By Gary Curreri

The Bucks haven’t stopped yet.

Deerfield Beach continued its march to a Class 8A state championship by taking down the defending state champs, Flanagan, 10-7 last Friday night. The victory avenged a 17-0 loss to Flanagan last year in the same round.

The Bucks (9-2) won the Region 3-8A semifinal by jumping out to a 10-0 advantage and then held off the last charge from the Falcons (9-3) to advance to this Friday’s regional final against visiting Delray Beach Atlantic at 7:30 p.m.

Bucks kicker Ledin Rivera connected on a 35-yard field goal late in the first quarter for a 3-0 that held up until senior wide receiver, and Alabama commit, Jerry Jeudy intercepted his second pass in as many playoff games and returned it 41 yards for the Bucks’ lone touchdown early in the fourth quarter to push the lead to 10-0.

“It is a good feeling making a big time play,” said Jeudy, who started playing defensive back in the playoffs. “We needed it and I got it…It’s a great chance to get to play both sides of the ball.”

Flanagan senior quarterback Stanford Samuels concluded a short drive with a 1-yard plunge that trimmed the lead to 10-7, and Flanagan got another chance with 4:50 to play, but a fourth down and long pass by Samuels was incomplete.

“It’s an honor to play in a game like this with the best talent in South Florida,” Deerfield Beach coach Jevon Glenn said after the game. “It was an awesome experience and an awesome night to play a hard-fought game. You have two of the best coaching staffs in South Florida…I want my team to come out here and chase history and that’s what we are doing.”

Deerfield Beach senior defensive back Kobe Green intercepted two passes, the second coming with nine seconds remaining in the contest to seal the win.

“I knew I had to make a play for my team and I did,” Green said. “It is the best feeling ever. It feels wonderful.”

The Bucks defense forced four turnovers and held Flanagan to 74 total yards. Deerfield Beach sophomore linebacker Gemon Eaford recorded a pair of sacks. The Bucks’ offense could only muster 80 total yards in a winning effort.

Nagy steps down

Pompano Beach High School football coach Rick Nagy has stepped down.

“I was blessed to have the opportunity to coach at this school and to get to know the many people that help promote the sport,” Nagy said in a statement.

Nagy finished 20-20 during his 4-year stint as coach of the Golden Tornadoes. He won conference titles in 2014 and 2015 in the Southeastern Football Conference American Division and was also named the SFC American Division Coach of the Year in 2015.

Pompano Beach moved to the Gold Coast Conference this season and finished 2-8, including 2-7 in conference play.

By “Cinema” Dave

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

Moana kicks off the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend. Based on a Polynesian myth, Moana is an entertaining movie that the whole family can see together without any embarrassing moments for grandparents and grandchildren.

The legend of Maui (voiced by Dwayne Johnson) is revealed early in the movie. Maui was tasked with bringing the heart of Te Fiti gem to Mother Earth. When Maui bumbles the job, the balance of nature is upset for one thousand years.

The ocean summons young Moana (Auli’i Cravalho) to rescue Maui and return the gem. Through a series of adventures and battles with coconut pirates and giant fire monsters, Moana finds Maui and learns important life lessons.

While the musical numbers lack the strength of Frozen and other Disney Classics, Moana features a good story with a satisfying climax. The verdant visuals make Moana a good flick for holiday viewing.

Inner Workings is a delightful six-minute short subject that screens before Moana. The film introduces a protagonist who goes to work in a mundane job. When he listens to his heart, the hero changes himself and changes his world.

The Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival wrapped Sunday night and The Boy By the Sea remains the best seven minutes of festival celluloid. The India-Australia flick Lion won the best of the fest and features Nicole Kidman and David Wenham as an Australian couple who help a lost Indian boy.

Also in the fest was Stanley Isaac’s It’s about the Story – Conversations with Alan Ladd Jr., a 40-minute documentary about contemporary motion picture history. The son of a movie star, Ladd Jr. worked behind the scenes of Hollywood and green lit movies like Young Frankenstein and Star Wars. Ladd’s box office track record is amazing and, hopefully, in the next couple of weeks we will see some motion pictures that will rival Alan Ladd Jr.’s resume.

[These were just a few of the films available for viewing. Did you miss the fest? There is always next year. Plus, their headquarters at Savor Cinema in Ft. Lauderdale has movies scheduled all year long. Find out more information at www.fliff.com.]

