On and Off the Field

Have you heard all the hooplah over the 100-0 thrashing in Texas High School Girls Basketball? It's bad enough when this happens but in this case, it's extra-bad considering that this is a Christian school. The coach, of course, denied running up the score (they ended their full-court press and three-point shooting once they reached triple digits), likely because they could have easily scored at least 20 or so more points (after all, 120-0 would be humiliating the other team!). Thankfully, the school administration didn't see things the same way and promptly canned the coach.

To my mind, this story isn't about a cruel coach or mean girls playing basketball. It has much more to do with the question of what it means to model Christ-likeness in every area of life. See, I make it no secret that I play and love hockey. And, well, let's be frank: hockey isn't known as a sport where Jesus' values of healing, forgiveness, turning the other cheek and love are widely expressed! So, if I call myself a Christian, do I simply hang up my faith in the change room, right beside my jacket? Admittedly, I don't have this thing figured out. And, from what I've seen, very few do.

This morning I read the annual pre-SuperBowl headline about the mix between faith and football. And, after the game, there will be at least one person who thanks God for helping them win the game (which leads to all sorts of questions as to why God chose to only help one team and not the other...). For all the right reasons, athletes want to incorporate their faith into their athletics (after all, if you believe something to your core, it should affect every area, right?).

The truth of the matter is, it's not just about sports, it's in every arena (no pun intended). And there's no real pat answer that works in all areas. I guess, what I'm coming to realize is that it's more about asking the question: what does it mean to be a follower of Jesus in any situation. It probably looks a lot less like the aforementioned basketball coach and more like the football coach down in Texas who conscripted fans to cheer for the opposing team.

As in many things, living life the way Jesus would probably has more to do with constantly asking the question than having the answer.