Mark Price was an NBA player, from Georgia Tech, played mainly for Cleveland….long before LeBron.

He was quite good, played for several years on the Cavs team which might have won a title were it not for a guy in Chicago named Michael.

He told the story to a group of men once of the constant presence, at the arenas, and at the luxury hotels in which they stayed… of beautiful women.

Dressed up.

Always around.

You know what I mean.

He did not implicate any teammate,
but mentioned how the temptation was always present.

He and his wife had an agreement.

After every road game he would call home….briefly speak to his wife and children…before going to eat.

After dinner, upon returning to his hotel, he would call again. He would talk and spend time on the phone with his wife.

The calls were not made out of fear
or anxiety or because his wife was ragingly jealous.

The calls were made for connection.

They were made to remind him of what his life revolved around.

His God.
Home.
His wife.
His children.

He was gone, sometimes for 7-10 days at a time.

As a veteran, he saw in the lives of teammates, the results of traveling and never connecting to home.

When you feel ten feet tall and bulletproof, as most professional athletes naturally do….
Mark Price learned that connection to the foundations of his life were more important than getting temporary affirmation or adoration.

When I thought of this earlier today,
the suggestion came to me that….
whenever we feel temptation, or the
desire to look for the second time,
or when we realize we have held a look too long…
connection to what is TRUE is needed at that moment.

An idea….

when you realize that you are looking beyond merely noticing or thinking about it…

PHONE HOME.

It’s connection.

It’s accountability.

It will stop the thought….
as you engage with your wife and children.

It’s protection and connection.

When you connect to or affirm what is TRUE and Foundational… and when you bring LIGHT into a situation the unimportant slouches back away,
into the dark,
where it resides.

Stay connected.

To what matters.

Terry
November 2016