The Great Commission comes from Matthew 28:18-20, which says, "Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." These verses are the conclusion to Matthew's gospel and give us insight into one of Jesus' final instructions to His disciples. As followers of Jesus in this day and age, this Great Commission still applies to us. But what does it actually look like to obey this command from Jesus as a sport industry professional? In this episode of the Uncommon Podcast, Athletes in Action staff member and Denver Broncos chaplain, Reza Zadeh, helps provide clarity to how the Great Commission can be lived out. A new episode of the Uncommon Podcast is released every two weeks. You can find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, right here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. Check out this week's episode, and be sure to subscribe to our podcast to get alerts when new episodes are released! Do you want to join the largest community of future Christian leaders of the college and pro sport industry? Apply to join here!

Mental health issues have become a popular topic of discussion across the sport industry for good reason. According to an article written by Athletes for Hope, 1 in 5 adults will experience struggles with their mental health. In this episode of the Uncommon Podcast, thirty-year basketball coach and founder of d2up Mark Potter discusses his battle with depression, how that battle led him to speak up about mental health, and practical ways to address mental health struggles. A new episode of the Uncommon Podcast is released every two weeks. You can find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, right here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. Check out this week's episode, and be sure to subscribe to our podcast to get alerts when new episodes are released! Do you want to join the largest community of future Christian leaders of the college and pro sport industry? Apply to join here!

Jamie Boggs was the first-ever woman to be the Director of Athletics at Grand Canyon University and presently holds the role of Vice President of Athletics with the Lopes. Jamie's story is inspiring and a testament to her strong faith in Jesus Christ and undeniable work ethic. In this episode of the Uncommon Podcast, Jamie talks about her journey through college athletics, the culture of GCU athletics, the challenges of being a woman in college sports, and more! A new episode of the Uncommon Podcast is released every two weeks. You can find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, right here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. Check out this week's episode, and be sure to subscribe to our podcast to get alerts when new episodes are released! Do you want to join the largest community of future Christian leaders of the college and pro sport industry? Apply to join here!