This is the season to be grateful for the things, the people, and the experiences that make life enjoyable. A comfortable home, friends and family, and a well-earned accomplishment are examples of what cause many of us to be thankful. But what of the challenges and stresses that wear away at our patience and resolve? Gratitude is not the first thing that comes to our mind or our will when facing them. Discouragement, distress, helplessness, frustration and anger are probably among the first inclinations we will have in times of difficulty.

Author George Mikes relates the following story in one of his books: In Budapest, a man goes to the rabbi and complains, “Life is unbearable. There are nine of us living in one room. What can I do?”

The rabbi answers, “Take your goat into the room with you.”

The man in incredulous, but the rabbi insists, saying, “Do as I say and come back in a week.”

A week later the man comes back looking more distraught than before.

“We cannot stand it,” he tells the rabbi. “The goat is filthy.”

The rabbi then tells him, “Go home and let the goat out and come back in a week.”

A radiant man returns to the rabbi a week later, exclaiming, “Life is beautiful. We enjoy every minute of it now that there’s no goat — only the nine of us.”

The church in Thessalonica was facing persecution but the believers were standing firm in their faith. They were commended by the apostle Paul, in his first letter to them, along with praise for being examples to believers in Macedonia and Achaia. In 1 Thessalonians 5:18, Paul writes this: “In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” He did not mean to suggest that every bad experience was God’s will for the believer, but that believers can find a reason to be grateful in both success and adversity, as well as anything in between.

Life could always be worse, as the illustration of the goat in the room reveals. Let me ask you, hasn’t God been good even in your bad times? Can you not find a reason to be full of appreciation even in the difficult seasons of your life? Is there no one on the planet whose state of existence is worse than yours? You may have a lot to complain about, and may long for something better, but does that mean you can’t be grateful for something right now? Allow me to strongly suggest that you have many reasons to be thankful. An old hymn of the church encourages us to take stock of God’s goodness when times are bad: When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed, when you are discouraged, thinking all is lost, count your many blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord has done. The last verse instructs, So, amid the conflict whether great or small, do not be discouraged, God is over all; count your many blessings, angels will attend, help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.

This Thanksgiving, enjoy your time with family and friends. Spend time with God and thank Him for the many blessings in your life. Participate in some of the numerous opportunities to be a blessing to others during this time of year. Serve a hot meal, donate a turkey, wrap a gift, volunteer your time. Count your blessings and be grateful. Happy Thanksgiving!

Bishop Patrick L. Kelly is the pastor of Cathedral Church of God, 365 S. Dixie Hwy., Deerfield Beach, FL 33441. 954-427-0302.

By Gary Curreri

Kaitlyn Smith was one of more than 200 players that recently took part in the seventh annual Ranse Jones Classic beach volleyball tournament in Deerfield Beach.

Smith, 20, grew up playing beach volleyball in Deerfield and played a year at nearby Florida Atlantic University last year, but said her engineering studies curtailed her college career.

Still, the 2015 Highlands Christian Academy graduate finds her way out to the sand that is just minutes away from her Deerfield Beach home.

“It is great how they celebrate it in a positive way and bring the whole beach (volleyball) family together,” Smith said. “A lot of us are local, but a lot of people come from out of state and that’s awesome. I play here all of the time and I think it is great to see people out here doing the same thing and supporting a great cause … having fun, and the positive energy is great.”

The tournament is staged each year to celebrate the life of the volleyball player and Flagler County firefighter after whom the tournament is named. The tournament generally raises between $20-$30,000 on an annual basis for Ranse Jones Stroke Awareness Fund at the Broward Health North Stroke Center.

In April 2010, Jones suffered a brain aneurysm while playing in the semifinals of the Panama City AVP Young Guns tournament. He died that November. Jones had played in 21 AVP tournaments since 2000. He also spent time on the Extreme Volleyball Professionals tour and competed in the Men’s Open Division of the 2009 U.S. Open of Beach Volleyball.

Fort Lauderdale’s Juanita Mendoza, 29, said the tournament was huge.

“There are a lot of people that play in this from a lot of different states,” Mendoza said. “(It is very competitive) as well as people who are here to honor the cause.”

Jensen Beach High School junior Jillienne Cangelosi, 16, made the drive from her home in Stuart to play in the tournament.

