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Tebowmania is back.
On June 11 the New England Patriots put smiles on every single ESPN executive when they announced the signing of the most polarizing sports athlete on the face of the planet – Tim Tebow.
You may recall that Tebow spent most of last year anguishing on the New York Jets bench as he watched incumbent QB Mark Sanchez lose game after game while setting the league record for most turnovers.
Tebow was erroneously told when he signed with the Jets that he would have the opportunity to compete for the starting QB job. He never got the chance because of his unorthodox style of play (he is a run first quarterback with below average throwing ability) and was released by the Jets just a few weeks ago.
It was being reported after his release that he assumed his football playing days were over and was considering a career in broadcasting.
A tough place to be for Tebow who as a collegiate player at Florida University won the Heisman Trophy in 2007 and the BCS National Championship in 2007 and 2009. It was then that he became known for his Christian faith which permeated his life – he often thanked Jesus Christ after every game, a tradition he continues today.
After graduating, he was drafted by the Denver Broncos as the 25th overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft. During the 2011 season he was inserted into the Broncos line up and asked to help resurrect a team that began the season 1-4. He won 7 of his first 8 games, many in dramatic fashion and propelled the Broncos to the AFC West division title and a wild card playoff win over the Pittsburg Steelers.
It appeared that Tebow would remain the starter in Denver at season’s end until the Indianapolis Colts decided to release QB Peyton Manning, the league’s only four-time MVP. Denver put its hat into the ring and won the Manning sweepstakes which sent Tebow packing to New York.
After a season to forget in New York, Tebow passed through NFL waivers and was not signed by any team. This prompted Hall of Fame QB Warren Moon to say that Tebow was not only finished playing in the NFL but that he also would not be a fit for the Canadian football league either because of his inability to throw the football at a professional level.
Just when things looked bleak, his football career seemingly over after just three short seasons, football expert after football expert telling him he can't throw, ESPN talking heads gleefully discussing the demise of his flash pan career – in walks Tebow’s white horse – Bill Belichick.
Most in the football universe consider New England Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick to be the best coach of his era with three Super Bowl trophies and the highest winning percentage in the NFL since 2001.
When news of the signing first broke, NFL analysts were shocked. Many thought it was an Internet joke. Not only was Tebow back in the NFL, the Patriots signed him as their third string QB which means he has the chance to compete to back up Tom Brady, the best QB of his generation.
How did all this happen? Many say it was because Belichick likes players who are versatile and can do more than one thing well on the football field. Others believe it was Josh McDaniels, the Patriots Offensive Coordinator who wanted Tebow because he was the one that drafted him in 2010 when he was Head Coach of the Broncos.
While these reasons have merit, I believe Tebow was signed because God gave him a second chance to play the sport he loves.
What is infinitely more interesting about Tebow other than his topsy turvy football career is his faith. Tebow was born in Makati City in the Philippines, to American parents who were serving as Baptist missionaries at the time. He is the youngest of five children, all of whom were homeschooled by their mother, who worked to instill the family's Christian beliefs along the way.
If you have had a chance to listen to any of Tebow’s interviews you would know that he puts Jesus Christ first in his life. He has become famously known for “Tebowing”, his touchdown celebration in which he kneels to pray after scoring. The NFL became enamored with him because of his unconventional style of play and his beliefs.
Tebow is a Christian first, pro football player second. Not an easy life to balance especially in a society where so many hate the Christian faith and the religious right is clamoring for someone to represent them.
But here is Tebow. On Monday he was out of football. On Tuesday he was signed by the premier franchise in football. An amazing second chance granted from the God of second chances.
Is your life looking hopeless today? Is everyone calling you a failure?
Don’t believe it.
Take heart in a God that says He knows what you need before you even ask.
Take refuge in a God that whispers, “I will never leave you or forsake you."
Take confidence in a God that promises you a future and a hope.
And know that what is impossible with men IS possible with God.
*****************************************************************
"But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." (Lamentations 3:21-23)
Showing posts with label Tim Tebow. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tim Tebow. Show all posts
Saturday, June 15, 2013
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Destiny or Deity?
