A Short Funny

My Theology and World Religions class began last night. It kept me from getting to Bill & Tiffany's house until 9:30, but we eventually caught up to reality with the game. I was disappointed after OSU's strong start, but last year helped me learn how to deal with defeats more easily. I'm not happy that I now owe a coworker lunch though.

Last night in class we were talking about the groundbreaking for the Hindu temple in Cary. Apparently they buried an idol that was appropriate the community which will eventually become the centerpiece of their worship. Our professor asked what would be an appropriate idol for Cary. I said, "prosperity," which was the right answer, but I was thinking something else. As he told the story there was a pause and I interjected, "So they don't have a god of uniform architecture?" which got some chuckles around the class.

If there is one thing we value in Cary, it's our uniform architecture.

Not Too Devastated

My alma mater finally lost today. Illinois gave them all they could handle and they lost 28-21. I had just started to hope in them, so this wasn't too crushing. It certainly wasn't as bad as the championship game last year.

I'm beginning to think that Eomer should be my avatar along with the quote, "...do not trust to hope. It has forsaken these lands."

Proof

I'm only posting this as proof that I'm still awake after the Indians took game 2 of the ALCS. What a ride.

Tomorrow is going to be a sleepy day. But it's OK. I'm enjoying this.

Oh, and the Buckeyes are likely to be #1 in this week's poll with LSU and Cal both losing. Is this the year for my teams?

Direct and Indirect Cheering

As I type this Michigan is clobbering Notre Dame. Traditionally, this is the one game each season when I root for Notre Dame, but I'm actually a bit torn. Michigan has played so badly in the first two games this year that I actually am starting to feel badly for them. It was fun when they made history by losing to App State. It was funny for a while when they lost to Oregon. Then I realized two problems with this:

1) It seems like the universe is off-kilter. Michigan isn't supposed to be this bad. It's like Moriarty leaving obvious clues for Sherlock Holmes and not having a scheme behind it.

2) My attitude has been decidedly non-Christian. A fun part of sports is ribbing each other when there is a rivalry. However, I think that I took it too far last week. In fact, I had trouble sleeping on Sunday the same way I feel when I start looking at things I shouldn't. Not good.

I think that this is an opportunity for me to grow a little bit. Meanwhile, I'm going to keep supporting OSU and keep rooting against Michigan, but I think I may do it with a bit more grace. Time will tell.

The Sweet Taste of Victory

As any reader of my blog knows, I graduated from The Ohio State University. I've seen some good football teams since 1991. And I've seen many disappointments. Last night was a crushing disappointment when OSU just went into the tank on the big stage. Seeing them get manhandled like that felt like a punch in the stomach. I do, however, notice that the sun still came up today.

Why the title of this post? As I go through my SCF emails I see so many stories of victory. There is the story of Bernie who restarted The Lord's Table because he wasn't "getting it" and humbly submitted to my instruction to restart. Last night he went out for pizza with his wife and left 2 slices for today's lunch. There is the story of John who has been walking in newfound freedom for weeks and is just loving it. There is the story of a guy who had struggles with pornography and has enjoyed over 2 weeks of freedom from its pull.

I've been praying lately for God to soften my heart about these stories. I think that it's happening. I feel that excitement in my chest that I used to get. It's so wonderful to see how God is changing lives and it's a real privilege to be a part of it. He doesn't need me for anything, but He chose to allow me to be a part of this. What an honor!

This gives me the proper perspective. And I suspect that if I talked to Jim Tressel he would agree.

Troy Smith

As I got up this morning I remembered that I still wasn't absolutely sure about who won the Heisman Trophy. As expected, Troy Smith won in a landslide. In fact, he had a larger percentage of first place votes than anyone in history and only OJ Simpson won by a larger margin.

The incredible thing about this is that Troy Smith came to OSU as a pretty angry teen. His position was listed simply as "athlete". I read a bio about his pre-OSU days and it wasn't pretty. He and his sister got taken away from his mom when he was 9 and he was raised by foster parents for 4 years. His foster dad helped him quite a bit. His mom got her act together and there was reunification, but it took some time for them to gel as a family.

Skip ahead to 2004 when Smith showed potential (first time beating Michigan, for example), but then got caught taking money from a booster. He sat out the Alamo Bowl and the first game of the 2005 season. He beat Michigan again, shredded the Notre Dame defense in the Fiesta Bowl, and has won every game this year. He capped his season with a 4 TD performance against Michigan's highly-touted defense.

While I don't want to write a ton about OSU football, the amazing thing was his speech. He first gave all the credit to God. He didn't go so far as to mention Jesus, but it's hard to imagine how anyone could be that close to Jim Tressel and not have a saving faith in Christ. When he plays and when he gives interviews you can clearly see the "peace that surpasses all understanding".

This is the kind of thing that makes me want to go into full-time ministry. It's not to prove the validity of the 5 points of Calvinism. It's not to argue for or against the continuation of spiritual gifts. It's not to have a solid understanding of what the Kenosis is all about. All these things are good to know and someone in vocational ministry should probably have opinions about them, but it's ultimately got to be about watching the gospel transform lives. To see a young man go from troubled teen with no position on the team (basically a piece of athletic meat) to the best quarterback and player in the nation is very striking. Yes, people do get it together in other ways. But I suspect Troy Smith's transformation is one that will last. And that's what it's all about.

Soli Deio Gloria

Missing the Sunshine

This is the first time in 8 years that I miss living in Florida. That includes the time we had the bad ice storm here in Raleigh. The reason is because for the first time in history my alma mater will play against the University of Florida. After listening to Gator fans for 3 years I would love to be there for this as I've got to think that OSU will roll over them. But, people thought the same thing about Miami in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl.

I suppose it must be just as hard for people who move to Ohio, and central Ohio in particular. OSU fans can be extremely obnoxious. What we call "rich tradition" others may call obsessive behavior. What we call "passion" others may call obnoxious. But I guess that's what sports can be all about. It seems like something you don't want to do halfway.

Again, I am reminded of how much worship goes into sports. Where's the face painting for church on Sundays? Where are the tailgate parties? Where is the passion to talk about it with others?

A Large Distraction

My alma mater just played in a very large football game on Saturday. They managed to last against the hated rivals to the north. I spent the better part of last week counting down the hours to kickoff. I read all I could about the game. I learned about the young man from Hudson, OH who got to dot the "i" in Script Ohio. I learned about how Lloyd Carr showed the movie Cinderella Man to his team. I was ready for the game.

Then the game happened. It was pretty unnerving as usual. OSU made some mistakes and UM kept coming. But in the end OSU prevailed. They established themselves as the best team in the nation. Yippee.

I've spent a fair amount of time today discussing the game with some UM fam coworkers. It's been fun to gloat a little bit. But as the luster from the victory fades I realize just how distracting the whole thing was. I used roughly 5 perfectly good hours in going to a friend's house to watch the game and watch it. Note, I did not waste that time as it was good to hang out with a friend. It was fun to watch the game.

But overall I just wonder about this misplaced worship. I really want to avoid that, but it's so easy to do. In fact, a part of me feels badly for Chad Henne now that he's lost to OSU in 3 out of 3 tries. But not so badly that I want to see UM win next year.

Don't get me wrong, I fully intend to watch the National Championship Game. I hope that OSU will establish itself as the best team in the country with a resounding victory. But in the end I realize that it matters so little compared to all the other things in life.