"Over the past couple of decades, athletes have increasingly recognized the need for, and been granted, time away from their sports to attend the births of their children. However, rarely does that time away come at the expense of an opportunity to compete for a championship.
For many readers, this will probably seem like a no-brainer: You go and be by the new mother’s side. ... On the other hand, there’s no guarantee that Sherman will ever again have the opportunity to play on this stage, while it’s likely that he and his girlfriend could produce many more children if they so choose. And doesn’t he owe something to his teammates?"
The author poses this question for his readers: "Would you attend the birth of your first child or play in the Super Bowl?"
Sixty-seven percent said play in the Super Bowl. Welcome to America.
And then there's Rocky Seto, Seahawks assistant coach who says: "Jesus is better than the Super Bowl." His comments on winning last year's Superbowl and on heading to this year's:
“This Super Bowl thing, it’s such a big deal to the people of the Northwest. You can see how the Seahawks provide identity for so many people. What’s cool is that God has opened up a platform through winning to talk about Jesus Christ, the greatest treasure of all. Why do we want to win? I know the brothers on the team, they want to win to glorify God and tell more people about Jesus Christ.”
Two nights ago I heard an ad on the radio that said: "How do you know you're a fan? You wake up and pray to the [sports] gods." What that (wildly misguided) commercial recognized is that we are fundamentally religious people. We all pray to some god, many, though, a figment of their own imagination. This Sunday we're reminded how many people pray to a pigskin and the tendency of our own hearts to idolize our enjoyments, to turn our hearts from the one true God.
It may not be football to you. It may be books or media or your cat or your family or food or your body or money or school or your car or, or, or. The list of potential idols could go for miles.
Take this weekend to focus your heart and adjust your priorities. Search your soul for idols and trust and obey the good God who gives us gifts to enjoy. And enjoy those gifts this weekend - enjoy the Super Bowl - but don't idolize.