With the Super Bowl fast approaching, the issue of whether or not God is rooting for a particular team to win always seems to surface. It has been perpetuated to new levels the past few weeks by Ray Lewis, the star linebacker of the Baltimore Ravens who is a professed Christian. During the Ravens playoff run, Lewis has been telling his teammates and media that God has ordained for the Ravens to win the Super Bowl. He has also been quoting Isaiah 54:17, "No weapon formed against you shall prosper." I will not take the time to discuss the actual meaning of this verse but I can assure you that it is not about a football game.
But the question still lingers? Does God care who wins on Super Bowl Sunday? Is God a Baltimore Ravens fan - at least for this season? I really believe the fact that we even ask such a question is indicative of a society that has lost its way. Karl Marx once famously said, "religion is the opiate of the masses.” I would argue that sport is the new religion.
That being said, the answer to this question is not as simple as it would seem. Many theologians say that the notion of God meddling in a football game trivializes the power of an almighty force. That God might care about a touchdown or an interception offers a far too "mechanistic" view of God, they say.
"God is not a puppeteer who controls all of our motions and actions," said John Freeman, a professor with the Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta. "That idea of being controlled takes away free will...It's offensive."
Conversely, some NFL chaplains - all NFL teams have chaplains, with the exception of the Oakland Raiders - say God's hand is at work. How else to explain that the perennially awful Atlanta Falcons now have a shot at being champions, says their team chaplain, Rev. Charles Collins. "Yes, of course God cares. God cares about everybody and every little thing that happens (in the game)."
So does God care? Is He the one pulling the strings of mediocrity to ensure the Cleveland Browns - better known as the basement dwellers - never have another winning season? Is He so obsessed with Tom Brady, like the rest of us, that He continues to help him win at an unprecedented clip despite his head coach being Bill Belichick often referred to as Bill Beelzebub by the media for his cold and tight lipped press conferences?
I found the best answer to this question from R.C. Sproul Jr. who wrote a blog on this very topic during this time last year right after the Denver Broncos defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers in overtime in the wild card round of the NFL playoffs. He says and I quote:
"The truth is God does decide, and He does care. He not only decides who will win the Super Bowl, He decides who will win the game of hearts that I play with my children. He decides, or rather decided, everything. There are no places, let alone no playing fields, where God stays on the sidelines. We need to remember that everything that happens must have a sufficient cause. And we must remember that every sufficient cause eventually traces its way back to God before time. This happens because that happened. That happened because this other thing happened. Eventually this takes us to “God said, ‘Let there be light, and there was light.’"
Of course God works in and through secondary means. He gives the gifts. He creates the weather. The one who numbers the hairs on our heads softens the ground where a defensive back slips, and a playoff game ends on an eighty yard touchdown pass. There is no thing, no cause, over which He is not sovereign.
Isn’t it, though, somehow beneath His dignity to be concerned with such things? Yes, of course it is. God has only one concern - the manifestation of His glory. And that is how He determines what will happen in a football game, and what will happen in an election, and what will happen in a cancer ward. His goal isn’t ultimately to make little boys in Pittsburgh happy, or little boys in Denver happy. His goal, which cannot be thwarted, is to show forth who He is. (emphasis mine)
Does that mean He plays favorites for the likes of outspoken Christians like Tim Tebow or Drew Brees? Of course. Because God loves those who are His, even as He loves His own Son, God is certain to favor them. That favor, however, isn’t a path to winning a football game, but is instead the path to true victory, becoming more like Jesus. God isn’t glorified in giving Tim Tebow unlikely victories that somehow redound to God’s glory. No, God is glorified in making His children, including Tim Tebow, more like His Son. Sometimes that means leading them to the thrill of victory. Sometimes it means leading them through the agony of defeat." [End quote]
As I mull over Sproul's assertions which I agree with, I realize the more difficult and pertinent question for me isn’t does God care, but should I? As I stated previously, our society is fixated on sports entertainment. Most see it as an escape from the doldrums of every day life, others view it as a chance to live their dreams through professional athletes. But as a Christian, my most important prayer is not asking for a Patriots victory. No, not even in the Super Bowl. My utmost petition to the throne of grace is for my children to have ears to hear the gospel, a heart to believe it, and grace to accept His providence in all things, even when the Patriots lose.
