J. C.'s Leadership Lessons
Theme for the Week: The Stuff of Leadership
Thursday, July 5, 2001
 1 of 1
Key Bible Verse: Then Caleb.
said, "We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it" (Numbers 13:30).
Bonus Reading: Numbers 13
J.C. was respected on the field and off," says Barry Switzer, J. C. Watts's coach at Oklahoma. "I sensed the day he entered politics that he'd be the first black governor of Oklahoma. He was a tough, tough kid who stood up and said what he believed in."
As a wishbone quarterback, Watts led the Sooners to Big 8 conference titles in 1979 and '80, and Orange Bowl championships in 1980 and '81. After OU, he played for six seasons with Ottawa and Toronto teams.
In 1986, Watts says he felt "called" away from football to something new. In 1994, he became the first black Republican from a Southern state to win a seat in Congress since Reconstruction. He was prepared for the fallout.
"My athletic experience," he says, "taught me endurance, patience, delayed gratification. Being a quarterback teaches you.
to have a tough skin and understand you'll have critics regardless of what you do. If you stay focused, things will work out.
"I got my values growing up in a poor black neighborhood," Watts said in his State of the Union response in 1997, "from a strong family, church, and neighborhood."
Steve Riach in Heart of a Champion
Respond:
Am I tough enough to stand up and be counted for unpopular positions?
Thought to Apply:
Lots of leaders want to be popular. I never cared about that. I want to be respected.
Don Shula (football coach)
Adapted from: Heart of a Champion (Broadman & Holman, 2001)
For your convenience, Heart of a Champion is available in the ChristianityToday.com bookstore.
Copyright © 2001 by the author or Christianity Today, Inc./Men of Integrity magazine.
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Lord, please develop in me those qualities that others will benefit from following.
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