“What’s the Truth?”
February 5, 2021
“Most of your favorite players aren’t good people…” was the quote heard throughout the NFL this past week. The traction is due to the fact that it wasn’t an outsider leveling these accusations but a known wide receiver with over 400 career receptions and 30 touchdowns. As he unpacked many of his thoughts about the toll a game like football takes on the whole of a person, he even wondered if the trade off was worth it. When he sees that he’s unable to pick up his child, quickly do some math in his head, and other things a lot of us take for granted, it might be easy to see how you could struggle with this.
I’m guessing a lot of people aren’t surprised when they hear there are football players who act like jerks – but surely those players are on teams other than the one we pull for. But what happens when you find out that your player has a history of criminal actions? Or dodges child support payments? Or defaults on home mortgages and car payments? We struggle with the reality a person we were pulling for isn’t the wholesome person we have constructed in our mind.
Here’s the question I asked myself, “What if this was a friend of mine?” I spent time imagining if someone were to write, or tweet, the truth about me as they see it. Would they say, “He’s not a good person?” I hope the totality of my life would prevent that. Put yourself in the question. How would the truth of you look if it was written out? I know this might be uncomfortable but sit here for a moment. Let the heaviness reveal the weaknesses you regularly overlook. We are all a work in progress. But we need to make sure there’s progress in the work.
It feels easy for a football player who’s made millions to suggest that the money wasn’t worth the trade. But let me encourage you to choose integrity as a personal standard/goal. The Scriptures weigh in on this idea of living honorably in Hebrews 13:18. This is how our lives can clearly show the power and presence of God through our interactions. We must structure our lives so that the others can see the hope of the gospel through us.
David McIntosh
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