LeBron James is a basketball superstar who had very humble beginnings. Born on December 30, 1084, Lebron was abandoned before he was born by his father. His mother Gloria was only 16 at the time, and having to work several jobs, she raised him from birth to the best of her ability. When Lebron was 9 years old, Gloria had him move in with the family of Frank Waller for more stability. Frank was a youth basketball coach and introduced LeBron James to the sport of basketball.
LeBron excelled at basketball. In his Akron, Ohio high school, he was 1st given the nickname “King James”. He was snatched up as the 1st pick overall in the NBA, and the following year in 2004, he was awarded Rookie of the Year”. Lebron was awarded the NBA Most Valuable Player in 2009, 2010, 2012 and 2013. And he led the Miami Heat to a championship in 2012, and the Cleveland Cavaliers to their own championship in 2016.
You would think such stardom and fame would go to Lebron James’s head, but it has not happened. He has never forgotten his humble beginnings. From the LeBron James website, it goes back to August of 2011, an important promise was made in Akron, Ohio when 342 Akron Public Schools third grade students made a promise to their hero. They promised him they would go to school, be respectful to their parents, teachers and peers, be active and make good decisions. In return, Lebron promised them that he would be the best role model he could be, on and off the court. As his kids triumphed through the school year, their hero stood staring at himself in the mirror. The 6’9 forward stood in the bathroom of his Boston hotel room, on the verge of elimination. LeBron made the decision, it was time to rise to the occasion and keep his promise. The next night, LeBron posted 45 points and 15 rebounds and ignited the spark that carried his team to an NBA Championship. From this, the “Time to Promise” campaign was born.
The 1st wave of those Grade 3 will be completing their university in 2021 and the LeBron James Foundation has the money ready to pay for 4 years of University, worth $38,000 per student. What an incentive for those students to keep their promises. For LeBron James, his contribution will be around $87 million, money already set aside in the foundation for scholarships for 2,300 students, making him one of the most charitable athletes in the world.
The value of a promise depends upon the reputation or character of the one giving the promise. What if someone who has a reputation of being unfaithful and untrue, gives you a promise? How much value would you give to that promise? Not much. What if someone who has a reputation of being faithful and true, gives you a promise? How much value would you give to that promise? Great value. The value of a promise depends upon the reputation or character of the one giving the promise.
The LeBron James Foundation already has raised and donated enormous gifts to several charities that include the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, After-School All-Stars, the Children’s Defense Fund, Gabriel’s Angle Foundation and ONEXONE. On the LeBron James Foundation website every one or two weeks there is a message from LeBron to help keep the motivation up for those pledging the “I Promise” campaign. One of his latest messages was to do with the All Star Game and reads as follows, “Yo! We’re Team LeBron, right?? I hope so. The All-Star game is a little different this year so it’s Team LeBron against Team Steph. I’ll be repping for you guys. Even though I’m the one on the court, I want you to know that you’re on Team LeBron, and have been since day one.– LJ #StriveForGreatness”
In the Bible there are numerous promises given by God to us. The value of a promise depends upon the reputation or character of the one giving the promise. And God’s reputation and character has always been faithful to his word. He keeps His promises. These promises are filled with messages filled with hope to help us through not only the good times, but also the difficult times. We just have to by faith claim them for ourselves.
What do we know about the Bible? It is the best selling book in the world. It has been published in more than 1,200 languages. Since it was first printed, about 15 billion copies have been made. (that’s two and a half copies for every person on Earth!) It is made up of 66 separate books. The different books of the Bible were written by different people at different times. Image Source
With 15 billion copies printed in 1,200 languages since that 1st Bible was printed, it continues to be the most read book in the world. So many people continue to this day, are claiming for themselves the promises of God. Why not spend some time in God’s Word this coming week, and claim those many promises for yourself?
My Sunday Blog 