get a little bit of the behind the scenes ministry with some different pastors.

[00:21:53] And I've always actually learned this from PG and I really agreed with it.

[00:21:58] You know, there's a lot of pastors that, you know, they, they, they feel like their time

[00:22:02] at the end of history at, at a place where they're serving is coming to an end.

[00:22:06] And maybe it's a year or a year and a half where they're more focused on finding what's

[00:22:12] next than where they're called to serve now.

[00:22:16] And that's probably 95 plus percent of most pastors.

[00:22:21] They will be, I think there are many that will still be invested and still be doing their,

[00:22:27] their job well.

[00:22:28] But I think part of their heartbeat is already out the door, you know?

[00:22:32] And I think when your heartbeat is not fully into it, how can you be leading your best?

[00:22:40] And I guess for me and my perspective, if that means I'm finished at a church and I want

[00:22:45] to be done, I feel like this is like God saying, it's time for you to, to pass along the,

[00:22:49] the handles here.

[00:22:50] I feel like I shouldn't even be looking at a new place until I'm done at that place.

[00:22:57] If that means I'm going to miss a couple paychecks, a couple months of paychecks, that's how it

[00:23:01] is.

[00:23:02] But if my heart isn't a hundred percent fully into it, how can I lead as best as I possibly

[00:23:09] can?

[00:23:09] That's a great take.

[00:23:10] I think, I think that hits close to home for you in your, let's call it a career path.

[00:23:17] And the point that you're making is 100% accurate.

[00:23:21] If you're not doing something fully committed and you do it halfway, it gets noticed.

[00:23:27] Right.

[00:23:27] That's, you know, I think the commitment part is, is really important and the being willing

[00:23:33] to sacrifice to get the right thing done and do it the right way.

[00:23:37] There are so many people who cut corners.

[00:23:39] So many people who, like we look at Joel Embiid, right?

[00:23:43] He's the leader of supposedly the leader of the 76ers, yet he's running late to practice, not

[00:23:50] trying hard in the drills, things like that gets noticed.

[00:23:54] You're going to get called out by a kid who's like six or seven years younger than you for

[00:23:59] not doing the simple things.

[00:24:00] That's not true leadership.

[00:24:01] Just the same way if you're going to be sowing into people's lives, if you're thinking about,

[00:24:06] oh, you know what?

[00:24:06] I'm not going to be here in six weeks.

[00:24:08] Do I really need to give my best servant?

[00:24:10] Do I really need to pray for this?

[00:24:13] Do I really need to do this?

[00:24:14] That's not true leadership, right?

[00:24:16] And so I think the commitment is a big thing.

[00:24:18] And some of it would be natural, right?

[00:24:19] Like how could you be fully focused on it when you're, you got to do a move in a month or

[00:24:25] you got to do a move.

[00:24:26] It's a, it'd be really hard to separate.

[00:24:28] For sure.

[00:24:29] For sure.

[00:24:29] And I think that's, that's also understanding as a leader is like, okay, how do I do what's

[00:24:35] best for the team?

[00:24:36] And the team being the church, being your office, being your friend group, being whatever.

[00:24:41] However, it's about, you know, I want the team to succeed.

[00:24:45] Right.

[00:24:45] And I think you've given a couple examples of you playing basketball where you knew you

[00:24:49] could score more.

[00:24:50] You knew you could, you know, be quote unquote, the guy, but you took a bit of a backseat

[00:24:56] and you fed other guys, let other guys blossom and grow because it was better for the team

[00:25:02] and in order to succeed.

[00:25:03] Right.

[00:25:04] That's, that's leadership.

[00:25:05] That's taking accountability and saying, this is what is important is winning.

[00:25:10] In this case, how do we get there?

[00:25:13] Here's a, here's a tricky question for you.

[00:25:15] Are leaders born or are they created?

[00:25:18] I think the question's flawed.

[00:25:20] I think everyone is a leader to their capacity.

