Watching Tom Brady in a Tampa Bay Bucs uniform is still weird, but when we saw him throw five touchdowns to five different receivers in Week 4, we're reminded of his greatness.
Then on Thursday night against the Chicago Bears, he and the Bucs’ offense struggled with a 19-20 loss and had a surprising moment late in the fourth quarter during their final drive.
On third down, Brady tried to find Rob Gronkowski but the pass was too high. Then on fourth down, Brady threw it to Cameron Brate but wasn’t able to complete the pass. The game was essentially over at that point as it was a turnover on downs and Chicago’s football.
However, after the incomplete pass, the six-time Super Bowl champion, Tom Brady, held up four fingers indicating it was fourth down. He thought they had another opportunity and for some reason didn’t realize that was it for their offense.
Brady appeared confused and made a mistake nobody expected him to make. We know how clutch he’s been over the years, but last night during the closing seconds of the game, he thought his team had another down when they didn’t.
I’m not going to criticize or defend him, but I do believe there is a lesson we can all learn from this unique situation.
We are all aware that life is short, but oftentimes we tell ourselves we have another “down” or another opportunity until we realize that’s not the case.
Brady and the Bucs had four chances to get a first down and extend the drive, but they didn’t make the most of the plays they were given, and the game ended.
Likewise, every day we have opportunities in front of us that we have to take advantage of before it’s too late. We don’t want to waste our days with “overthrows” and “incomplete passes,” thinking we have another “down” or day to do something that needs to be taken care of now.
There is someone who needs an encouraging text, a supportive phone call, or a timely visit...today. We may also need to have a difficult conversation with someone or ask for forgiveness or do the forgiving ourselves...and there are always people we need to tell about Jesus now instead of waiting.
We don’t know if we have another “down,” so we have to take advantage of the opportunity in front of us. The fact that life is so short, we need to seek God to show us the best way to spend our days and help us prioritize what is most important from His perspective.
To gain the wisdom required, we can pray this prayer from Psalm 90:12 (ESV): “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.”
The ESV Study Bible provides these notes on this verse: “In view of the theme of the psalm, this refers especially to the ability to make the most of one’s days, since they are so few. The heart of wisdom would enable the faithful to live by the right priorities.”
The Living Bible translates the verse this way: ”Teach us to number our days and recognize how few they are; help us to spend them as we should.”
Today, let’s not assume we have another “down” to do what we need to do. Instead, let's embrace this powerful reminder: “So be careful how you act; these are difficult days. Don’t be fools; be wise: make the most of every opportunity you have for doing good” (Ephesians 5:15-16; TLB).
I’m Bryce Johnson and you can UNPACK that!
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, please help me to number my days and consider each one as a blessing that can be used to do good. I pray You'd give me wisdom to make the best use of my time and prioritize what is most important. I pray this in Jesus' name, Amen.
Discussion Questions for PACKS:
1. What is something important you've been putting off because you think you'll have another chance, but realize it needs to be done now?
2. What causes you to let opportunities slip by?
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