Into the Fire

Football fans will tell you the ultimate quest is to make it to the Super Bowl. Pictured above is the Lombardi Trophy won last year by the Seattle Seahawks for the first time in their history since their inception in 1976. For die-hard fans like myself last year was a dream-come-true sort of season. To make it back this year is another such season which was plagued with serious injuries, the removal of a talented but disruptive player, a team meeting where all players clarified their aims and quests, and the determined efforts of the entire roster and coaching staff to make a run for the return to this big game.

True football fans are fanatics. I can't speak for others, but I can tell you this from my perspective. The game itself is simple: the objective is to score points, preferably touchdowns and point afters. You get four chances to make a first down which gives you four more to make another first down, hopefully working your way down the field to score either with a kick (field goal worth 3 points) or a touchdown (worth 6 + either a PAT worth 1 point or a 2 point conversion). The diversity of coaches and players to design ways to score points and keep the opponent from scoring them is as complex as chess maneuvers and far more enter entertaining.

I can't describe to you any of the subtleties of the position players, the intricacies of the routes receivers run, the stances and movements of linemen, but I can tell you watching my team outgain the opposition is one of the best experiences in life.

Why? Because the men on the field, some barely out of college, young and daring, some battle-scarred and wily, have been gifted to play the game just as others have been gifted to lead a church, play an instrument, write a story. Their passion is displayed on the field and many of them recognize from whom all good and perfect gifts come. Some not so much. A snapshot of life around us.

I love the game of football because . . . it gives me a break from the horrors of some of real life. It takes me away from the hard reality that headlines newspapers, the web, or any of the media. If we want to spiritualize it, it can represent the battle of good and evil - selecting whichever team you choose for each category. Granted, hatred for opponents does exist among NFL watchers. For me, football is a release and an escape. I have my favorite players, and, yes, I pray for them on and off the field. As my favorite quarterback Russell Wilson has said, "It's a spiritual experience." If you want to scoff at his remark or mine, it's your prerogative, but it doesn't change anything.

I love the game of football because . . . it gives me a break from the horrors of some of real life. It takes me away from the hard reality that headlines newspapers, the web, or any of the media. If we want to get symbolic, it can capture the battle of good and evil – selecting whichever team you choose to represent either. Granted, hatred for opponents does exist among NFL watchers. For me, football is a release and an escape. I have my favorite players, and, yes, I pray for them on and off the field. As my favorite quarterback Russell Wilson has said, "It's a spiritual experience." If you want to scoff at his remark or mine, it's your prerogative, but it doesn't change anything.

This year the Seahawks play the New England Patriots who are favored to win by one point. The heralded team, coach, and quarterback of the Patriots have a history of winning Super Bowls. Lots of football savvy, the Pats know what it takes to win big games. The Seahawks are the first team to return to the contest in 10 years after winning the previous year. The Patriots did it 10 years ago. No easy task. The Seahawks did it after much adversity. I hope they repeat.

Many of you don't care about football – it's not your sport, your thing, your interest. I get that. But to me it rises above being a sports fan. The Seahawks have captured my heart and soul. I love them. So many of them have foundations for kids, for helping the impoverished in communities, for doing good things with the money they make. I enjoy learning of who they are on the inside of those helmets.  

And I always hope they'll win.

Lord, thank you for calling your people to all kinds of things. Thank you for them giving you the credit for who they've become. Thank you for what you allow them to do and helping them to remain true to you in the midst of it all. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.