Every Christian reading this would agree that the teachings of Jesus are difficult to understand. His wisdom, being the God of Creation, is far beyond our own understanding (Isaiah 55:8-9). In this blog series, we will unpack some of the most difficult teachings from Jesus, which come from Matthew 5-7 in the illustrious Sermon on the Mount. Each blog will touch on a different teaching from Jesus within His most famous sermon in an effort to help you apply His teachings to your life as a Christian working in the sport industry. In our twelfth blog of the Sermon on the Mount series, we’ll help you better understand and apply Jesus’ teachings on the narrow and wide gates in Matthew 7:13-14. The Only Way The commonly held belief in today’s culture is that every religion is true and leads to life. According to a recent study done by Barna, 62% of adults agree with the statement, “Many religions lead to eternal life; there is no ‘one true religion.’” While this belief may seem tolerant and accepting, it is a belief that directly opposes the teachings of Jesus and a belief that is illogical. In Matthew 7:13-14, Jesus makes a very challenging and controversial statement in front of a large crowd. “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Jesus’ words lead us as Christians to understand and affirm two things as true. The first is that there are opposing paths that people can choose to walk. The second is that there is a path that leads to destruction and a path that leads to life. It is impossible to ignore the fact that Jesus teaches that there is only one way to life and that all other paths lead to destruction. This is not the only time that Jesus taught that there is only one path to life. In John 14:6, Jesus said to His disciples after they asked to know where He was going, “Jesus answered, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Christianity is both an exclusive and inclusive religion. It is exclusive because Jesus is the one and only way to God and everlasting life, but it is incredibly inclusive because it is a gospel for all people (Revelation 7:9). While a large number of people in our world would hold to the belief that all religions lead to life, it is evident in the teachings of Jesus that only one path leads to salvation, and that path is through Him. So, the gate is narrow because there is only one path through it. Jesus commands us and pleads with us to enter that gate because, through it, we can have life. Logic and Life As mentioned above, there is a large number of people who hold to the belief that all religions lead to life. According to an article in the Los Angeles Times, a whopping 65% of Americans believe that Christians, Jews, Muslims, and Buddhists all believe in the same God. Furthermore, 62% of Americans believe that there is no such thing as absolute truth. These statistics are highly concerning because it is illogical to believe that all of the world religions are the same and that there is no absolute truth. While it is possible that none of the world religions is true, it is impossible to state that they are all true, or even all the same. Each of the major world religions has a radically different worldview, so radically different that they cannot be seen as remotely similar. The major world religions include Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Judaism. Through a quick overview of these religions, it will be easy to see that they cannot all be true. First, we can identify three of these religions as monotheistic. Christianity, Islam, and Judaism believe in one God. However, Hindus and Buddhists have differing views, even between each other. Hindus are polytheists, which means that they believe in many different gods. In fact, Hindus have more than 33 million gods and goddesses that they worship. Buddhists do not believe in any god at all. So, it is easy to conclude that Hinduism and Buddhism cannot be one in the same with one another, and certainly not one in the same with the three monotheistic religions. Is it possible that Christianity, Islam, and Judaism are all worshiping the same God? Absolutely not. Christians believe in one God that is triune in nature. Furthermore, Christians hold to the conviction that Jesus Christ was the second person of the Trinity, God the Son, and was fully God and fully man. These convictions of the Trinity and the divinity of Christ are core and essential tenets of the Christian faith. Judaism is the most similar to Christianity. Christians and Jews believe in Yahweh as the one true God. However, Jews do not believe that Yahweh is a triune God, nor do they believe that Jesus Christ is the Jewish Messiah. Islam has some similarities with both Christianity and Judaism, as well, but without a doubt they have more differences. Muslims do not believe that Jesus was God, but rather see him as a prophet of Allah. Furthermore, Muslims believe that worshiping Jesus as God is blasphemous. Muslims also strongly deny the Trinity and believe that Allah is one. It is clear in this surface level breakdown of the major world religions that they cannot all be true at the same time, nor can they all be worshiping the same god. There cannot be one god and 33 million gods. There cannot be no god, and also a god. Jesus cannot be both the divine son of God and just a prophet. God cannot be both triune in nature, but also not triune in nature. Through logic and reasoning, we can easily conclude that not all religions can be true or worship the same god. This brings us back to the words of Jesus that the road that leads to destruction is wide, because there are many ways to walk down it. Destruction and Determination Getting back to the passage in Matthew 7:13-14, it is clear that Jesus teaches that many people will enter through the wide gate that leads to destruction. We discussed why the gate is wide and broad, because there are many ways that people can walk through the wide gate. Jesus is the only way that we can evade the coming destruction and receive life. But, how should we respond to this as Christians? In Matthew 9:35-38, Jesus is ministering to many towns and villages through proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing diseases. He saw the crowds and had great compassion for them. After seeing this, he said to His disciples in verses 37-38, “Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”” The proper response from the Christian to Jesus’ difficult teaching on the wide gate that leads to destruction is compassion for those that are on that path. The heart of God is that all people come to repentance and walk through the narrow gate (2 Peter 3:9) and God has called His people to minister the gospel message to the lost (Matthew 28:16-20). So, our response should be to go out into the harvest field and share the way that people can walk through the narrow gate, which is through Jesus Christ and through Him alone. Our determination to fulfill this task and great responsibility should reflect that of Paul the Apostle during his farewell address to the church in Ephesus in Acts 20:13-38. In Acts 20:24, Paul says, “However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me- the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.” This task is the most important matter in the life of the Christian, because many people are on a path that leads to destruction, and it is the gospel message that we hold dear to that can point them down the narrow path that leads to life. Conclusion In the era of postmodernism, the majority of people believe that all religions lead to life. It is clear, however, that Jesus teaches that there is one absolute truth that leads to life and that path is through Him (John 14:6). As Christians living in the postmodern world, we must continue to live out and speak the absolute truth of salvation through Jesus Christ. If you’re unfamiliar with Uncommon Sports Group, its programs, or its ministry, get connected through the form on our home page or check out the Uncommon Podcast. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’d love to hear from you!

