The Religion of the NFL

 Believe it or not, this is not a piece that will vilify the NFL.  I don't have time to stand in that line of "enemies of the NFL," which is a religion of its own.  Plus, that line is long enough and, admittedly, I kind of like football and am a die hard Bronco fan.  

The National Football League reached a low in 2016-2017 in viewership of only 14.9 million per game, down 10% from the previous year due to many issues, mainly on the political front.  The next off-season the Supreme Court opened the door for the expansion of gambling on sporting events.  Viewership had risen every year from then until the 2021-2022 season.  Though less have watched over the past two years, gambling has more than doubled over the past two years!  One way or another, the NFL has a pull, a draw, an addicting nature to it, it seems.

People are looking for something to follow, to run to, to fall back on in the midst of a world that is growing increasingly tiring and hateful.  Religion, simply put, is man's way of making sense of things, or of getting to God, if your one to believe that God makes sense of things.  In my case, a biblically-accurate Christianity is how I "get to God."  By God's grace in sending Jesus into the world to die for the world's sins, He has opened the door for all who repent of the their sins and believe by faith in the person and work of Jesus to have eternal life.  In other words, it wasn't my effort that saved me, it was God's actions towards me.

What is your way of making sense of things?  Maybe you dive into your job, or a hobby, or your family.  Maybe your stuck in an unhealthy cycle of drug, alcohol, porn, or gambling addiction?  Maybe it's your relationship with God that is bringing you perspective?  Everybody has something they default to, or numerous things that compete for their attention.  The NFL is an easy way to fill that void, to be sure, yet it still falls short.  Even if you increase your interest in the NFL by betting or doing fantasy football or building a friend group around your team, it still will always fall short of making sense of things.  As I've argued earlier, football holds some great life lessons in it, both for fans and players.  Also, it's a blast to follow the story-lines and the unpredictable nature of almost any game (hey, my Broncos almost pulled off an upset and scored four touchdowns in one game, so anything is possible).  Yet, the NFL, nor anything else that briefly distracts us from the world, will ever truly help us.

Each person needs something that will fulfill their expectations of creating lasting purpose, giving real peace, and producing joy beyond your circumstances.  A religion CAN NOT do this because religion will always be centered on OUR EFFORTS.  Yes, there are certain Christian efforts that unintentionally make it all about us.  Yet, the essence of Christianity is not a religion, but a lifestyle of following Jesus and making Him our aim, our focus, our Lord.  Whatever you default to . . . how's that working for you?  

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose."  Romans 8:28 nails it!  His purpose for us is our best purpose ever.  Go ahead and dive into whatever healthy job or hobby you have.  Go ahead and get the help you need to get away from the unhealthy coping mechanisms you have.  But do it all while telling God, often, that He's your focus, your favorite, your Lord. 

The importance of EQ

On the website for the Institute for Health and Human Potential (IHHP), I took their Emotional Intelligence (EQ) quiz.  I was congratulated for having high emotional intelligence!  Yea!  The way my emotions fluctuate from day-to-day, and even hour-to-hour some days, I wonder how people manage with low EQ.  Anyway, they gave me some good advice in the midst of my results:
Areas to work on: While you are doing well, don’t forget to take time out of your busy day-to-day activities to stop and reflect on what brings you the greatest meaning in your life. If we fail to do this on a regular basis, we risk becoming tranquilized by the trivial, sedated by the small details.

Here's the rub:  What if what brings the greatest meaning to my life is in direct conflict with what brings the greatest meaning to your life?  What if my wife derives great meaning from settling down in a small town and I derive great meaning from thriving in a big city?  Oh, so my wife, then, ought to be the greatest meaning in my life so that there's never a question of the two of us being in conflict, right?  What if her EQ is much different than mine and I start relating better with someone else?  What then?

Because EQ is so closely related to key relationships, and our relational needs are God-given, I am a firm believer that our spirituality must be a key component to how we process our emotions.  Because there is ONE Creator (work with me, here) then there is a certain, all-encompassing truth that each of us can subscribe to that will guarantee that my "great meaning in life" will dovetail beautifully with yours.  Pete Scazzero, through his Emotionally Healthy Spirituality website and ministry, teaches and trains others to teach the truths that we start with a right relationship with our Creator and then take that relationship into working on our right relationships with others, starting with those closest to us.

From IHHP.com to 7 Habits of Highly Effective People to Dr. Phil, the truth of who we are, how we are made, and what makes us successful is deeply rooted in our Creator, whether these popular resources and people publically acknowledge it or not.  Go ahead, take any good advice that "proven" or pop psychology promotes and compare it to what God says in the Bible.  If it doesn't match, proceed with much caution, and if it matches, acknowledge the Inventor of that truth and run with it under God's guidance.

Back to the aforementioned rub.  Read the last part of the IHHP website quote above.  If we fail to, individually and together, reflect on our dependence on God and our need for salvation through Jesus Christ, "we risk becoming tranquilized by the trivial, sedated by the small details."  Where we live, what we sacrifice for our spouse, and how we give of our time and resources truly becomes no big deal because we've reflected on and understand the big picture which God is already orchestrating.