***************************************************************
“Sow a thought, and you reap an act; Sow an act, and you reap a habit; Sow a habit, and you reap a character; Sow a character, and you reap a destiny.” - Charles Reade
But the question still lingers? Does God care who wins on Super Bowl Sunday? Is God a Baltimore Ravens fan - at least for this season? I really believe the fact that we even ask such a question is indicative of a society that has lost its way. Karl Marx once famously said, "religion is the opiate of the masses.” I would argue that sport is the new religion.
That being said, the answer to this question is not as simple as it would seem. Many theologians say that the notion of God meddling in a football game trivializes the power of an almighty force. That God might care about a touchdown or an interception offers a far too "mechanistic" view of God, they say.
"God is not a puppeteer who controls all of our motions and actions," said John Freeman, a professor with the Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta. "That idea of being controlled takes away free will...It's offensive."
Conversely, some NFL chaplains - all NFL teams have chaplains, with the exception of the Oakland Raiders - say God's hand is at work. How else to explain that the perennially awful Atlanta Falcons now have a shot at being champions, says their team chaplain, Rev. Charles Collins. "Yes, of course God cares. God cares about everybody and every little thing that happens (in the game)."
So does God care? Is He the one pulling the strings of mediocrity to ensure the Cleveland Browns - better known as the basement dwellers - never have another winning season? Is He so obsessed with Tom Brady, like the rest of us, that He continues to help him win at an unprecedented clip despite his head coach being Bill Belichick often referred to as Bill Beelzebub by the media for his cold and tight lipped press conferences?
I found the best answer to this question from R.C. Sproul Jr. who wrote a blog on this very topic during this time last year right after the Denver Broncos defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers in overtime in the wild card round of the NFL playoffs. He says and I quote:
"The truth is God does decide, and He does care. He not only decides who will win the Super Bowl, He decides who will win the game of hearts that I play with my children. He decides, or rather decided, everything. There are no places, let alone no playing fields, where God stays on the sidelines. We need to remember that everything that happens must have a sufficient cause. And we must remember that every sufficient cause eventually traces its way back to God before time. This happens because that happened. That happened because this other thing happened. Eventually this takes us to “God said, ‘Let there be light, and there was light.’"
Of course God works in and through secondary means. He gives the gifts. He creates the weather. The one who numbers the hairs on our heads softens the ground where a defensive back slips, and a playoff game ends on an eighty yard touchdown pass. There is no thing, no cause, over which He is not sovereign.
Isn’t it, though, somehow beneath His dignity to be concerned with such things? Yes, of course it is. God has only one concern - the manifestation of His glory. And that is how He determines what will happen in a football game, and what will happen in an election, and what will happen in a cancer ward. His goal isn’t ultimately to make little boys in Pittsburgh happy, or little boys in Denver happy. His goal, which cannot be thwarted, is to show forth who He is. (emphasis mine)
Does that mean He plays favorites for the likes of outspoken Christians like Tim Tebow or Drew Brees? Of course. Because God loves those who are His, even as He loves His own Son, God is certain to favor them. That favor, however, isn’t a path to winning a football game, but is instead the path to true victory, becoming more like Jesus. God isn’t glorified in giving Tim Tebow unlikely victories that somehow redound to God’s glory. No, God is glorified in making His children, including Tim Tebow, more like His Son. Sometimes that means leading them to the thrill of victory. Sometimes it means leading them through the agony of defeat." [End quote]
As I mull over Sproul's assertions which I agree with, I realize the more difficult and pertinent question for me isn’t does God care, but should I? As I stated previously, our society is fixated on sports entertainment. Most see it as an escape from the doldrums of every day life, others view it as a chance to live their dreams through professional athletes. But as a Christian, my most important prayer is not asking for a Patriots victory. No, not even in the Super Bowl. My utmost petition to the throne of grace is for my children to have ears to hear the gospel, a heart to believe it, and grace to accept His providence in all things, even when the Patriots lose.