“It is a really big event,” Cangelosi said. “It is really great because people aren’t only here to compete. They are here to have a good time.”

“When we had the bagpipes in the morning, you could just feel everybody thinking about him,” she continued. “And the moment of silence, even though there were other noises obviously, it was amazing to think about him and that his memory was still here.”

Bucks in action Friday

Deerfield Beach High School is hoping for redemption this Friday as it visits Flanagan in the Class 8A regional semifinals at 7:30 p.m.

The Bucks (8-2) did its part as it coasted to a 27-13 regional quarterfinal victory over Western as quarterback Nick Holm passed for 230 yards and two touchdowns and added a scoring run to boot. Deerfield Beach is ranked 5^th in the state in the AP Football rankings.

“We have been on a collision course for a whole year now,” said Bucks coach Jevon Glenn. “Let the two big dogs go at it and give the people what they want to see. There is a lot of respect for both teams.”

The defending 8A state champion Falcons (9-2) topped down Piper, 21-7, last week to set up a rematch of the same round last year where Flanagan, currently ranked third in the state in the AP Football rankings, won 17-0 en route to Orlando.

Tigers close season on winning note

Stanley Bolden caught two touchdown passes, the second from 27-yards out in overtime, to give Blanche Ely a 13-7 upset victory over Dillard recently in the 47th annual Soul Bowl at Lockhart Stadium.

After Dillard’s George Golden scored on a 39-yard touchdown run to put the Panthers ahead 7-0, the Tigers (3-6) tied the game on a 60-yard pass play from senior quarterback Karinzo Ward to Bolden.

Blanche Ely, which missed the playoffs for the first time since 2012, won the rivalry game for the 7th time in the past eight meetings and led the series 25-20-2. Dillard led (6-4), which won the District 15-6A title in a three-team tiebreaker, went on to lose to Miami Carol City, 47-8, in the regional quarterfinals.

By “Cinema Dave”

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

Thus far, the best seven minutes of sustained entertainment from the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival (FLIFF) has been viewing The Boy By The Sea, a short subject from Latvia, directed by Vasily Chuprina. The premise is simple: an old, lighthouse keeper watches a boy skimming stones in the water. The sad boy tells his story and forms a new friendship with the old man. With minimal dialog (in Danish with English subtitles), The Boy By The Sea sustains its narrative, introduces interesting characters and provides visual symbolism that promotes heartfelt discussion. What Doctor Strange does with a $165 million production budget in two hours, The Boy By The Sea does in seven minutes. Kudos to Vasily Chuprina!

FLIFF wraps up this weekend, with the grand finale being held at Bailey Hall in Davie Sunday night. After an afternoon screening of Ed Wood, Best Supporting Oscar Winner Martin Landau will attend the screening of The Red Maple Leaf, a Canadian film directed by Frank D’Angelo, who also wrote the screenplay. Co-Sponsored by Steve Savor, Dr. Lucy Marrero, Janet Leavy Schwartz and Irwin Levenstein, Martin Landau will accept his Lifetime Achievement Award. On this night, the festival awards for best picture, best documentary, best short subject and other categories will be announced.

At 31 years, FLIFF has become the champion film festival of our community and has done so by respecting history, but with an eye on new trends and talent. This was never so evident than last Friday afternoon, Veteran’s Day, in which Palm Beach resident Arlene Dahl received her Lifetime Achievement Award and Ft. Lauderdale’s own Bailee Madison screened Anabelle Hooper and the Ghosts of Nantucket, the 17-year-old actress’ first producer credit.

A veteran of Hollywood’s Golden Age, Arlene Dahl shared how her leading men were too serious (John Payne) and villainous character actors (Ted de Corsia) had a wonderful sense of humor. From her Norwegian mother, Dahl learned the value of hard work and to live a simple life. While being interviewed by Brooklyn college film professor Foster Hirsch, Dahl shared her first meeting with Clark Gable at a prestigious MGM gala. Intimidated at first by meeting this popular box office star, the two shared a wonderful evening discussing fly fishing. To see Dahl’s full interview, visit my YouTube Channel, www.YouTube.com/CinemaDave.

