Resources
 Book Reviews
 Lead
for God’s Sake – A Parable for Finding the Heart of Leadership
By Todd Congwer
Kardia House Publishing – 2010 – Nappanee, Indiana – ISBN: 10:
0-9825941-0-0
Todd Congwer’s first book is a “three point play” that will warm the
heart of anyone who has ever coached or played high school basketball.
Its light hearted and yet deeply penetrating story line is engaging,
inspirational and at times poignant.
Congwer’s “parable” interweaves the lives of three adults (the local
high school coach, the school’s custodian and a prominent local
businessman) with the experiences of a highly ranked but underachieving
high school basketball team. “Coach” has to sort through the advice he
receives from a trusted friend and mentor who just happens to be a
highly successful businessman along with the encouraging but somewhat
confusing and befuddling comments from the school’s sage custodian. All
the while the pressure is building upon him and his floundering team.
Preseason “number one” hype is quickly fading as his team is
beleaguered with selfish attitudes, personal issues and injuries. Add
in the tension of the coach’s disintegrating marriage and family and
the recipe for disaster is apparent.
Whatever you do, finish the book as many of the dangling story lines
converge into an intriguing surprise ending.
 Catch
Phrases Worth Remembering
Coach Rocker continues to challenge his team to “Lead for God’s
Sake” only to realize it is he who needs to learn how to “Lead for
God’s Sake.” The obvious double meaning starts out as a blasphemous
rendering of the phrase but evolves into a life-clarifying and
life-guiding mantra.
How can local church sports outreach ministries use this
book
I would recommend each church purchase a copy of this book to give
to each of their high school and college age sports league participants
instead of a trophy or other gift/award. Its writing is basic enough
and geared to hook even those who don’t normally like to read. It would
be a great book to be used as a discussion starter for high school and
adult league post game discussions.
In addition, this would make a great “thank you” gift to all of
your basketball volunteers and/or can be used as a mildly evangelistic
gift to your area high school or college coaches.
Where to get the Book – Amazon.com
Summary
While the intended purpose of the book has to do with leadership, the
leadership principles are not “in your face.” They are more observed
than taught, which is consistent with how most basketball coaches
operate and any coach will gain from the examples of the good and bad
leadership modeled by coach Rocker. It sends the clear message that
coaches will have more influence on their players by how they live and
conduct themselves than by any other thing including winning.
This is a good book and one that will be used of God to influence
many lives. I do recommend it for use in local church sports outreach.
It is a good first start for the author but the principle characters
were too “cliché” and simplistic. The plot also needs to be better
developed for it to be considered great literature. In addition, it
does a good bit of moralizing, but then it’s by-line is “a parable for
finding the heart of leadership” and the moralizing should thus be
expected. None-the-less it has a real appeal as can be observed by the
following recommendation by Lou Holtz…
“This is a book I could not put down until I finished it. Every
parent, coach, manager and leader should read it. I wish I had read it
30 years ago.”
Book Review: Lead for God’s Sake – A Parable for Finding the Heart of
Leadership by Todd Congwer
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