[00:25:24] I think if your capacity is to at least at minimum, your capacity is you're the leader of

[00:25:32] your own life, right?

[00:25:33] That's, you're still a leader.

[00:25:35] Even though you may not be a leader of men, you may not be a leader of a team.

[00:25:40] You still have to conduct yourselves the right way.

[00:25:43] I think leaders that are created, I guess, or born.

[00:25:47] Um, I, I think there is people that have better leadership qualities, better leadership, uh,

[00:25:55] characteristics.

[00:25:55] So I think they can be born.

[00:25:57] I think you can also build yourself up to be a leader too.

[00:26:01] I think there, I think it goes, you can do both, but some people that you still have to

[00:26:04] have that, um, willingness to lead.

[00:26:08] And some people just can't do that.

[00:26:10] Some people, and that's not necessarily a bad thing, right?

[00:26:13] Not everyone can be a leader.

[00:26:15] So I think leaders are created.

[00:26:18] I think leaders, uh, some are born.

[00:26:21] The special ones probably are born with that gift.

[00:26:24] I wish you'd answer that question in reverse because that would have been a really good

[00:26:27] transition to our next piece.

[00:26:28] But I think you're right.

[00:26:29] I like the way you put it that you lead to your capacity.

[00:26:31] Some people are naturally inclined to be leaders and take charge.

[00:26:35] Some aren't.

[00:26:35] But in the, in the, in the realm of life, what does God require of his leaders?

[00:26:41] Does he need something special?

[00:26:42] Yeah.

[00:26:43] Um, I think what's special is being able to rely on him.

[00:26:50] You know, our strengths, our natural tendencies is to problem solve.

[00:26:55] You know, I get a headache.

[00:26:56] I'm gonna take a Tylenol.

[00:26:57] I need to make more money.

[00:26:59] I'm going to work harder, get more, a second job or, or, or create a passive income, whatever

[00:27:04] it is.

[00:27:04] And we try to use our wit, our intelligence, our skills, but what God is calling us is to

[00:27:11] be faithful.

[00:27:11] Look at all the guys God's used.

[00:27:13] He used Moses, can't speak.

[00:27:15] He used Samson, who was a falling for the special lady, you know, instead of following God's plan.

[00:27:23] He let his hair get cut.

[00:27:25] You know, all, all these people.

[00:27:27] He used a guy like Paul who hated all Christians.

[00:27:29] He was the lead persecutor of Christians and turned him into now the leader, probably one

[00:27:35] of the most influential people for Christianity.

[00:27:38] So it's about more about being faithful.

[00:27:41] I've talked about this lots than being equipped with great skill.

[00:27:46] I am not someone who is the most eloquent speaker.

[00:27:49] I'm not the best looking.

[00:27:50] I'm not the smartest.

[00:27:51] But I have a role and I'm trying my best to be faithful.

[00:27:55] Please internet clip that for the next time he gets a big head.

[00:27:58] No, I think, I think that's great.

[00:27:59] I think that's also true.

[00:28:01] And I agree with you on that piece.

[00:28:04] Because you're right.

[00:28:04] Like Moses has a stutterer.

[00:28:06] Gideon was afraid.

[00:28:08] Paul persecuted Christians.

[00:28:10] David was a, the last member of his family that would ever be considered for king.

[00:28:17] God doesn't need something special.

[00:28:19] He just needs you to be obedient.

[00:28:20] He needs you to be open.

[00:28:21] Like this is kind of what we talked about the last few weeks in general is we talked about

[00:28:25] destiny.

[00:28:26] We talk about your life.

[00:28:28] We've talked about all sorts of these things tying up and it all comes down to, are you

[00:28:33] willing to be what God wants you to be?

[00:28:35] And I think that's kind of scary for a lot of people being, I think talking about their

[00:28:41] faith is scary.

[00:28:42] But again, it's not about us, right?

