I met with Jason Smith this morning for the first time since our return from the Commonwealth Games. He is still recovering from a very bad cold (probably made a little worse by two or three days of celebration after winning the gold for Australia in basketball at the Games).
Over coffee, he shared this story behind the story with me...and I asked him if I could re-tell it in my blog. 
Here it is...
Jason said he "very seldom 'hears' God's voice in everyday matters, but a couple of days before the final (Gold Medal) game he felt the Lord was saying to him...'I'm going to give you something very special'. In the last couple of minutes of the final game with the Boomers behind on the score board, Jason remembered this promise of 'something special'. He told me that at that moment he didn't pray for the answer...he simply trusted God for the promise he had already been given...and a couple of seconds later he hit his first of two three-point shots in the dying minutes of the game. He says it was special because of the result on the game but not really all that special as a shot. It was just what he was trained to do...and depended a lot on the basketball skills he has developed over the years.
A few seconds later however, in the final seconds of the game Jason got another shot opportunity. He claims now that there was no way that his final shot could go in. His feet were not planted right, he was off balance, he did not follow-through...in short, it was a terrible shot...but very 'special' in that it went through the basket for three more points. He strongly believes this basket was a grace gift from God...something special. The Boomers won the game by five points. No doubt it was a team effort...with all the players contributing...but I can't help but wonder if God had more in mind for this game than mere gold.
The day after the win I received an SMS from Jason asking about a church appearance and stating that he had not stopped doing media interviews for 14 hours! I replied by reminding him that "God was honouring Jason for his faith and now it was appropriate for Jason to honour God for His faithfulness. What you did last night won gold for you...what you say today could win eternity for others".
April 1 today, but I wanted to document some of the exciting things going on last month with the Commonwealth Games.
In short, the Lord blessed us in many ways…some expected (as far as enhancing and developing relationships with known athletes) and some totally out of the blue (for us at least).
I was able to lead one evangelistic basketball clinic for 6 hours one day with a couple of kids showing real interest in the Good News about Jesus and life! It was also important to model Christian love and service to about 20 other young believers who also love basketball.
I also spoke at one coffee house outreach in Ballarat…and at three church services in Melbourne…Presbyterian, Anglican, and Salvation Army!
Can you see me hiding in the pulpit here at Scot’s…my eye level was about 12 feet off the ground level. I see where the expression “talking down at people” probably came from! Surprisingly it was a very warm service of about 200 people who were extremely encouraging and attentive to me as I spoke on II Corinthians 5..."The Name of the Game: Tent or Mansion".
Nevertheless, what I enjoyed most in Melbourne was the “personal work” one on one. I met with Jason Smith from the Boomers (who subsequently won the Gold medal in basketball) for Bible study (in Galations); caught up with Jessica Blake a couple of times to encourage her (she did five or six clinics); and had a great talk with a businessman on the plane regarding the “two” difference between religion and a relationship with God (religion is spelled “D-O”…and right relationship with God is spelled “D-O-N-E”).
The Lord gave us an extra blessing as we were leaving Melbourne. We “just happened” to run into the Samoan Rugby Seven’s team (about 25 people including players and support staff) at the airport and after introducing ourselves as friends of Timo Tagaloa (former Samoan player and now AIA New Zealand) we were able to present each of them with a personal copy of a sports-oriented portion of the gospel with Jess and Jason’s testimony. I later saw a couple of big burly players reading the New Testament over a burger at McDonalds!
Here it is...
