★★★★★
Well,
it’s Sunday, and there’s no football. The Superbowl is over.
Desperately clinging to another passion (NFL football) and hoping to
excuse it as religious reading, I picked up Tim Tebow’s book. Tim, the
latest God-fearing sports sensation.
Don’t
let me fool you: This is a football book, not a book about religion.
More than anything else, you’ll be reading about Tebow’s football
experiences, including his remarkable college career. Tebow’s success in
football boils down to one thing: an obsessive drive. He simply cannot
slack off. “When we think we can do less than our best, when we think
others are not watching, we’re cheating ourselves and the God who
created us.” But it’s more than wanting to do right by God. Tebow just
can’t accept losing. His mantra: “Somewhere he is out there, training while I am not. One day, when we meet, he will win.”
Here’s
the deal: Much as I wince at athletes who praise God after every
touchdown, I wound up really liking this Tebow fella! Yes, Tim feels the
need to evangelize, given the special opportunity he has been given in
life, but his religion is grounded. He may print Bible verses under his
eyes when he plays, hoping for a camera close-up, but he doesn’t
consider himself God’s answer to the world. A couple typical Tebow
quotes:
“I know it
sounds dumb to be praying over a football game … I’m not sure God is
into who wins or loses .. But since my parents raised me to pray about
anything that’s on my heart, I pray—even if some of those things are
trivial in the overall scheme of things.”
“People
often seem to think that when you’re following the Lord and trying to
do His will, your path will always be clear, the decisions smooth and
easy, and life will be lived happily ever after and all that. Sometimes
that may be true, but I’ve found that more often, it’s not. The muddled
decisions still seem muddled, bad things still happen to believers, and
great things can happen to nonbelievers.”
Yeah,
the season is over, and Tim Tebow, the unlikely master of miraculous
comebacks, couldn’t pull a rabbit out of the hat when it really mattered
this year. His faith in God notwithstanding, we now head into the
off-season wondering if he’ll even remain the Anointed One in Denver.
Tebow never lost his trust in God, but has he lost the trust of his
coaching staff?
As Tim says, “I don’t know what my future holds, but I do know who holds my future.”
reat inspiration to read with my daughter!
ReplyDeleteReading this with my daughter has been a gift I'll treasure forever. I hadn't expected a young man to have much wisdom to share just being so young (and he addresses that nicely), but I have found more than just the story enjoyable - the book has been a great conversation piece for me with my 10 year old daughter.
:) Thanks for contributing!
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