After flying in from Toronto, where she is shooting The Good Witch for the Hallmark Channel, Bailee Madison accepted her Young Filmmaker’s Award at the Savor Cinema. While generously sharing the spotlight with her Annabelle Hooper cast and crew, Bailee acknowledged each individual who wanted to meet her, pose with her or get an autograph. Since her last appearance at FLIFF four years ago, Bailee acknowledged receiving more attention and flash photography, given her body of work on the big screen, cable and broadcast television. She acknowledges how good it is to return home to South Florida.

The box office juggernaut for the Harry Potter prequel kicks off this weekend with J.K.Rowling’s, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, which is likely to have a trailer for Kong: Skull Island. The next week, the holiday Disney animated movie Moana opens featuring the voice of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, which is likely to have a trailer for Beauty and the Beast, which stars an adult Emma Watson from the Harry Potter movies.

Given the recent election cycle, we have survived some “beastly” days. However let us take the time to enjoy the “beauty” of the upcoming holidays. As I learned from The Boy By The Sea, beauty is where you find it.

If you are looking for a few treasures for the holidays, then check out the FLIFF Silent Auction at www.32auctions.com/FLIFF2016.

Thanksgiving is a great time to recall the many blessings that surround us. If I were to write about every blessing that I have received, I am sure that there would not be enough ink and paper in the world. So I chose one in particular.

One of the blessings of my life, as well as the life of my family, is the blessing of being part of Southeastern Guide Dogs, which has its headquarters in Palmetto, FL. When our children were very small and I wanted to spend time with them and be visible in the community, my wife and I decided that this would be a great opportunity to accomplish both. As a pastor, I needed to find a new hobby or a new passion that was completely different than what I was doing in my career. So we started being “puppy raisers.”

Puppy raisers raise puppies and train them until they are old enough to return to Palmetto and complete their training to become Guide Dogs for the sight impaired. While many do not qualify for that very special job, most dogs take on another job such as arson dogs, classroom dogs to assist in reading, dogs that help people who suffer from seizures, etc. And, of course, some of them wind up as pets.

Some people told me that they thought it was cruel to subject children to the trauma of raising a puppy only to let them go. Then we, as a family, went to a graduation when the sight-impaired and their companion were venturing off into the world. My kids, at a very young age, realized that the rewards that came with this sacrifice far outweighed the heart-ache of saying goodbye.

Now, we have the privilege of being “breeder hosts.” We host a dog, Gizmo, who has given birth to three litters and will probably give birth to a total of four. We also hosted Bentley, who sired 82 puppies before he “retired.” Now he is our pet.

I share this because, through the experience my family and I have had with Southeastern Guide Dogs, we have seen God at work in a very profound way. We have a greater appreciation of our Creator because of the lives we have seen blessed by God’s creation.

This experience opened my eyes to the reality that God honors animals and created them to bless God’s people. I became keenly aware of the multiple times animals are mentioned in the Bible and the important roles that they have played throughout both the Hebrew and Greek Testaments.

From the beginning of humanity, God gave dominion to humans over the “fish of the sea, the birds of the air and every living thing that moves upon the earth.” (Genesis 1:28 NRSV) And, when humanity disappointed God, God went out of his way to protect his creation by assigning Noah the task of building an ark for two of every creature (Genesis 6:19-20) and seven pairs of every clean animal (Genesis 7:2).

Animals even get honored and mentioned in the 10th Commandment when God warned us not to covet our neighbor’s oxen or donkey.

I was struck by some of the details in Jonah 3 when even the animals wore sackcloth as a sign of repentance in the city of Nineveh. (Imagine your pet in sackcloth) And, ever the stickler on details, God even knows when a sparrow falls. (Matthew 10:29)

And even if we move from animals to people, what profession was most honored in the Bible? I think we know it is the shepherd.

I am grateful to be a part of Southeastern Guide Dogs. I am grateful for the unique bond we had as a family that learned a skill together, a skill that has blessed numerous people. I am grateful for having four different puppies go through our loving hands and into the loving hands of people who cannot see, children who struggle with reading, people who suffer from seizures, or veterans in therapy.

Happy Thanksgiving and embrace this holiday as a time to count your blessings. Happy counting.

Pastor Gross is a pastor of Zion Lutheran Church, located at 959 SE 6 Ave., Deerfield Beach, FL 33441. For more information, contact 954-421-3146 or visit www.zion-lutheran.org.