[00:28:46] It's not about, not about the words I say to logic somebody into the kingdom of heaven,

[00:28:52] right?

[00:28:52] I think you always say on Sunday mornings, love others, love God, love God, love others.

[00:28:57] Sorry, that's the way.

[00:28:57] And then you always say, let your voice be higher and turned up, right?

[00:29:03] Right.

[00:29:03] And I think that's, that's what really God is asking us for is, do you want the opportunity?

[00:29:10] Do you want the opportunity to let me work in your life?

[00:29:12] Do you want the opportunity to speak into somebody else's life?

[00:29:16] Do you want the opportunity to do something different for the kingdom of God?

[00:29:21] And, and I think being a leader, a Christian leader, doesn't mean you have to be a pastor.

[00:29:26] It doesn't mean you have to be someone in the ministry, right?

[00:29:29] There's all sorts of leaders who are Christians in their own fields.

[00:29:32] But I think the one theme that keeps them all together is that they trust God and they're

[00:29:38] open to opportunities.

[00:29:39] Absolutely.

[00:29:39] It's, it's second Corinthians 12, nine, which is my grace is sufficient for you for my power

[00:29:45] is made perfect in weakness.

[00:29:46] And, and it's allowing in your weakness, in your worst, allowing God to use you.

[00:29:52] And, and, and it's, it's, it's just to kind of show you, it's to build your faith that even

[00:29:58] in your worst, I can use you for my goodness, for growing the kingdom, for, for sharing the

[00:30:05] love of Christ.

[00:30:05] It's just something special.

[00:30:07] I never wanted to speak publicly.

[00:30:10] I never, I always wanted to be behind the scenes guy.

[00:30:12] I was good at that.

[00:30:13] I was good at being the youth leader, the fun one, the one that gets to go crazy.

[00:30:18] And, and, and, and I found out that you get to build these awesome connections and that

[00:30:23] there was more that I was called to do, you know?

[00:30:26] And it's just about allowing God to lead you that way.

[00:30:30] It really is.

[00:30:31] I think when you look at the life of Jesus, you kind of see all types of leadership

[00:30:35] come out from him.

[00:30:37] You have the, the quiet, the, the intense one-on-one kind of leader.

[00:30:43] You have the, the vocal leader who presenting, like you think, similar to the Mount.

[00:30:47] You think of the leadership where the righteous wrath, when he's flipping tables at, at the

[00:30:53] temple.

[00:30:53] You kind of get all examples of how to be a leader, regardless of your style from Jesus.

[00:31:00] Yeah.

[00:31:01] Yeah.

[00:31:01] A hundred percent.

[00:31:02] He is who we look to, you know?

[00:31:04] And what's interesting, you know, I, I share with people how I do my devotionals, like praying

[00:31:09] and, and reading the Bible every day.

[00:31:11] I actually learned this also from, from PG.

[00:31:13] He, he shared with me how he did his devotionals.

[00:31:16] He's like, I go through the life of Jesus over and over and over again in my devotionals,

[00:31:20] the gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

[00:31:22] I'll read, uh, I'll go through it over and over every single day.

[00:31:26] Um, not the whole gospel, just a portion each day.

[00:31:29] And, uh, and, and then hit repeat because that's the life of Jesus.

[00:31:32] That's who I want to emulate.

[00:31:34] That's who I want to live like and lead like.

[00:31:37] So I thought that was really cool.

[00:31:38] So I always share that with others as well.

[00:31:40] You know, if you, you want to grow in your leadership, look to the gospels, keep going

[00:31:43] through that every single day.

[00:31:45] Let it be a reminder for you every day.

[00:31:47] Cause it's not a magic formula.

[00:31:49] It's not, it's not calculus or it's not tough physics that you got to figure out the angles.

[00:31:54] No, it's, it's, it's very simple.

[00:31:56] Go be faithful.

[00:31:58] Go honor him.

[00:31:59] That's it.

