1 QUOTE

“A mentor helps emerging leaders realize potential.”

– Dr. J. Robert Clinton

1 NOTE

Today Ken Matsuda turns 90 years old. I met Coach Ken on Michael and Amber Chang’s pre-wedding overnight fishing trip. We were targeting blue-fin tuna in the deep sea of Mexico. Matsuda helped Michael recover from a devastating injury (broken hip) only six-months after he won the 1989 French Open. Coach Ken went on to travel the world on the ATP tour with Michael and his family for many years. Michael was kind enough to introduce me to Ken to help me recover from a basketball related knee injury. His elite training gym was in his downstairs den. (I don’t think Ken’s neighbors had any idea that tennis legends parked on their street). Going to his house for training was very hard work, but Ken made it fun. For the last 17 years, Ken has been a friend and father-figure to me. We did ministry together at our first church plant and his local church. He would bring our family back food from his world travels. He was the first to visit me when I ended up in the hospital and immediately started a prayer chain. We enjoyed countless USC tailgates and football games, and he even gave me my first pair of Kobes (Zoom V Jokers). I thank God for my friend and the timeless lessons I learned in “Coach Ken’s Dojo.”

1. Faith Is Practical - Coach put his faith into practice to bless those in his sphere, especially serving widows in his church, and under-resourced children in the school he built in Costa Rica.

2. Can’t Means Won’t - When the challenge is before us, we have a choice. Do not self-negotiate out of the challenge. Saying “I can’t” often really means, “I choose not to.”

3. Donkeys Work Hard; Thoroughbreds Work Smart - We must have a plan and move towards our goal with focus and purpose.

4. Run Through the Wall - When we are young and hungry, we run through the wall. When we taste some success, we climb over the wall. When we taste more success, we go around the wall. With even more success, we have someone carry our bags around the wall. We must keep running through the wall.

5. Core Strength - Every workout began with sets of 25 leg-lifts. We must move (and live life) from the ground up, always using our core.

6. Bluffing Will Be Exposed - Discipline is more important than talent. Results are earned. Nothing is given.

7. Relaxation is Learned - The great ones make it look easy. From the chest up, you cannot tell if they are winning or losing; calm or stressed. We must work hard to gain relaxation.

Coach Ken was old school. He would only work with people who were internally driven. When you walked into his training den, he had a big sign that established his training standard, “No Whining, No Crying.” But today the pain is different. Even a force of nature like Coach Ken gets sick. Coach Ken is in hospice care.  

There were no tears in Coach Ken’s dojo. But there are tears in my heart today.

1 QUESTION

None of us are self-made people. I believe we are the sum of those we learn from and try to imitate (Hebrews 13:7). Who are the mentors who have poured into you? If possible, will you take a minute today to reach out and thank them?

Until Next Tuesday,

John