Loving God, Part 4

Enjoying Sports

 

One New York Giants fan recounted the celebration that erupted when the final whistle blew and the Giants had won the 2008 Super Bowl. He was “surrounded by delirious Giants fans who were hugging and screaming and crying and acting like stranded castaways who just noticed a rescue boat.” Many Texans would understand that sort of response to winning a football game. In Texas, football is “discussed in churches, cafes, schools, Kiwanis club meetings, oil fields and out on the north forty. Football, particularly high school football, is the staff of life.” The sportsworld was my god. It was my “staff of life”, filling my days and my dreams and my desires. When I became a Christian, I was confronted with the truth that I could not serve two masters. I could worship God or my alternate god—but not both. God won’t share his throne.

This recent holiday season we had our entire family together: 2 grandparents, 6 parents, 9 grandkids. (Oh, I forgot--and 4 granddogs!) When it came time for our main meal, one of my sons and I  loaded our plates and headed to the privacy of our basement to watch the final exciting games of the NFL season. Two of those games had head-to-head matchups to decide which team made the playoffs and which went home. As we were settling in, we were interrupted by my wife: “What are you doing? You need to come join the family celebration.” I reluctantly and grumpily agreed. During the meal our 2 year-old grandson started wishing everyone a “Merry Christmas”. Then someone taught him to say “Happy New Year”. He repeatedly squealed with delight with his new words and the attention that it brought him. And think . . . if I had allowed sports to be my master, I would have missed a memorable event that will endure far longer than any Aaron Rodgers touchdown pass.

If I love God, can I still enjoy sports? Of course. The challenge for many of us, though, is to become more temperate about them. C.S. Lewis defines temperance as “going the right length and no further” with our pleasures. Though temperance has often been associated with drinking alcoholic beverages, it should be applied to any of our pleasures. If I make golf or televised sports or gardening or shopping the center of my life, I am being “just as intemperate as someone who gets drunk every evening. Of course, it does not show on the outside so easily: golf-mania does not make you fall down in the middle of the road. But God is not deceived by externals (my italics).” Lewis believes that God judges a sports obsession just as negatively as he does an alcohol obsession. In both cases I am under the control of something other than God.