In his commissioning message to the audience at the first-annual Christians Working in Sports (CWS) this past summer, Orlando Magic Forward and author of the book Why I Stand, Jonathan Isaac, challenged the group to be bold in their faith despite the growing opposition towards the Christian faith. In this episode of the Uncommon Podcast, you can hear Jonathan's entire message and receive the same challenge to bold in your faith in your workplace and community. A new episode of the Uncommon Podcast is released every two weeks. You can find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, right here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. Check out this week's episode, and be sure to subscribe to our podcast to get alerts when new episodes are released! The Christians Working in Sports (CWS) Conference is an annual conference hosted in Minneapolis, MN, that aims to connect, encourage, and equip Christians working in the college and pro sport industry. The 2024 CWS Conference will be held in Minneapolis, MN, on June 21-22. Register for the 2024 CWS Conference or learn more here! Do you want to join the largest community of future Christian leaders of the college and pro sport industry? Apply to join here!

Uncommon Sports Group seeks to develop Christ-centered future leaders of the college and pro sport industry. One way that USG develops future leaders of sport is by funding its members to attend conferences, conventions, and events that develop them as followers of Christ and sport industry professionals. USG funded a member with the opportunity to attend the Passion Conference in Atlanta, GA, on January 3-5. Passion offers Christians between the ages of 18-25 an opportunity to gather alongside thousands of their peers to worship through music and grow through an impactful lineup of speakers. Nathan Doremus attended the convention this past week. He is presently a Ticket Office Graduate Assistant at Liberty University. Below is Nate's testimony on his experience at Passion 2024: "First off, I would like to start by saying thank you to USG for funding my trip to Passion 24. It was truly an eye-opening experience. As crossover season has finally died down in the collegiate sport industry it was nice to get my relationship with the Lord moving in the right direction again. I went working the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl to, within 12 hours, being on a flight to Atlanta for Passion. The days were long, and the countess nights of no sleep had me feeling drained, but getting to worship the Lord alongside 55,000+ individuals my age was something that I could not put into words. The Lord was definitely present in the moment, and the worship was unmatched while I was there. It truly re-ignited the flame and my love for the Lord that had a tendency to dwindle while working crossover season and multiple events a day.  It was awesome to hear all of the great speakers who are all in different stages with their walks of faith. Jonathan Pokluda and Levi Lusko killed it and Sadie Robertson summing up the whole Bible in 25 minutes was something that will leave you speechless in the moment. The travel and days were long but I wouldn’t change the experience for anything." It is encouraging to see that Nate was impacted in his walk with Christ at Passion. We are grateful for his testimony! If you see the benefit of Christ-centered relationships and development in the sport industry, you can get involved with our community of Christians within the college and pro sport industry by applying to join our virtual training experience or connecting with our staff! We look forward to hearing from you.

David Pollack is not unfamiliar with facing adversity. From experiencing a career-ending injury just two years into his NFL career to being laid off by ESPN, Pollack understands the impact adversity can have. In this episode of the Uncommon Podcast, Pollack shares how facing adversity has benefitted him as a follower of Jesus. A new episode of the Uncommon Podcast is released every two weeks. You can find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, right here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. Check out this week's episode, and be sure to subscribe to our podcast to get alerts when new episodes are released! Are you curious about Uncommon Sports Group and what our ministry has to offer? Contact us to learn more here! Do you want to join the largest community of future Christian leaders of the college and pro sport industry? Apply to join here!

