Today is veteran’s day. I was looking on You-tube at Kirk Cousin testimonies about Christ. I had not known he was a Christian, but i recognized him as being a God fearing man and knew there was something special about him. I look at football as being a worldly thing, most definitely. I had loved football since a youth and just recently I had given the Lord my love for football — and he has made it new! I haven’t had any revelations from football, it has always been a dead thing even as it was so alive to me — there was no milk nor honey from God in it. But now, after a week, I have had many revelations and new insights about it after giving it up to the Lord, and I no longer have love for it, but God has used it to increase my love for Him. This shows God cannot use a thing if we hold onto it because we block out all communication from God; we know the thing is wrong, but we hold onto it anyway.
Kirk Cousins said many true things. One thing: there are no atheists in fox holes. Everyone believes in God when things are tough when we are in need or facing death. Similarity everyone prays before a football game; football is life or death. Similar to the military; today is veteran’s day. Then i went down the rabbit hole of Damar Hamlin; earlier this year he died on the football field multiple times. His heart stopped and they brought him back to life. He has come back a week ago to play football. This shows he is willing to die for football. On the opposite spectrum, Kirk Cousins said in one of his worse games, “if my life were tied up in football after this loss, i would be devastated. Beautiful thing I am founded on Christ the solid rock in which I stand.” This shows both sides: idolatry vs true worship of God. It’s about the heart not the actions. We can see someone playing football, something very secular, and judge him based on that. But God looks at the heart. Kirk plays football but his heart is not in football, it’s in Christ; he plays football for Christ. Damar, on the other hand, loves football, and is willing to die for football. What we are willing to die for shows what we love. There are certain sins we hold onto in which we say, “I will die before ever letting this go”, but if we let them go, God will restore and make new.
The Lord also showed me, if someone were to neglect the prayer before a football game to make a point or show off before his teammates, but then in his heart is fearful and asks God to protect him, He will honor him because God looks at the heart. It’s very tempting to make judgements based on outward appearance alone; we must look at the heart of the matter. Jesus was spoken evil of constantly because of what He was seen doing: eating with sinners, working on the Sabbath, etc. The heart of Jesus was to love His neighbor as Himself. He ate with those sinners because He loved them. He worked on the Sabbath because He was healing those oppressed by the devil.
Because of God’s great love for us, we ought to die for Him, and the death we die is to sin and to ourselves. This shows we are willing to die for Jesus. Suffering, Service, and Sacrifice: these are the three to love. If love does not have these, is it love or merely lust? True love produces these. If we love Him, we will obey His commandments.
Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. (1 Titus 1:15)