By Bryan Hursh

The Cardinal Gibbons Chiefs got redemption Friday night as they beat the Deerfield Beach Bucks, 23-21, in a clutch defensive fashion, after the Bucks defeated them on their own Senior Night last year. This came as a major upset, being the first time the Chiefs had ever beaten the Bucks.

Deerfield Senior quarterback Nick Holm suited up for the game, but did not play due to a sore right (throwing) shoulder, giving senior quarterback Alec Brown the opportunity to start.

Brown started the night by marching the Bucks downfield, tossing an eight-yard touchdown to senior tailback Taletrius Bradley.

Gibbons answered back later in the 1st quarter with Sophomore quarterback Nik Scalzo scrambling and finding Junior wide receiver Lavonte Decius on a 30-yard TD.

The Chiefs would go on to capture the lead, 10-7, with a 45-yard field goal from junior kicker Griffin Cerra with 11:05 remaining in the half.

Brown and the Bucks offense put together a 9-minute drive down the field resulting in a 5-yard screen pass to junior wide receiver Cornelius McCoy for a touchdown, and regained the lead, 14-10, with 1:37 remaining in the 1st half.

Gibbons marched down the field and Cerra drained a 27-yard field goal as time expired, bringing the game to 14-13 Bucks up going into halftime.

During halftime, the Bucks honored 31 senior football players, members of the band and cheerleading team as they walked to midfield, escorted by parents, family members and friends.

The Bucks started the second half kicking off to the Chiefs, who elected to sit Scalzo for senior backup Austin Boyle, with next week’s District 16-5A runner-up playoff game looming.

Gibbons was stopped on 3rd down and punted the ball back to Deerfield. The Chiefs defense held the Bucks, forcing them to punt the ball back to them. Behind good blocking, Junior Tavontae Decius returned the punt 43 yards down to the Bucks 5-yardline, while Sophomore running back Grantis Poole pounded it in for the score, taking a 20-14 lead with 10:01 remaining in the 3rd quarter.

Brown answered right back, tossing a 55 yard touchdown to senior wide receiver and Alabama commit, Jerry Jeudy, with 7:25 left in the 3rd quarter … recapturing the lead 21-20.

The Bucks and Chiefs punted the ball back and forth, as neither could establish a strong run game.

It wasn’t until late in the 4th quarter that the Chiefs would regain the lead. With 4:38 left in the 4th quarter, Boyle tossed a 21-yard pass to Senior wide receiver Daniel Larose, who hauled it in at the 7-yardline. The Bucks defense held the Chiefs and backed them up 4-yards to the 11-yardline. Cerra hit another 27-yard field goal to take the lead, 23-21, barely making it through the uprights.

With under 3:20 remaining in the game, Brown had to march the Bucks 50 yards down the field to the 25-yardline to get within field goal range. Brown found Jeudy on a 10-and-out route where Jeudy was able to break it outside for a 35-yard gain. The Bucks pounded the ball on the ground, getting 20 yards and two first downs to make it to the 30-yardline. In questionable play calling from Bucks Head Coach Jevon Glenn, Brown tried to thread the ball to senior wide receiver Leroy Henley in the end zone but got picked off by Chiefs junior cornerback Ron Hardge III.

The Chiefs wound the clock down to 18 seconds, giving Deerfield one last play to win the game. Brown rolled out to his left and was sacked by the Chiefs defense, sealing the win.

Brown finished the night with 216 passing yards and two touchdowns while throwing three interceptions. Scalzo finished 10 for 17 with 104 yards, one touchdown and one interception, and Boyle 6 for 11 for 83 yards and one interception.

Holm will be back next week as Deerfield will take on Western High School in the first round of the playoffs while Cardinal Gibbons will travel to Riviera Beach to take off Suncoast High School.

By “Cinema” Dave

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

Photos by Rachel Galvin

With very little surprise, Doctor Strange dominated the weekend with $84 million in box-office gross. It is typical Marvel comic-book entertainment as we are introduced to neurosurgeon Stephen Strange, M.D. After losing his hands to paralysis in a car accident, Doctor Strange goes to Nepal for alternative medicine.

While healing, Strange learns about the invisible universe that was introduced briefly in last year’s Marvel epic, Ant-Man. With metaphysical carny tricks added to his medicine bag, he battles a villain (Mads Mikkelsen). While there is no rush to go see this Saturday matinee flick, visiting the astral plane with Doctor Strange provides alternative entertainment.