EQ is important, but only as far as we are willing to process it in light of our relationship with God.  Increasing EQ without God is like increasing IQ without thinking.  Think about it.

Using what you've got

As I ponder what happened to my beloved Denver Broncos (fan since the mid '70's), the name of my blog came to mind:

The Broncos, at least 3 times, left something on the field.  

At the end of each half they left timeouts and more than 30 seconds on the clock.  This was more than enough time for the Atlanta Falcons, the next day, to drive 41 yards (in 11 seconds, by the way) for their game-winning field goal.  Now, work with me here, we've got Peyton Manning (better than Matt Ryan), trying to set up Matt Prater (longer kicker than Matt Bryant) in mile-high altitude with at least two timeouts left.  Then, with a 7 point lead late in the 4th quarter, we had 3rd down and 7 yards to go, we left the 18 million dollar man that can throw 7 yard strikes with his eyes closed to hand off to Jacob Hester "just to be safe."  Yes, Dan Dierdorf, there was somebody else out their scratching his head (and throwing his hat and making a scene).

When it comes to "Leaving it on the field," you've got to use what you've got.  At the end of each game, at the end of each day, and at the end of THE Day, I must be able to say that I've put to use what God has given me for the purposes He's given me.

I get in a funk when I start complaining about all the things I DON'T have - a certain kind of talent or personality, enough time, enough money . . . you get the idea.  Even legitimate complaints (which very few of them are) should not be entertained because it's in God's very capable hands.

The fact remains that God has given each of us a task to do that is much bigger than ourselves.  In order to grab ahold of this task, get the tools to do it, and have a purpose each day of your life, you must trust God's only way to having a relationship with Him - Jesus Christ.  Check out, from Ephesians 1:3,4, what happens to those who trust Him and Him alone:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless before Him.

Now, work with me here, are you (and I) willing to leave all of this great stuff from the Creator of the universe "on the field"?  First, accept Him right now by trusting Jesus as your Lord and Savior (see Ephesians 1:7-10 for more info on that).  Then, you can start discovering how to use your God-given talents, personality, even material possessions for Him so that you leave nothing on the field.

If you watched the Denver/Baltimore game on January 12, 2013 the play that will get played over and over again is Denver safety, Rahim Moore, misjudging the flight of the ball and being out of position for the game-tying touchdown near the end of regulation.  Even though he clearly could have done a better job, at least he jumped his highest and seemingly gave it all - more than can be said for whoever decides when and how they should use two timeouts and their greatest tool - Peyton Manning.

Serving is emptying and freeing

Jesus says in Mark 10, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Then, later, the Apostle Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus that someone who is a bondservant of Jesus does not serve as "eye-pleasing" acts of kindness for people to see, but rather as a servant of the most-high God "from the heart, rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man." Jesus, our creator, savior, and friend, was the ultimate servant. His servanthood was characterized as GIVING of his life for the many. After spending the day in the Twin Cities with four youth from our church, I have a new outlook on serving as an act of giving. It was one of the most freeing things in the world to be able to go into a service project having nobody to please but God. After giving of my energy, my time, and money, I am completely drained and lacking physical energy. On the other hand, I cannot hardly wait to speak the Word of God to people tomorrow at our worship time. When you give willingly and generously, you will be filled again so that you can continue to give. I have such a long way to go as a true servant of Jesus Christ. My prayer, as I continue to go down this road of "leaving it all on the field", is that my service in His name will be characterized by a constant cycle of freely being emptied so that He alone can fill me with the capacity to freely be emptied once again for His sake, in His way, and in His timing. Imagine that! A life that is best spent is the life that is most freely given away for Jesus' sake. Who else can be trusted to fill you back up with what you need?

Leaving it all on the field

“And truly, I say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.” (Mark 14:9) The woman in Simon’s home broke open an expensive bottle of perfume, anointed Jesus with it, and was ridiculed by all around her . . . except Jesus. Instead He honors her and we hear of her faith to this very day. What might people do to me or think of me as I follow Jesus the way He tells me to? As a lifelong people-pleaser, it pains me to know that there are people that have, are, and will be bothered by what I do and say. As I begin this intentional journey of dying to self and trusting my God with honor, I have chosen an analogy that will help me walk down this road.

The goal of any athlete who wants to give it his or her all is to “leave it all on the field.” Once the game or event is over, they should be able to look themselves in the mirror and say that there was really nothing left for them to give. Then, and only then, whether in blowout victory, a close result, or humiliating loss, can a person say, with integrity, “I gave it my all.” What, after all, is more rewarding than knowing that you did what you could to win, or help your team win?

Once God chooses that my time on this earth is over, I want to be able to say to His face, “Lord, I really don’t know what else I could have done . . . I gave You my all!” If God were to take me today, just having turned 44, I could not say that. This saddens me, but it doesn’t sadden me enough. My prayer is that this journey will not only shape what I do with my life, but will shape my heart as His heart is shaped.

As Harold Crick, in “Stranger than Fiction,” willingly faces his death after finding out how noble of a death it was, I want to live out my days the way God prescribes because I know that it will be a noble death in the way He defines it. He knows what He’s doing. Just as Jesus said of that woman, may He say of us, that we did all that we could (Mark 14:8a).