***************************************************************
“Sow a thought, and you reap an act; Sow an act, and you reap a habit; Sow a habit, and you reap a character; Sow a character, and you reap a destiny.” - Charles Reade
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Reflecting on Tebow Time
As the NFL football season winds down over the next couple of weeks, it is hard not to look back on the season without first thinking of Tim Tebow. The first thing that comes to mind is his clutch play-making abilitites that helped the Denver Broncos go from a 1-4 record to AFC West Division champions, but in light of his on-field success, his faith may have spoken louder than his play.
Most people know Tebow from his college football days at Florida University where he won the Heisman Trophy in 2007 and the BCS National Championship in 2007 and 2009. After graduating, he was drafted by the Broncos as the 25th overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft.
What is infinitely more interesting about Tebow than his decorated football career is his life story. Tebow was born in Makati City in the Philippines, to American parents who were serving as Baptist missionaries at the time. His mother, Pamela Elaine is the daughter of a U.S. Army colonel, and his father, Robert Ramsey Tebow II, is a pastor. While pregnant, his mother suffered a life-threatening infection with a pathogenic amoeba. Because of the drugs used to rouse her from a coma and to treat her dysentery, the fetus experienced a severe placental abruption. Doctors had expected a stillbirth and recommended an abortion, even though illegal in the Phillipines, to protect her life, but she decided not to have one. The child born was Tim Tebow. He is the youngest of five children, all of whom were homeschooled by their mother, who worked to instill the family's Christian beliefs along the way.
If you had a chance to listen to any of Tebow’s interviews you would know that he begins each interview by thanking his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He also has become famously known for “Tebowing” which is when he kneels to pray after a scoring drive. The NFL became enamored with him because of his unorthodox style of play (he is a run first quarterback) and his faith.
Many athletes over the years have been Christians but none have put their faith front and center the way Tebow did this past season. During many of his interviews, he stressed that football was second in life to his faith and that he plans on using his football success as a platform to help others less fortunate than himself. He has already put this into practice. Each week before the Denver Broncos football game, he would fly a disabled or handicapped person to the game (many of them children), put them and their family up in a hotel, and personally meet them after the game.
When his teammates were asked what it was like to play with him, almost all of them commented on his faith, noting that his Christian beliefts appeared to be his source of strength. To say he inspired his teammates would be an understatement. Prior to the Broncos making him the starter in week 6, the team was off to an abysmal start, only winning one of their first five games. When Tebow took over, the team won seven of its next eight games with five of the wins coming down to late drives engineered by Tebow in the fourth quarter to win. Yet, during all of the hype and hoopla, Tebow always gave praise to his Lord and Savior and remained humble in victory.
As someone who has been a Christian for more than 20 years, Tebow has been quite an inspiration to me. As a diehard football fan, I never thought I would see the sport I love intersect with my faith in such a powerful way. It reminds me of the parable of the wicked vinedressers in Matthew 21:33-46. The parable speaks of a landowner who planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a winepress in it and built a tower. He leased it to vinedressers and went into a far country. When vintage-time drew near, he sent his servants to the vinedressers, that they might receive its fruit. But to his surprise and shock, the vinedressers took his servants, beat one, killed one, and stoned another. He sent more servants, more than the first, and they killed them as well. Finally, he sent his son thinking they would at least respect his son but the Scripture says that when the vinedressers saw the son, they said among themselves, “This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.” So they took the son and killed him.
In this parable, the vinedresser is God the Father and the servants are the prophets. The Son is Jesus Christ. This story illustrates God’s repeated attempts at reaching the nation Israel with His gospel message and their utter rejection. When I see Tim Tebow, I think of God sending someone to reach the football community. Don't laugh. The NFL is the number one sport in America. The Super Bowl is the most watched event every year on television. Last year alone, the game was broadcast in 110 countries. And here comes Tim Tebow with the gospel message and the life to illustrate its power. A man who was supposed to be aborted, alive and playing professional football and witnessing for the Lord. The Bible tells us that God often uses the foolish things of the world to confuse the wise and that he takes individuals of no report, of no status or reputation and uses them for His glory. (1 Corinthians 1:26-29)
I ask you to join me in praying for Tim Tebow. This off-season and next season will be a whirlwind for him. Please pray for his faith, his testimony, and his efforts to reach the lost. I may be a diehard New England Patriots fan, but I am rooting and praying fervently for Tim Tebow not to win football games but to bring glory to the Savior.
