Team works

I have witnessed the theme of the team this week. There is something special or devastating about a team. One can find success while the other can ruin an organization. Jesus pointed out that when two or more are gathered in response to a character problem, it gets dealt with. There is strength in numbers. A gang can be good or bad. What about a band of brothers or the power of women fighting together. “We” is a powerful thing.

The Calgary Flames Hockey Club is not supposed to be in the Stanley Cup playoffs. The team thought otherwise and did the improbable: there in! The Toronto Maple leafs are out because they could not find team common ground. From top to bottom they were dysfunctional compared to the young Flames in Calgary. Team work cannot be based on one player on the team. The New England Patriots of the NFL are a good example. Tom Brady is the best of the best, but a rookie made the greatest play to win the championship. It takes a team to win.

They say it takes a village to raise a child. That makes so much sense these days. Door to door we don’t work with or really know our neighbors. Children are different because we have raised them different. The ways of the past might seem old but they raised kids like a team; grooming them to contribute their part to the community. Today we have individuals that think they are entitled to something from their community.

What does God have to say about a team? Well God has the ultimate team: Father, Son, and Spirit. They are called the Trinity. It means they are distinctly different persons but with one mindset called God. You need more than one to make a team. God uses all this team to groom us to be part of the bigger community of God. People like Judas, Saul, and Satan chose the individual goals over the team. That is why they failed.

In Alberta we have political teams. The currant Conservative team is corrupt and based on its leaders values more than the province as a whole. The opposition team is always changing coaches just like the hockey Oilers or Leafs. A stable coach (like God) and a team that loves to work with each other is all you need. In the Bible as well as with the underdog, the lesser team can and many times does win.

In your business place do you point to the profits? Do you recognize certain winners and ignore the losers. The saying “you’re only strongest as your weakest link” is so true. The person doing the little things makes the over achievers look good. Money will flow when the team loves playing together. Dissention is a company killer. Canada Post thinks the current times and economy has killed the paper mail. If they only knew the damage they cause from devaluing the employee and customer. Putting profits ahead of service is a team killer.

Sure we need great individuals. Money is good to have flowing abundantly. It’s how you get there that’s the real goal: doing life together. People always talk about the journey, struggles, and victories. The team is a bond never broken. We remember the good ones and bad ones more than any other. Success and failure stick out. What sticks out to me these days is bad teams thinking they are good. Some political, sports, and society teams are in it for the wrong reasons. They exist to make themselves great only. And as the great philosopher Yoda said “and that is why you fail.”

Faith comes alive