Every Christian reading this would agree that the teachings of Jesus are difficult to understand. His wisdom, being the God of Creation, is far beyond our own understanding (Isaiah 55:8-9). In this blog series, we will unpack some of the most difficult teachings from Jesus, which come from Matthew 5-7 in the illustrious Sermon on the Mount. Each blog will touch on a different teaching from Jesus within His most famous sermon in an effort to help you apply His teachings to your life as a Christian working in the sport industry. In our eleventh blog of the Sermon on the Mount series, we’ll help you better understand and apply Jesus’ teachings on bringing requests to God in prayer in Matthew 7:7-12. Knocking on the Door It is evident in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount that prayer is essential. This is the second time that Jesus has taught the crowds about prayer and, specifically, how to pray. In Matthew 7:7-8 Jesus says, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” In these verses, Jesus provides us with three different aspects of prayer and three different rewards that accompany those approaches. First, Jesus tells us to ask. While it is evident in Scripture that God knows what we will pray before we pray anything (Matthew 6:8), it is an act of faith to ask God to answer our prayer requests. Furthermore, the reward for asking is receiving! Jesus makes it very clear that those who ask will receive. Second, Jesus tells us to seek. While prayer certainly involves bringing our requests to God, it also consists in seeking the Lord. When we desire to know God better or better understand Him, we should seek Him fervently through prayer. Jeremiah 29:13 corroborates this, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” Jesus promises us that the reward of genuinely seeking the Lord in prayer is finding! What you find may be answers to questions, a direction for your life, or a deeper understanding of God’s character. Finally, Jesus tells us to knock. This one is the most intriguing because knocking implies a closed door or a door that is hard to open. You don’t need to knock on an already open door, so what can we learn from this? I think the most straightforward application is that our prayers need to be constant and persistent. There are times when we may feel that God is not answering our prayers or that he is ignoring a request that we have. In those moments, Jesus is telling us that we should not give up. Instead, we should be knocking at God’s preverbal door with persistence and faith that He does hear us and will answer according to His will. The reward of knocking is the door being opened. We don’t need to break in to get God’s attention, but we may need to knock with persistence! The Good Gifts of God Jesus compares prayer to a Father and Son relationship. Matthew 7:9-11 says, “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” It is important to note that Jesus makes this Father-to-Son comparison. This reveals something about God’s character. He is not a drill sergeant, a football coach, or a boss. God describes Himself as a Father. This should give us a great deal of encouragement and joy because the Creator of the universe desires to be a loving Father to those who are His children. Isaiah 64:8 furthers this truth, “Yet you, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.” The main point that Jesus is making in Matthew 7:9-11 is that if earthly fathers are able to give good things to their children, though they are sinful, how much more will God the Father give good things to those who ask him? God is a better Father than any earthly Father; that is the point! So, when we ask God for things in prayer, we can fully expect Him to deliver! The common belief that can come with this teaching from Jesus is that we will receive everything we ask from God exactly as we asked it. First, God will never give us sinful desires. This would go against His character as sinless and unable to tempt people to sin (James 1:13). Second, God may withhold things from us to benefit us (which would be considered a good gift). Often, we can ask for things in ignorance without seeing the negative impact. There are reasons and times when God will not answer our prayers that Scripture outlines for us. James 4:3 teaches us that God will not answer prayers that are asked in vain so that we may use what He has given to fulfill our own desires. Psalm 66:18 teaches us that God will not listen to our prayers if we are cherishing sin in our hearts. Better said, our prayers will not be answered if we are unrepentantly sinning against God. Matthew 21:22 teaches us that faith is a requirement for an answered prayer. If we pray without genuine faith in the living God, in His Son, Jesus Christ, or without faith that He can accomplish what we are asking, our prayers will not be answered. Finally, 1 John 5:14 teaches us that God only answers prayers that are in accordance with His will. If we ask God for things outside of His will, then He will not answer those prayers. The Golden Rule Jesus closes His teaching on prayer with a statement on the meaning of the entire Law, which was likely well-known by those listening to Him teach. Matthew 7:12 says, “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” This transition seems unrelated to the previous teachings on prayer. However, there is a connection that can be made. In the previous verses, Jesus taught that God is a better Father than earthly fathers and provides good gifts to those who ask (Matthew 7:11). In teaching this, Jesus reveals God's goodness, mercy, and grace. God’s mercy is withholding from sinful people the punishment they deserve, God’s grace is His provision of good things to sinful people who don’t deserve them, and his goodness is evidenced in His perfect holiness. So, our response to God’s generosity towards His children should be to live in obedience to the Law and the Prophets by doing unto others as we would have them do unto us. Conclusion Prayer can be made more complicated than it needs to be. Jesus makes it clear that we should persistently and faithfully ask, seek, and knock in our prayer life. While it may seem at times that God does not hear our prayers, we can be comforted by Jesus’ teachings that our God is a Father, a much better Father than any earthly father, and will provide us with what we need and ask for, if it is in accordance with His character and His will. If you’re unfamiliar with Uncommon Sports Group, its programs, or its ministry, get connected through the form on our home page or check out the Uncommon Podcast. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’d love to hear from you!

