On Tuesday, June 18, at 11:30 a.m. in the BYU-Idaho Center, Philip Crane, a sports activities manager, gave his devotional address which was centered on staying strong in difficult times and getting up when the going gets tough.
Crane used various sports examples in his talk, likening them to living a gospel-centered life. He compared the two by naming a few qualities he feels are necessary for both sports and the gospel.
“Teamwork, setting and achieving goals, leadership, hard work, grit, valor, learning from mistakes, successes, not giving up and enduring to the end are just a few characteristics that can be learned and developed in sports and the gospel,” Crane said. “I can honestly say that my testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ was gained, developed and strengthened on a baseball diamond, a football field, a basketball court and a track.”
Crane went on to share a story of a young boy participating in a race, wanting to win the race for his father. As he got close to the finish line, the boy fell down. His father continuously encouraged him to “get up and win the race”. Each time the boy fell down, he got back up, eventually finishing the race. Crane compared the race in this story to the race everyone faces each day.
“We are all in a race,” Crane said. “The race of life. The prize is exaltation and eternal life. We have a loving Heavenly Father encouraging us. To win, we must overcome temptations and trials placed in our path. We must get up each time we fall, endure to the end and win the race.”
Crane also shared a set of verses from the book of Ephesians in the New Testament. The verses talked about “putting on the whole armor of God”, which Crane stressed, as he gave a list of five ways how people can spiritually put on the armor of God:
— Personal prayer
— Daily scripture study
— Attend your church meetings and partake of the sacrament
— Bear your testimony
— Attend the temple regularly
To finish his address, Crane made a promise to those that were willing to apply his message in their everyday lives by getting up whenever they would fall.
“Don’t quit when you fall,” Crane said. “Get up, keep trying. Don’t look for excuses and blame others. Look to the Savior and rely on His strength. As you do, you will feel the enabling power of the Savior’s atonement in your life.”