A MESSAGE FROM COACH SAM:

April 27, 2010

Dear Friends, 

God has been trying to get me to slow down for some time. I've been suffering from being ' too busy' for years now.  Praise HIM, I'm learning to make JESUS the NUMBER ONE PRIORITY in my life above all else and HE's in the process of working a miracle in my life even as I compose this message. I hardly know where to start except to say that God is VERY REAL.  God is GOOD.  God is FAITHFUL. 

I hope you find my life totally, recklessly abandoned to THE ONE who promises Life Everlasting.

God has blessed me to be a teacher, and while coaching tennis has long been my passion, I now have a greater fire burning in me now to teach others about how making Jesus Christ their personal Lord and Savior is the most important decision they can ever make.  

My own life story is a reflection of God's saving grace and mercy. Once I accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior, my transformation has been nothing short of a miracle.  It is my hope that the resources on this page will point the way to a better life for You.   -A LIFE IN JESUS CHRIST. 

You are welcome to contact me anytime day or night if you want to visit about tennis, or JESUS...!

Yours Brother in Christ,

Coach Sam

How the Lord has worked in my life recently:   On Saturday, Feb 20, 2010 at 7:40 PM Elijah, Monica, and I were in a stopped vehicle and were struck from behind by a much larger vehicle at an extremely high rate of speed.  Our car was totaled out and Monica and I sustained neck, back, and shoulder injuries.  Elijah was miraculously unharmed.  The emergency workers on the scene were amazed said that they have seen fatalities result from less severe accidents.  God's hand of protection was most definitely upon us that evening, for sure.  My life will never be the same again!

Early in the morning on Tuesday July 12  I accidently caught myself and my house on fire scraping glue residue off of our floor with a metal scraper. Apparently a spark ignited the vaper and solvent I had just poured on the floor. In an instant I was standing in the middle of dlames going from the floor to the ceiling.   I was able to put the fire out with a fire extinguisher and escaped with only minor singes to the hair on my head and arms.  The house suffered minimal damage.  It could have been much worse, that's for sure.  So now I have had two brushes with death within a span of six months.  ~God is Good...!

VERY COOL LINKS...

Pastor Bob Kraft's Ministry Site   -Outreach to professional tennis players, coaches, tournament administrators, and fans.  -Pastor Bob has been a mentor and a big source of encouragement and inspiration to me!

Coach Sam's Prayer Journal  -my daily conversation with God

How Coach Sam Came to Christ  -Coming Soon.... 

Join the Presidential Prayer Team   -It is our Christian duty to pray for our country and it's leaders!

Fellowship of Christian Athletes   -Many great resources here. 

The Competitor's Creed      -An absolute MUST for every Christian athlete...! 

Kindling for the Fire   Website of Pastor Dwight Edwards, former ATP Tourning Pro

 Some of Coach Sam's Favorite Scriptures and how they relate to Tennis:

Ephesians 6:7-8.... Serve wholeheartedly as if you were serving the Lord, not man.  Obviously scripture is not referring to a 'tennis serve', but our 'service', what we do on a daily basis.  Some translations substitute the phrase 'what ever you do' for the word 'serve'.  I really like that translation better.   I consider tennis a gift from God.  It is a good, healthy, wholesome way to spend one's time. When I first heard Eph 6:7, I immediately thought to apply that principle to my tennis training.  I want to give my utmost to my training regimen in order to honor and glorify God for the blessing of tennis and also as a gesture of thanks and praise for my good health.  To give less than my best would be to dishonor the gift and blessing that God has given me.  To serve HIM wholeheartedly in our every endeavor is what God has called us to do, and that applies to tennis, too...!

Ephesians 4:29-32....Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouth...  You could just stop right there with verse 4:29 for a good life lesson, but if you read a little farther the Apostle Paul addresses being encouraging and compassionate to others and also instructs us to have nothing to do with anger and other hostile, negative emotions. I think it is especially important for coaches and teachers to be positive and encouraging. Remember the old addage that a person can catch more flies with honey than vinegar...?  Well, the same concept applies to communicating with others.

Phillippians 4:8 ....Whatever is good, whatever is right....dwell on those things....  Ahh, the power of positive thinking. Paul could have definitiely been one of the top sport psycologists of his time.  I'm definitely a firm believer in the power of positive thinking.  Telling yourself that you stink or you are horrible will probably never facilitate improvement.

