The Playoffs
Folks at my church know I love sports! I've been active in organized sports since I was 9 years old. I think there are a lot of great "life" lessons one can learn from participating in sports...especially team sports.
Currently, the first-round of the NBA playoffs are occurring. Unfortunately, some of the NBA's finest players are not ones from whom our children should learn. We see all matter of selfishness, crudeness, arrogance, disdain for authority, foolishness, and sometimes plain meaness played out in some of these men. Several years ago, Charles Barkley, one of the NBA's 50 greatest players, made a commercial in which he stated, "I am not a role model." He later explained that parents should be role models for their children, not athletes.
Unfortunately, many players are role models because they are used by corporate America to hawk all manner of goods. From clothing to drinks, from cars to credit cards, athletes are paid large sums of money to sell their likenesses for the good of a company's income. Children, teens, and adults see these men and desire to be like them. So they purchase the product and display it proudly. Such is the power of an athlete's likeness and his popularity. Some athletes sell more than products. They sell poor behavior as well.
Paul made what seems a rather bold comment in 1 Corinthians 11:1, "Be imitators of me, as I also am of Christ." (HCSB) So much for humility! However, Paul also recognized that he was the worst of sinners (1 Timothy 1:15). Paul knew that we need models, people we can follow, people who embody what they say they believe.
I'm sometimes scared to death to think that I'm a role model for my children, for my wife, for my friends, for my congregation. And yet, what a great privilege I have to be used of our Lord Jesus Christ as an instrument He can wield for His glory as people see Him in me! I pray that more athletes will recognize their unique role in our culture as role models. More than that, I pray that more men, especially husbands and dads, will humbly bow before our Lord and submit to His will for their lives so that in His hands, they will be models of righteousness for others to see and follow as they follow Christ.
Currently, the first-round of the NBA playoffs are occurring. Unfortunately, some of the NBA's finest players are not ones from whom our children should learn. We see all matter of selfishness, crudeness, arrogance, disdain for authority, foolishness, and sometimes plain meaness played out in some of these men. Several years ago, Charles Barkley, one of the NBA's 50 greatest players, made a commercial in which he stated, "I am not a role model." He later explained that parents should be role models for their children, not athletes.
Unfortunately, many players are role models because they are used by corporate America to hawk all manner of goods. From clothing to drinks, from cars to credit cards, athletes are paid large sums of money to sell their likenesses for the good of a company's income. Children, teens, and adults see these men and desire to be like them. So they purchase the product and display it proudly. Such is the power of an athlete's likeness and his popularity. Some athletes sell more than products. They sell poor behavior as well.
Paul made what seems a rather bold comment in 1 Corinthians 11:1, "Be imitators of me, as I also am of Christ." (HCSB) So much for humility! However, Paul also recognized that he was the worst of sinners (1 Timothy 1:15). Paul knew that we need models, people we can follow, people who embody what they say they believe.
I'm sometimes scared to death to think that I'm a role model for my children, for my wife, for my friends, for my congregation. And yet, what a great privilege I have to be used of our Lord Jesus Christ as an instrument He can wield for His glory as people see Him in me! I pray that more athletes will recognize their unique role in our culture as role models. More than that, I pray that more men, especially husbands and dads, will humbly bow before our Lord and submit to His will for their lives so that in His hands, they will be models of righteousness for others to see and follow as they follow Christ.
posted by Mike at 8:53 PM
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