The second week of Ft. Lauderdale International Film Festival (FLIFF) also provides alternative cinema to please both young and old this Friday, Nov. 11 at Savor Cinema (503 SE 6 St., Ft. Lauderdale)

• 2 p.m.: Brooklyn College film professor Foster Hirsch will conduct an interview with Arlene Dahl, a veteran Warner Brothers actress who performed in both crime noir and musicals.

• 4:30 p.m.: Bailee Madison returns to Fort Lauderdale to screen Annabelle Hooper and the Ghosts of Nantucket, Bailee’s first producer credit. Stick around for a pizza party afterward.

Tomorrow Ever After makes its east coast premier Friday, Nov. 18 at the Cinema Paradiso Hollywood (2008 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood) and on Saturday, Nov. 19 at the Savor Cinema. A time traveler from the 26th century (Ela Thier, who also wrote and directed) arrives in Manhattan during the historical period known as “The Great Despair,” which happens to be the year 2015.

FLIFF is putting an emphasis upon foreign movies this year. Movies from the U.K., Caribbean, Chili and Israel will be the focus this weekend at Savor and Hollywood Cinemas. For ticket prices and times, contact 954-525 FILM or visit www.fliff.com.

Unrelated to FLIFF, Silverspot Cinemas in Coconut Creek has invited this film columnist to host a series of “Spaghetti Westerns” starring Clint Eastwood. On Monday. Nov. 14, enjoy a spaghetti dinner complete with wine at 6 p.m. followed by the film A Fistful of Dollars, directed by Sergio Leone with a classic musical score by Ennio Morricone at 7 p.m.

Annually, Universal Studios Orlando hosts Florida’s largest Christian music event: Rock the Universe. For two nights, youth groups, families, and everyone in-between, experience electrifying worship music led by many of the top Christian artists — rides all day, spirit-stimulating concerts by night.

My first experience baffled me. Moments into the start of the concerts, all but one of the students in the youth group (that I had recently inherited) sat down, in the middle of thousands of people, uninterested. Quickly, they pleaded with the other youth leader to take them back to the hotel, which he obliged.

One 12-year-old, Alexander, stayed. And it was a good thing he did. Midway through the Switchfoot concert, lead singer Jon Foreman climbed atop the fencing that was set between the stage and the audience. When Jon put his hand out for support, Alex was in the right spot at the right time ready to extend his own hand up to help.

It was an unforgettable night that launched the mentorship between Alex and me.

Throughout the year, we’d find time to talk about God, life and everything else that piques the curiosity of a pre-teen. While I’m more inclined to share his moments of growth, he’d prefer I tell you that he shot me with a paintball gun in the head, twice.

But it was the last night of summer camp that captured my heart the most. It was minutes after midnight when Alex finally declared he was ready to surrender to Christ — for real. (Truthfully, there are days I miss being an airline captain, but even just one night like this one reminds me it’s all worth it. God’s plan for our life is worth it.)

By that summer’s end, on one of the greatest days of my life, Alex and I hit the ocean surf for his baptism. Friends and family gathered just south of the Deerfield Beach pier, and with the whole world watching, Alex publicly declared his faith by going under the water and rising up a new man in Christ!

Following the baptism, we were both surprised with tickets to the upcoming Switchfoot concert, where much of this began. And so, this past weekend, Alex and I ventured into downtown Ft. Lauderdale for Relient K, which is the band that started it all for me during my teen years, and Switchfoot at Revolution Live.

Unbelievably, Jon Foreman reprised his audience jaunt. He climbed in front of us on the second level, and, just like that, we were thrust to center stage — for my favorite song I might add. Switchfoot had done it again, creating a night to remember, coming full circle for Alex and me.

During our Monday mentoring hangout this week, I asked Alex if God had recently prompted him to any sort of action. He specifically mentioned feeling led to sing during the concert, to not worry what others might think. What a valuable lesson: To learn that God is going to ask us to do things outside our comfort zone as we cling to the wisdom found in 1 Thessalonians 2:4 in that we are to “please God, not people.”

Alexander learned this lesson and it will be of much value as he lives a life for God. But it didn’t happen by accident.