1 Corinthians 10:31....What ever You do, do it for the Glory of God...  I've always loved this scripture. It calls us to honor our Lord and Savior in our every endeavor.  That makes sense.  It kind of goes along with anything worth doing is worth doing well.  I've never been one to just go through the motions.  If I was going to do something it was always going to be my personal best.  That's just how God 'wired' me.  Even before I was saved I was self driven to excellence.  After I got saved I learned to NOT try hard for my own personal glory but for the Glory of God who is the author of all opportunity.

Testimonies from Tennis Pros:

Michael Chang -One of my all time favorite players...!

David Wheaton  -Another one of my favorite players...!

'More Links worth a look... ' - Coach Sam

Why I hardly ever watch Television or go to the movies any more...

How to over come sin in your life   -A MUST READ...  'This one changed my life...'  (sam)

Intercessory Prayer  This is a good site...

Christian Blog Links:

Word Alone -This is an excellent Blog by Pastor Kevin Sam in Western Canada and has many good resource links, too.

Doug Rea  -Here is another Pastor's Blog.  Doug is a Pastor in Albany, Georgia.  I like the way this man thinks.

Pyromaniacs  -This is a team blog of multiple Christian Writers...  This is the REAL Thing...  Much reccomended by Sam

Created -My Wife's Blog...   She's a Proverbs 31 Woman and excellent writer, too.  Why do you think I married her?

Truth Observed -Authored by Dr Del Tackett, President of Focus on the Family Institute.  Sam reads this every day!

Other Resources:

Got Questions?  -Here's a great resource that answers over 134,000 Questions about the bible and theology.

American Family Association  -Upholding traditional family values.

Bible Study Notes- This is a nice site for bible study research.  Short, concise, summaries and lessons.

Chick Publications -Bible Tracts and other great witnessing tools.

Blue Letter Bible  -Great Site including scripture look up, translations, and commentaries. -Coach Sam's Favorite!

Old Landmarks   -Love this one.

Oneplace.com  -Great resource for ministry links and sermons

Some of Coach Sam's Favorite Bible Teachers:

Dr Charles Stanley  - Pastor of First Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia  

Dr Chuck Swindoll -Chancellor of Dallas Theological Seminary

Dr Adrian Rogers  -1931-2005 Pastor of Bellvue Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennissee for 32 years

Dr Anthony Evans  -Pastor of Oakcliff Bible Fellowship, Dallas Texas

DR RC Sproul -Noted Reformed Theologian. Host of Radio Ministry 'Renewing Your Mind'

Other Links of Interest:

A Good Charles Spurgeon Website  -You really owe it to yourself to spend a few minutes on this website..!

The New Engand Primer  -This was the standard text book for first graders in the 1700's.  Wow...!

Bible Answer Man  -Hank Hanegraaff, President of the Cristian Research Institute  ...Great Site!

Christian Radio KHCB 105.7 FM   -Sam has listened to this radio station since 1986...!

Christian Radio KSBJ 89.3 FM  -Great Local Contemporary Christian Music right here in Houston, Texas...

Christian Radio KKHT 100.3 FM  -Sam's Favorite Christian Radio.  Features the most teaching ministries...

Focus on the Family -Ministry of Dr James Dobson.  Excellent Family Program

Whitehorse Media  -Excellent Site of Noted Auther and Speaker Steve Wohlberg.  Check it out!

Abide In Christ  -Nice Site.  Contains a good daily devotion and many other links 

Campus Crusade for Christ  -Good site ministering to college students

Presidential Prayer Team  -Join me in praying for our country's leadership on a daily basis

See also Coach Sam's page of Favorite Conservative websites

 Links for Children:

Adventures in Odyssey...   A great Kid's radio show...

Veggie Tales...  This site is personally endorsed by Elijah Chadwell, Coach Sam's Son...

 Very Interesting:

Downloads:

Why Sam Chadwell Will Never Drink Another Drop of Alcohol...  This pdf file was published by Cere Muscarella, Sr Pastor of Life Church in Angleton, Texas.   It addresses what the bible really has to say about  Believers and their consumtion of alcohol.  The contents of this document changed my life and will change yours, too.  For more great doctrinal resources like this one go to http://www.life4square.com and click on the resources link.

 Video Links:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m935GJsDoXE   This is an incredible God-story...  9 minutes...