“For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.” 1 Corinthians 2:2 NIV

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“Going out on top”

 

A few years ago, on Senior Day, a Kansas University “Jayhawk” went out on top.  As you can imagine, all of the seniors on the team that night were feeling plenty of emotions. One senior in particular had waited his whole life for this moment. The senior was Wayne Simien, an all-American starting forward who came back to Kansas after his junior year.  Had he left school early, he would have been a top 10 pick in the NBA draft. Why would someone in his position want to stay and resist a fortune?  In a world where we are told to look out for number one, why would he risk an injury that would all but surely cause him not to be drafted?   

 

You see, Wayne Simien thought he had it all. He had a wonderful mom and dad who loved and supported him. He had all the material things he needed and then some. He had mad basketball skills that were so good he was the starting forward for one of the most storied basketball programs in the nation, but reality hit him between the eyes that day on campus when someone asked him what he was living for. That day, God spoke to Wayne and he has never been the same. Had he left Kansas as a junior, he was promised millions of dollars in the NBA draft, however he postponed leaving so that he could speak on senior day. What could he possibly want to say that he would give up so much?  After thanking his mom and dad for all they had done, he saved the best for last, for this was why he was there.  This is what he said: “No matter how many victories I’ve had on this court—all the championship banners, all the accolades past, present and future—the one thing I’ll glory in is my relationship with the living God. When I was 11 years old, I dreamed about playing on this court. Well, my dream now is to see each and every one of you, all 16,000, everyone listening on the radio and seeing this on TV, to have the same love and relationship with Jesus Christ as I do”.

 

Wayne Simien went out on top. However, Wayne Simien is still on top because his self-worth, his purpose in life and his value is not determined by the points he scores. Wayne Simien understands and lives by a verse in the Bible. The verse is found in Mark 8:36, “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul”?

 

Brian Hoover