The Advent season is an important time of year for Christians. But, it can be difficult to properly celebrate the Advent season with the many distractions that come with the Christmas season. Oftentimes, we are so focused on gifts, parties, trees, and other holiday activities that we forget the true meaning of the Advent season. In this episode of the Uncommon Podcast, the true meaning of the Advent season is explained, along with some practical applications that Christians can use during the holiday season! A new episode of the Uncommon Podcast is released every two weeks. You can find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, right here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. Check out this week's episode, and be sure to subscribe to our podcast to get alerts when new episodes are released! Are you curious about Uncommon Sports Group and what our ministry has to offer? Contact us to learn more here! Do you want to join the largest community of future Christian leaders of the college and pro sport industry? Apply to join here!

In Matthew 28:16-20, Jesus commands His disciples to make disciples of all nations. This command is known as the Great Commission, and disciple-making is something that all Christians are commissioned to do. While many Christians in the sport industry have a desire to be obedient to this command, very few know how to practically make disciples in the athletics workspace. In this message from the 2023 Christians Working in Sports (CWS) Conference featured on the Uncommon Podcast, Pastor Mike Linch of NorthStar Church in Kennesaw, Georgia, talks about what it practically means and looks like to make disciples while working in the college and pro sport industry. A new episode of the Uncommon Podcast is released every two weeks. You can find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, right here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. Check out this week's episode, and be sure to subscribe to our podcast to get alerts when new episodes are released! The Christians Working in Sports (CWS) Conference is an annual conference hosted in Minneapolis, MN, that aims to connect, encourage, and equip Christians working in the college and pro sport industry. The 2024 CWS Conference will be held in Minneapolis, MN, on June 21-22. Register for the 2024 CWS Conference or learn more here. Do you want to join the largest community of future Christian leaders of the college and pro sport industry? Apply to join here!