[00:31:59] That's really it.

[00:32:00] Yeah.

[00:32:01] That's, that's, you look at the disciples that Jesus chose, right?

[00:32:06] They were just for the most part, regular dudes.

[00:32:09] Oh yeah.

[00:32:10] Right.

[00:32:11] A bunch of fishermen, a tax collector, right?

[00:32:14] There's a group of people who they weren't, you know, Ivy league educated guys.

[00:32:22] Right.

[00:32:23] But they were faithful and they were obedient.

[00:32:28] And then once Jesus died and rose again, they went and did incredible things for, you know,

[00:32:33] like Peter and John, like, and like, if you read through the new Testament, it's just incredible

[00:32:41] what these guys can do.

[00:32:43] And I think one thing that we have to remember is you're just as capable as a person, whether

[00:32:49] you're, you know, a kid or whether you're an old, old person, another person, your age

[00:32:55] doesn't matter.

[00:32:56] Your skills don't matter.

[00:32:58] It's your willingness to be open that matters.

[00:33:01] And what's cool about the disciples.

[00:33:02] They were so willing and so convinced and believing that Jesus is King, that they held his hands

[00:33:10] and saw his hands after he was crucified, that they were so willing to die for sharing that

[00:33:17] message to, to the rest of the world, the rest of the world that wanted to reject it.

[00:33:21] That's why they were put to death, but yet they would not renounce their faith and, and

[00:33:25] they kept on sharing it until death.

[00:33:26] And that's just a, a motivator for us to share that way too.

[00:33:32] I, I brought up a Jokic cause it was Mike Malone this week who, who called out the nuggets

[00:33:37] for their lack of work and enthusiasm.

[00:33:40] Jamal Murray was given excuses and, and sharing it's the nightlife of LA.

[00:33:44] We, we focused on that and, and instead of focusing on the game and, you know, Mike Malone

[00:33:50] was calling out the, the, the best players, Jokic and Murray and, and, and whoever else.

[00:33:56] He said, Russell Westbrook is very vocal.

[00:33:58] I would love if, if Jokic and, and, and Murray were more, more vocal.

[00:34:02] And I was wondering, I had to push back on some of that thoughts of, of Mike Malone.

[00:34:07] I, maybe his motivation was behind the scenes to galvanize the team outside of basketball

[00:34:12] and, and say, keep focused on basketball.

[00:34:15] But the way I'll speak on Jokic, not Murray, but the way Jokic leads, I think is still the

[00:34:21] most impactful way because he's not, he's willing to do everything he asks of everyone

[00:34:27] else.

[00:34:27] That's exactly what Michael Jordan was doing as well.

[00:34:30] And you saw that in the documentary, he pulled the, those, those bummy players to his level

[00:34:36] of at least work ethic.

[00:34:39] Now think about that in our, our, our faith terms, coach, how would you do that to people

[00:34:46] that you are, that are in your circle?

[00:34:48] How are you going to pull them to the level that we're called to?

[00:34:52] I think that's a, that's a really good question.

[00:34:54] And it's a hard answer.

[00:34:56] It's about being intentional, right?

[00:34:57] If you know that, and you can't do it for everybody, that's, you know, you can't, what

[00:35:03] does it say, boil the ocean, but you have certain people that you are close with and certain

[00:35:10] people that you can say, Hey, you know, we're on this faith journey together.

[00:35:15] And being intentional about, are you reading, asking the tough questions?

[00:35:18] Are you reading your Bible?

[00:35:19] Are you praying?

[00:35:19] What's going on in your life?

[00:35:21] You know, how can I help?

[00:35:23] What do you need?

[00:35:24] That's how you build and pull people higher.

[00:35:26] Man, you know what?

[00:35:27] I just haven't been making time to read my Bible or pray.

[00:35:30] And often we'll just say, okay, that's cool.

[00:35:32] But if you're being intentional, it's like, well, why not?

