https://youtu.be/EGaqBOVtomo
Champion, a movie about forgiveness and reconciliation, is absolutely fantastic! I was privileged to get a private screening to watch this film and I was glad I made the time.
In the supercharged world of dirt track racing, a single mistake causes the lives of two men to change forever. One must fight for his family, the other must fight to forgive. Filmed in my hometown of Woodstock, GA, I recommend every pastor and church leader encourage their congregations to see this movie.
The Following Are 30 Leadership Lessons And Quotes From Champion – The Movie:
- “The #1 Thing People Regret most in their life is not spending enough time with family and friends.” This is a quote from Jack Reed, played by Gary Graham, whose son would pass away in the movie.
- Successful Leaders Have Great Intelligence – A crew chief named Rex told the car’s racer Sean Weathers, played by Andrew Cheney, “It takes guts to crawl through that window. But it takes brains to win a race.”
- Everyone Gets Better With A Coach – Weathers frequently refused to listen to his pit crew and would suffer the consequences.
- Great Leaders Have Mental Discipline – Rex added, “Stop worrying about the things you can’t control. Worry about the things you can.”
- The Only Difference Between Anger And Danger Is A “D”. Weathers could not control his temper and it costed those around him dearly.
- “A father should know his son.” – Jack Reed
- A friend of Jack’s son named Logan Evans said, “You may not understand it now but God has a plan through the pain.“
- Young children can’t tell when you are not a good father.
- Good Dads Never Quit. They Are Always There. – Rex told Weathers, “Maybe a good driver would hang it up but a good dad?”
- Dads Give Their Kids A Permanent Imprint – Weathers acknowledged, “I was pretty much a disappointment to him I think”
- Dads Give Their Kids An Identity. Weathers was always trying to please his performance-based father through his racing.
- You Gain Trust By Keeping Promises. You Lose Trust By Breaking Promises. – Weathers lost a tremendous amount of trust (and more) by forgetting his daughter’s ballerina practice.
- Evans said, “Forgiveness doesn’t erase our past but it can rewrite your future.”
- “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” – 2 Timothy 4:7
- May All Adult Children Have The Faith Of A Little Child – Weathers daughter said, “I want to pray out loud. I want to make sure God hears me.”
- Successful Leaders Have Been There And Done That. But They Are Also Going There And Doing That. – Jack noted, “Sometimes you have to do something outside your normal routine.”
- Pain Is A Universal Feeling – Weathers told Jack, “As bad as Ray may have had it, some people had it worse.”
- Successful Leaders Do Not Say, “It Is What It Is.” – Jack noted, “‘It is what it is’ sounds like defeat. It sounds like people not willing to make something better.”
- Successful Leaders Build People Up. Unsuccessful Leaders Tear People Down. – Jack told Weathers, “We should help each other out rather than tearing each other down. We’re both pretty good at doing that to ourselves.”
- Great Fathers Place Their Families Above Their Careers – Jack continued, “Don’t ever let your ambition become more important than raising your kid.”
- Jack concluded, “We’re all broken. We’re all human.”
- Forgiveness Is Not Easy. This is why only the best leaders can do it.
- God Uses Forgiveness For The Good Of All Involved – The Offender And The Offended Party – Evans said, “When we forgave Ray, God used it for good.”
- God Forgave Us. Therefore, We Should Always Forgive Others – Evans added, “We didn’t deserve God’s forgiveness. Are you starting to recognize a pattern here.”
- Great Leaders Are Worth Following And Jesus Is The Greatest Leader Ever – Evans added, “When you understand what you’ve been forgiven of, you can’t help but follow His example.”
- Great Leaders Take Great Risks – “I built a career taking risks with other people’s money.” – Jack Reed
- You Go Up When You Give Up – As he led Weathers to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, Reed said, “You worked so hard to become a champion. Believing you’re only as good as your last performance. Just think what it would be like to give up that control, to let someone else take all your burdens. That’s all it took – surrender. Giving it up to God.”
- Nothing Is More Important Than Being A Champion At Home. Weathers’s daughter told him at the movie’s conclusion, “You deserve all the medals in the world. I’m really proud of you daddy.”
- We Don’t Produce What We Want. We Produce Who We Are. – Weathers’s daughter grew up to be a race car driver. She followed her father’s footsteps.
- “Real peace is found in surrender. And nothing can change a life more than forgiveness.” – Jack
Once again, this movie is incredible. It may not be in theaters long so make sure you check it out. You will be glad you did.