I wonder if this isn't a sign of maturity. Last week the Mighty Man and I went on a date before he left town for a week. It was to Jiffy Lube for mutual oil changes. hahaha! :) You might be over 30 when... :) I don't mind. I think it was awesome! Totally responsible. :) We're growing up. :) Define irony, though. Right after the oil change, I got home and checked my mail only to find a coupon for $15 off at Jiffy Lube waiting in my mailbox. (*sigh*) Oh, well. :) Maybe that's encouragement to get it done more regularly.
Since my last post, there has been so much going on! I had a ton of feedback from my post on Tim Tebow, which was awesome. Some folks agreed; some didn't. And that was awesome! Certainly the whole point of this was to talk about it and to seek/find the Lord.
I really loved watching the Tebow Mania play out. It raised so many questions and forced Christians to evaluate their personal level of public witness. What they believed about it and what they were comfortable sharing and why. What kind of public witness we all are called to. It was highly entertaining to watch some of the Facebook discussions every time Tim would make a new statement (or score another crazy-awesome touchdown).
Personally, I thought it was completely awesome. His heart was so sincere in his desire to honor and love the Lord and to share the name of Jesus. I fully believe that all Tim wanted to do was to let others know that they had a Savior available to them. That he wasn't operating in his own strength, but in the strength of the Lord. Who on earth would fight that?
My opinion? Any naysaying was based in selfishness. People made it about themselves and what they were comfortable with rather than allowing a child of God to express himself in the way in which he wanted. It reminded me of Scripture saying that the would would hate Christians because of Christ. I believe that's what happened with Tim. And what was truly sad was that most of the hating came from the Body of Christ. AHH! Why on earth was that?
Here was someone who had the guts to take a HUGE stand for Christ, and all some folks wanted to do was to tear him down. Why? Why on earth would you want to stop someone from bringing glory to the Lord? Tim wasn't saying anything that was out of line with Scripture. "I want to thank my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for giving me the ability..." There's NOTHING wrong with that. He never said God had caused him to win; he just said that God had given him the abilities that he used on the field. I'm sure if someone had asked him, he would have said that God gave Tom Brady the same ability to beat them last Saturday night.
What is wrong with that? To me, nothing. I loved every minute of it. I, honestly, WISHED that I had half the courage of Tim Tebow to just speak the name of Jesus and not care what kind of fiery darts came at me as a result. Isn't that right in line with Paul's prayer in Ephesians 6:19-21:
"Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should."
Why were we so busy tearing down this courageous heart instead of praying that he be courageous enough to keep standing for Christ? That just makes me angry.
Aren't we one Body of believers? Shouldn't we be empowering each other to be who God has called us to be at the moment? I believe Tim's role from the Lord was to proclaim the Lord's name while he was on a big stage. And I believe we should have been praying for him the whole time and then just focusing on doing our part: being ready to answer the questions of faith that came up as a result.
Friends, let's stop trying to control each other and let God take care of the actions of others. It's not our responsibility to manage those in the spotlight. Rather, let's focus our own hearts on the Lord and on seeking Him in our own lives. Let's pray for the Body of Christ and focus on what God has called us to do--not on what He's called others to do.
I'm excited and encouraged! I can't wait to see what the Lord continues to do in the world of sports. This season, it was headlined by Tebow Mania. Who knows what next season will bring? Or what the Super Bowl will bring yet this year? Either way, I know that He's at work in all things, whether we can see it in the life of the main players or not.
Praise God for His love and mercy to us all! :)
Love you guys!
- Jill
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