Every Christian reading this would agree that the teachings of Jesus are difficult to understand. His wisdom, being the God of Creation, is far beyond our own understanding (Isaiah 55:8-9). In this blog series, we will unpack some of the most difficult teachings from Jesus, which come from Matthew 5-7 in the illustrious Sermon on the Mount. Each blog will touch on a different teaching from Jesus within His most famous sermon in an effort to help you apply His teachings to your life as a Christian working in the sport industry. In our tenth blog of the Sermon on the Mount series, we’ll help you better understand and apply Jesus’ teachings on judging others, which are found in Matthew 7:1-6. Righteous Judgment Most everyone who grew up in the church, and even many who did not, can quote Jesus’ words from Matthew 7:1. “Do not judge, or you too will be judged.” It is a common and very important teaching for us as followers of Jesus to understand and apply properly. It is important to note that God, in his very nature, is a judge and will judge every man who has ever lived. Psalm 75:7 says, “It is God who judges: He brings down one, he exalts another.” Hebrews 4:13 says, “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” This character trait of God is a reminder to all of us that He, and He alone, is the final judge. You and I are not in that position and should respond humbly, knowing God can judge our actions. So, how are we called to judge as humans? Oftentimes, this verse is wielded as a weapon of acceptance. Many will apply this passage wrongly by thinking that Jesus teaching us not to judge means that we should never disapprove of any action, no matter how bad it may be. The fact of the matter is that we make judgments thousands of times a day. It is impossible not to judge. In fact, when you tell someone not to judge, you have made a judgment against them! Jesus is not teaching us never to judge but to judge righteously and not hypocritically. Imagine if you brought in a donut to work and your coworker told you that donuts are full of unhealthy trans fat and sugar, and later that day, you caught your coworker sneaking a donut in the break room. How frustrating would that be? They judged you hypocritically! This is exactly what Jesus is teaching not to do. In Matthew 7:2, Jesus says, “For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” The command here is fairly simple and applicable. Our judgment of others should not be harsher than how we judge ourselves. The measure we use to judge others is the same one God will use to judge our own lives. Jesus was careful to point out time and time again how the religious leaders of His day were judging those around them hypocritically. In Luke 11:46, Jesus said, “And you experts in the law, woe to you, because you load people down with burdens they can hardly carry, and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them.” The experts in the law were quick to judge others to a difficult standard but were not holding themselves to that same standard. We should be diligent to only judge according to how we would like to be judged and be quick to be merciful with those who fall short of God’s standard. A Speck & A Plank In Matthew 7:3-5, Jesus provides an example to further His teaching in judging others. “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” The point that Jesus is trying to make in this example is that we are far more tolerant of our own sins than the sins of others. Do we get as upset at ourselves when we break a traffic violation as when someone else does? We don’t honk the horn at ourselves, but we are quick to lay it on at someone else. This is human nature at its finest. We tend to see more clearly the wrongdoings of other people while failing to recognize the many wrongdoings in our own lives. Jesus is certainly not teaching us to ignore other people's sins. Rather, He is teaching us to be just as aware, if not more aware, of our own sinfulness than others. In verse five, Jesus teaches that we should first deal with our own sin for two reasons. The first reason is so that we will not be judging others hypocritically. If we are quick to point out the speck of sawdust in the eye of a friend but fail to see the plank in our own eye, won’t we be hypocritical? Rather, we should be cautious of our own shortcomings lest we judge another according to a standard that we are not willing to be judged by. The second reason is so that we will be able to see ‘more clearly’ the speck in our brother’s eye. If we can recognize our own sin and deal with it, we will be more able to see how to best help a brother or sister dealing with a similar struggle. The more careful we are to deal with our own sins, the more good we will be in helping those around us deal with theirs. Furthermore, our judgment in that case will no longer be hypocritical but will be according to the standard by which we judge ourselves. Pigs & Pearls Jesus wraps up his teaching on judgment with a rather difficult message to understand in Matthew 7:6. “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet and turn and tear you to pieces.” Anytime Jesus uses real-world examples such as this, it is incredibly important to think carefully about what would actually happen in that situation. If you threw a brand-new pearl necklace to a pig, that pearl necklace would effectively be ruined and likely covered in dirt or manure. The obvious thing to do would be not throwing a pearl necklace at pigs. But how does this apply to the kingdom of God and Jesus’ teaching on judgment? The interpretation of this could go a few ways, but the main point remains the same. While Jesus clearly teaches us not to judge hypocritically, he also wants to be clear that he is not teaching us to lack discernment. In the context of what Jesus taught in verses three through five, we can conclude that the pearls are Godly correction, and the dogs or the pigs are people who are unwilling to receive that correction. In short, Jesus is teaching us to have discernment in whom we give Godly correction. Some people are open and willing to receive Godly correction, but others have hearts that are hard towards it. It is on our shoulders to make a judgment on whether someone is ready to receive Godly correction because if they are not, they may ridicule and trample the righteous teachings of our Lord. Conclusion Jesus’ teaching to ‘judge not’ is not a teaching to never judge. Rather, it is a teaching to judge righteously and not hypocritically. There are some practical ways to ensure our judgment of others is being done in a Godly manner. These include avoiding assuming the worst in others, seeing only the faults in others, seeing someone’s life by their worst moments, assuming the hidden motives of others, not putting ourselves in someone else’s shoes, and failing to be mindful of how harshly we would judge ourselves if we were in that person’s position. While it is difficult, nearly impossible, to judge in a Godly manner all of the time, it is important to apply this teaching from our Lord Jesus so that we may not live hypocritically and that we may be merciful to those around us. If you’re unfamiliar with Uncommon Sports Group, its programs, or its ministry, get connected through the form on our home page or check out the Uncommon Podcast. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’d love to hear from you!

Every athlete dreams of being as successful as Wayne Simien. During his career as a forward at Kansas University, Simien led the Jayhawks to three Big 12 conference titles and two Final Four appearances. But, his success on the hardwood didn't provide the satisfaction that it had promised. He knew there was something more to life and a greater purpose to his existence. In this episode of the Uncommon Podcast, Simien shares his story of coming to Christ during his playing days at Kansas, how he lived out his faith during his NBA career, and his present role in college athletics administration. A new episode of the Uncommon Podcast is released every two weeks. You can find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, right here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. Check out this week's episode, and be sure to subscribe to our podcast to get alerts when new episodes are released! Are you curious about Uncommon Sports Group and what our ministry has to offer? Contact us to learn more here! Do you want to join the largest community of future Christian leaders of the college and pro sport industry? Apply to join here!