Does God Care About Football?
I don't think so. It might be heresy, but I don't think God really cares who wins the Super Bowl. I don't think God really cares about a game where too much money is spent on commercials and too much money is gambled and lost and too few over-paid athletes and owners walk away with far too much. Maybe even more heretical, I don't think God loves Tim Tebow any more than he loves Tom Brady or Eli Manning, but...
-I do think God cares deeply about how we play the game. I think God cares about whether we play with integrity, making the most of our gifts and skill and doing so with respect for our opponents as well as our team mates.
-I do think God cares about the spirit in which we play the game, the attitude we bring to it and whether we play in hope and confidence or in arrogance and pride.
-I think God cares about how we treat the folks on the other team. Do we value them as persons and respect their talents even in the light of our rivalry? Do we speak of them with respect or do we talk smack just to make them look bad?
-I think God cares about our willingness to be part of a team rather than always needing to be the hot-shot super-star and center of attention. I think God cares about our ability to put the needs of the team ahead of our own personal pride.
Now let's see...am I talking about sports or politics? You can't help but be struck by the difference between the respect Brady and Manning seem to have for each other and the way our political candidates demean and demonize each other. I really don't think God cares about who wins the Super Bowl, and I'm not at all sure God cares about who gets elected. (I am sure there is no such thing as "God's football team" or "God's candidate".) But I do think God cares deeply about how we play the game, the spirit we bring to it and the way we treat each other in the rough and tumble of it. I do think God cares about the heart we bring to it, because in the end it is a matter of the heart. And when the game is over, it isn't just about whether you win or lose, it's about how you play the game. It's true for football. It's true for politics. And it's true for life.
Check out our Super Bowl Sunday special--"Super Soul Sunday" worship in the CLC at 11:00am on Sunday. It's the fun of football mingled with the joy of worship and in the end, God cares more about our worship than football...or politics.
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