In short, if you’re looking to grow in your walk — to live a spirit-let, God-given purposeful and courageous life for Christ, look to Alex’s example: 1) He stayed when everyone else left. 2) Not only did he stay, but engaged. 3) He accepted guidance and correction from a mentor (after being open and transparent about his faults). And (4) he is available. He made time to grow and pursue God — working toward the call on his life. For Alex, this is just the beginning of his story; and maybe this is the beginning of yours too.

From this day forward, shake off any complacency and excuses that keep you from being fully alive as a son or daughter of the Most High — open to rocking not just the universe, but the Kingdom of God.

C.J. Wetzler is the NextGen pastor at First Baptist Church of Deerfield Beach. Before transitioning into full-time ministry, CJ was a commercial airline captain and high school leadership and science teacher. For questions or comments he can be reached at cj@deerfieldfirst.com.

By Gary Curreri

The numbers were so sparse that Highlands Christian Academy had one player attending off-season workouts and the school had to cancel its spring football game.

This Friday, the Knights (4-3) will travel to Palmer Trinity (5-0-1) to play for the Florida Independent Football Conference (FIFC) championship at 3:30 p.m.

Highlands Christian, which knocked off Palm Glades Prep Academy, 26-14, in the semifinal game, avenged a 25-22 loss earlier in the season to Palm Glades.

“There is always the outside thought that it was possible if everything went well, but, realistically, no,” said Highlands coach Josh Harris, 36, of Boca Raton.

Harris, who is in his first year as head coach after assistant coaching stints at Miami Northwestern, Doral Academy and Somerset Academy started to believe that his team could make a run at a championship when the team played Palmer Trinity in the regular season. The Knights led the host Falcons, 14-13, with five minutes remaining in the game and was halted because of darkness.

“I saw that we could compete with the best teams in the conference,” Harris said. The game was never finished because it wouldn’t have affected the standings. The FIFC consists of five teams: Highlands Christian, Palmer Trinity, Palm Glades Prep Academy, Scheck Hillel, and Pinecrest Prep (Miami).

“One of the things I had to work with on them was having pride in themselves and pride in the program,” Harris said. “They have something to play for and a chance to leave a legacy where they can come back 40 years from now to the school and see a banner up there for football. Right now, there is nothing up there related to football, but a lot of other sports are there. That’s what they have come out and done. Winning Friday would be huge!”

The Knights, with just 23 players on the roster and seven players going both ways on offense and defense, have been led by 8th grader Christian Opalsky (RB/DB), seniors Carl Schuberth (QB), Noah Camanini (OL/LB), Josiah Ritzer (OL/DL) and sophomore Titus Baggs (TE/DE). Opalsky has rushed for more than 1,000 yards this season in just seven games.

Highlands Christian Academy hasn’t had a winning season since 2011 when the team finished 6-4.

Bucks win district title

While Deerfield Beach head football coach Jevon Glenn was disappointed with his team’s play in a 35-0 victory over host Piper on Friday night, the effort was still good enough to clinch the District 11-8A championship for a second straight year.

“I am disappointed as you can be with a 35 point win,” said Bucks coach Jevon Glenn, whose Bucks improved to 8-1 overall and 5-0 in the district. The team’s lone loss this season came against Grayson (Logansville, GA) on the road, 39-14.

“We came out in the first half and got on them,” Glenn said. “With (Nick) Holm going down, that kind of hurt and we could have brought him back but we felt we could do this to this team.”

Nick Holm threw for two touchdowns before leaving with 10:04 remaining in the first half with an injury to his throwing shoulder as the Bucks knocked Piper from the ranks of the unbeaten for the second straight season. Last year Piper entered the game undefeated at 9-0, only to lose 38-0 on the road to the Bucks.

Holm threw TD passes to Daewood Davis for 7 yards and a 29-yarder to Alton Allen to stake the Bucks to a 14-0 lead. Ashtan Pierre returned an interception 41 yards with 5:46 remaining in the first half to extend the lead to 21-0.

Deerfield put the game away late in the fourth quarter when Taletrious Bradley scored on a 67-yard TD run in the fourth quarter and Alec Brown hit Jerry Jeudy for a 28-yard TD to seal the game. Piper fell to 8-1 overall and 4-1 in the district.

Deerfield Beach plays host to Cardinal Gibbons Friday at 7 p.m. in a non-district game.