[00:35:34] Yeah, it's being able to have that difficult conversation, not because you want to reprimand

[00:35:43] anybody, but out of love, right?

[00:35:45] The same way if, you know, you see me doing something stupid, you're going to be like,

[00:35:48] yo, dum-dum, what are you doing?

[00:35:50] And vice versa.

[00:35:51] It's being able to have that intentionality of saying, I'm looking out for you, not because

[00:35:56] I want to say I'm better than you, because I want you to get up to my level.

[00:36:00] I want you to hold me accountable.

[00:36:01] I want to hold you accountable.

[00:36:03] And then if you can do that for two or three people, and they start doing that for two

[00:36:07] or three people, and they start doing that for two or three or three people, like that's

[00:36:11] amazing.

[00:36:12] And that builds and builds and builds in that community.

[00:36:15] And like, you know, I'll give you this example.

[00:36:18] You know, we have this, we have Thursday night prayer at CITC.

[00:36:23] And for a long time there, we had, you know, four, five, six, seven people come consistently.

[00:36:28] And it was great.

[00:36:29] You know, like, even though I'm sure you know the challenges more than I do, even

[00:36:34] though there were challenges, you know, it felt like there was still positive momentum.

[00:36:39] And then dad came and preached and the Holy Spirit moved.

[00:36:42] Like that was incredible.

[00:36:44] Right?

[00:36:45] Since then, Thursday night prayers haven't been, we haven't seen the same amount of people.

[00:36:49] I've missed a few for sure.

[00:36:51] Right?

[00:36:51] People are missing for whatever reasons.

[00:36:54] And then it's been a struggle bus a little bit.

[00:36:57] Then we have this great baptism where 17 people got baptized.

[00:37:01] Another spiritual high.

[00:37:02] But then the intentionality of the follow from that is, you know, not everybody's, not everybody's

[00:37:07] doing great.

[00:37:08] They're going through a spiritual warfare.

[00:37:11] How are we holding them up?

[00:37:12] How are we, how are they holding themselves up?

[00:37:15] Where's the intentionality?

[00:37:16] So everybody goes to highs and lows.

[00:37:19] So people need everybody else to pick them up.

[00:37:22] You can't always be the one giving, giving and giving.

[00:37:25] Right?

[00:37:26] As a pastor, you, you can, you need people sowing into your life too.

[00:37:30] Right?

[00:37:31] You need mentors.

[00:37:32] You need people to pray for you.

[00:37:33] You need people to, you know, random acts of kindness that, that you do for others.

[00:37:40] Because you're not an everlasting well.

[00:37:42] Same with everybody else.

[00:37:44] You gotta, you gotta invest.

[00:37:45] You gotta be intentional.

[00:37:47] And again, you start sowing into somebody else's life.

[00:37:50] Eventually they're going to be at your level and you can be like, okay, you know what?

[00:37:54] Hey man, we're good.

[00:37:55] Let me find somebody else.

[00:37:56] Let me find somebody else.

[00:37:57] It's like almost like discipleship in a sense that way.

[00:38:00] Right?

[00:38:01] And, and if you ask me, it's, it's not programs are great.

[00:38:06] You know, uh, there's always value in going to Bible study and things like that.

[00:38:11] But it's about how do more mature Christians help the younger ones?

[00:38:18] How do we sow to other people's lives?

[00:38:21] And how do we build that community?

[00:38:24] And the cool thing is with technology these days, your community doesn't even necessarily

[00:38:29] need to be physically where you are.

[00:38:31] Right?

[00:38:32] You could be a bunch of gamers who love to play online sports games or online video games,

[00:38:37] but you guys talk about your faith and whatever in your, in your chats.

[00:38:42] Or you can be, you know, a knitting group who does everything online and you share your

[00:38:48] faith that way.

[00:38:50] So the concept of community is, is important, but it's so diverse and there's lots of opportunity

[00:38:58] to build others up.