*******************************************************
"The believer does not use God's power; God's power uses him."
- Kenneth Wuest
Most people know Tebow from his college football days at Florida University where he won the Heisman Trophy in 2007 and the BCS National Championship in 2007 and 2009. After graduating, he was drafted by the Broncos as the 25th overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft.
What is infinitely more interesting about Tebow than his decorated football career is his life story. Tebow was born in Makati City in the Philippines, to American parents who were serving as Baptist missionaries at the time. His mother, Pamela Elaine is the daughter of a U.S. Army colonel, and his father, Robert Ramsey Tebow II, is a pastor. While pregnant, his mother suffered a life-threatening infection with a pathogenic amoeba. Because of the drugs used to rouse her from a coma and to treat her dysentery, the fetus experienced a severe placental abruption. Doctors had expected a stillbirth and recommended an abortion, even though illegal in the Phillipines, to protect her life, but she decided not to have one. The child born was Tim Tebow. He is the youngest of five children, all of whom were homeschooled by their mother, who worked to instill the family's Christian beliefs along the way.
If you had a chance to listen to any of Tebow’s interviews you would know that he begins each interview by thanking his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He also has become famously known for “Tebowing” which is when he kneels to pray after a scoring drive. The NFL became enamored with him because of his unorthodox style of play (he is a run first quarterback) and his faith.
Many athletes over the years have been Christians but none have put their faith front and center the way Tebow did this past season. During many of his interviews, he stressed that football was second in life to his faith and that he plans on using his football success as a platform to help others less fortunate than himself. He has already put this into practice. Each week before the Denver Broncos football game, he would fly a disabled or handicapped person to the game (many of them children), put them and their family up in a hotel, and personally meet them after the game.
When his teammates were asked what it was like to play with him, almost all of them commented on his faith, noting that his Christian beliefts appeared to be his source of strength. To say he inspired his teammates would be an understatement. Prior to the Broncos making him the starter in week 6, the team was off to an abysmal start, only winning one of their first five games. When Tebow took over, the team won seven of its next eight games with five of the wins coming down to late drives engineered by Tebow in the fourth quarter to win. Yet, during all of the hype and hoopla, Tebow always gave praise to his Lord and Savior and remained humble in victory.
As someone who has been a Christian for more than 20 years, Tebow has been quite an inspiration to me. As a diehard football fan, I never thought I would see the sport I love intersect with my faith in such a powerful way. It reminds me of the parable of the wicked vinedressers in Matthew 21:33-46. The parable speaks of a landowner who planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a winepress in it and built a tower. He leased it to vinedressers and went into a far country. When vintage-time drew near, he sent his servants to the vinedressers, that they might receive its fruit. But to his surprise and shock, the vinedressers took his servants, beat one, killed one, and stoned another. He sent more servants, more than the first, and they killed them as well. Finally, he sent his son thinking they would at least respect his son but the Scripture says that when the vinedressers saw the son, they said among themselves, “This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.” So they took the son and killed him.
In this parable, the vinedresser is God the Father and the servants are the prophets. The Son is Jesus Christ. This story illustrates God’s repeated attempts at reaching the nation Israel with His gospel message and their utter rejection. When I see Tim Tebow, I think of God sending someone to reach the football community. Don't laugh. The NFL is the number one sport in America. The Super Bowl is the most watched event every year on television. Last year alone, the game was broadcast in 110 countries. And here comes Tim Tebow with the gospel message and the life to illustrate its power. A man who was supposed to be aborted, alive and playing professional football and witnessing for the Lord. The Bible tells us that God often uses the foolish things of the world to confuse the wise and that he takes individuals of no report, of no status or reputation and uses them for His glory. (1 Corinthians 1:26-29)
I ask you to join me in praying for Tim Tebow. This off-season and next season will be a whirlwind for him. Please pray for his faith, his testimony, and his efforts to reach the lost. I may be a diehard New England Patriots fan, but I am rooting and praying fervently for Tim Tebow not to win football games but to bring glory to the Savior.
*******************************************************
"The believer does not use God's power; God's power uses him."
- Kenneth Wuest
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