August 2, 2023

August is finally here which means that the football season is getting close. I realize that for some of you, you could care less. You are probably better off that way, but the hospital that I was born in was across the street (ok, it’s a highway) from the Football Hall of Fame in Canton, OH. You could say that I was born into it, and like so many of my friends, I dreamed of playing professional football, particularly as a running back. Then reality set in. I was 4’11” in the 9th grade and could not get over 98 lbs. That wasn’t exactly the frame my school coaches were looking for. But I still loved the game.

The closest professional team was the Cleveland Browns. They were a perennial disappointment so, to cheer for them, meant that you had to have a back-up team that you followed that actually had any hope. Then one night, the owner of the Browns, hired a fleet of semi-trucks and loaded up all of the equipment that belonged to the Browns and shipped it to Baltimore, where the team became the Baltimore Ravens. But I still loved the game.

It would be a long time before Cleveland would get a professional team again. By this time, I had moved to Detroit. Years of disappointment in the Browns prepared me for life following the Lions. I don’t think that I have ever seen one team so capable of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, like the Lions. But I still loved the game. Then came Dan Campbell, the new coach for the Lions. I like this guy. I like how he wears his heart on his sleeve, how he loves his team and loves the game. And this season? I do not ever remember so many people expecting so many great things from the Lions like they do this year. They are favored by so many, that I am scared. I don’t want to care as much as I do but I will. I don’t want to believe, but I know I will. I don’t want to hope so much, but I know I will. I don’t want to get so frustrated, but I know I will. I really love the game. In fact, the agony of being a Lions fan is part of what binds the fanbase together.

I can accept the potential for disappointment because I know that in the end, it really doesn’t matter. I can love the game without thinking that my life is dependent on it. In fact, if August came and there was no football, I would miss it for sure. But there is way more to life than football. WAY more.

While I love the game of football, I really love the church. I can miss a game, but I can’t miss church. I can’t stay away. I love the Savior who died for the church, the people he died for, my brothers and sisters whose lives point to Christ, the encouragement that I get from hearing you sing so loudly, respond so heartily, love so deeply, sacrifice so consistently, pray so fervently and serve so faithfully. And if the gates of hell cannot prevail against her, I know that our love for the church will never be in vain. She is guaranteed by God to be triumphant.

“To him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever, Amen!” (Ephesians 3.21)

Grace and peace,

Bob

Sunday’s text: 2 Samuel 17:24-18:18