[00:39:00] And the really, the really cool part is if you open yourself up to being the building others,

[00:39:06] it allows you to be built up too.

[00:39:08] And that's, that's the part where you may not necessarily know you need that building

[00:39:12] up or you may feel so alone, but you're, you're giving, you're giving.

[00:39:16] You have a group of people who, who love you that you don't even know sometimes and they're

[00:39:20] going to build you up and they're going to pick you up and they're going to hold you

[00:39:23] accountable to do what's right for you and, and for God.

[00:39:26] Yeah.

[00:39:26] It's awesome.

[00:39:27] That's really good.

[00:39:27] I'll end with this.

[00:39:28] I'll just say like, we're not in the business of trying to make people who are going to make

[00:39:35] a one-time decision and that's it.

[00:39:37] You know, they say the Lord's salvation prayer and they're done.

[00:39:40] Now we're in the business of, of building followers that are all in for the Lord, you

[00:39:47] know, going all in for every single day being game day, you know, every single day saying,

[00:39:52] how can I live for you, Lord?

[00:39:53] How can I serve you?

[00:39:54] How can I love others?

[00:39:56] How can I love others the way you love me?

[00:39:58] And we want that to be an everyday thing, not just a one-time prayer.

[00:40:02] And it's, it's, it's like, I look at it like about a basketball shot, trying to train yourself

[00:40:06] as a shooter.

[00:40:07] You know, you can get good at shooting a free throw.

[00:40:09] You can get good at shooting an open three, but can you shoot it when you're exhausted?

[00:40:14] Can you shoot it when you're not looking?

[00:40:16] and it takes a lot of work and dedication

[00:40:19] and putting in the work to get better at it.

[00:40:22] And that's what we want with people

[00:40:24] as they grow in their faith,

[00:40:25] not let it just be a decision saying,

[00:40:26] I can hit the free throw,

[00:40:27] but I want to be able to hit that free throw

[00:40:30] blindfolded with my left hand or my right hand.

[00:40:34] That's how dedicated I want to be.

[00:40:36] So yeah.

[00:40:36] Yeah, I think that's great.

[00:40:37] If you are looking for community,

[00:40:39] Google it.

[00:40:41] That's the place to start.

[00:40:42] Reach out to the sports revs on our Instagram.

[00:40:46] Twitter, sorry, X, Facebook, all kinds of stuff.

[00:40:49] Google to find, you know, a way to find your community.

[00:40:52] And if you are in Toronto or in the GTA

[00:40:54] and you feel like you want to check something out,

[00:40:57] come check us out.

[00:40:58] See 152 The Esplanade,

[00:41:00] 10 o'clock is our services on Sunday

[00:41:02] and there's a whole bunch of different things.

[00:41:03] You can check us out online for that.

[00:41:06] Community's there.

[00:41:07] People are here who want to love on you

[00:41:10] and be loved on.

[00:41:12] So jump in.

[00:41:14] Jump in with both feet

[00:41:15] and be open to what God can do for you.

[00:41:18] That's a wrap.

[00:41:19] Awesome.

[00:41:21] So check us out on Facebook

[00:41:22] for all you old heads out there.

[00:41:24] On X,

[00:41:24] which is back to being about freedom of speech

[00:41:28] and all good kind of stuff like that.

[00:41:30] Instagram.

[00:41:31] And last but not least,

[00:41:33] I don't know what camera's doing,

[00:41:34] but that's okay.

[00:41:34] Last but not least,

[00:41:35] YouTube.

[00:41:36] Share it with all your friends.

[00:41:38] Peace.

[00:41:40] Peace.

[00:41:40] Peace with a cinematic exit.

[00:41:42] Thank goodness my place is clean right now.

[00:41:45] Wild.

[00:41:45] Wild.

[00:41:46] Wild.

[00:41:46] Wild.

[00:41:46] Wild.

[00:41:46] Wild.