Although Detroit Lions kicker, Matt Prater, is considered one of the league’s upper tier kickers, this year he's been off his game. Prater's only hitting 70.6 percent of his field goals, which is his worst percentage since he joined Detroit in 2014.
According to ProFootballTalk.com, in previous Lions seasons, Prater never missed more than five field goals in 16 games, but in seven games this year, he has already missed five.
Lions special teams coordinator, Brayden Coombs, wants to see Prater improve and said the following via MLive.com after missing his only attempt last Sunday:
“We don’t get a do-over, so really, for us, this week is just going to kind of be getting back to the basics a little bit. Breakdown some really basic techniques, kind of get back to more offseason type work where you’re really focusing on all that stuff and a little bit less game-specific ."
Kickers have a simple job – kick the ball through the uprights! But sometimes they can overthink it, get out of rhythm, get distracted by the elements, and allow the defense to rattle them. By getting back to the fundamentals, Prater should be able to break the slump.
When it comes to our faith journey and our pursuit of a deeper relationship with Jesus, most of us can relate to sometimes being in a slump.
Don’t we occasionally feel like we’re off, out of rhythm, overthinking it, and distracted? Don’t we also go through the wrong motions and overlook the basics?
Of course, these last few months especially have messed up our routines and thrown us off our normal process, causing us to get off balance.
So when we feel like we’re “missing the uprights” and uncharacteristically struggling to find a good balance and rhythm with the Lord, we must first acknowledge it and cry out to Him in prayer.
David offers us this example in Psalm 13 (NLT): “O Lord, how long will You forget me? Forever? How long will You look the other way? How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul, with sorrow in my heart every day? How long will my enemy have the upper hand?
“Turn and answer me, O Lord my God! Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die. Don’t let my enemies gloat, saying, ‘We have defeated him!’ Don’t let them rejoice at my downfall.
"But I trust in Your unfailing love. I will rejoice because You have rescued me. I will sing to the Lord because He is good to me.”
Secondly, as Prater did with kicking, we must get back to the fundamentals. We have to make it simple and not over complicate our life with Jesus.
We can live with freedom, peace, and joy when we remember Jesus’ response when He was asked about the greatest commandment in Matthew 22:37-39 (ESV):
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
There is a lot to learn about God and His Word, and so many ways to grow as we follow Jesus, but sometimes we get off track and in a slump and need to be reminded of the fundamental call to love God and love people.
When we do those two basic, yet sometimes challenging things, we can confidently rest in a fulfilling life of “hitting it through the uprights!”
I’m Bryce Johnson and you can UNPACK that!
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, please help me not to overcomplicate my life or get caught up in the wrong things. Show me how to daily focus on loving You and loving people, so I can experience the amazing life You have planned for me. I trust in Your unfailing love and I pray this in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Discussion Questions for PACKS:
What is your experience like with spiritual slumps?
Why is it so important to keep going back to the basics of loving God and loving people?
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