Empty

This post is one that I wrote a couple of months ago, on my personal blog, "Not Just a Colts Blog." It is about keeping yourself focused on Christ, and how he is really all that we need, and how that feeling manifests itself in teams that you follow, especially when they lose. I hope you enjoy:

First of all, I want to apologize to my faithful readers, like all 6 of you who "officially follow" my blog, that I have been absent from the whole blogging scene in this month.  I am in my final semester, and working as a part time student ministry pastor, so I am loaded up with work, but once football season starts, and it WILL start again (hopefully...), I plan to be on here pretty regularly.


But tonight I watched the entire Butler-UConn game, and I was pulling hard for Butler.  The Indianapolis connection really intrigued me, and I mean its not like they are my favorite team, they took out the Badgers, and that stunk a little bit, but I wanted Butler to win, no doubt.


But I was sitting here reading for a class and just thinking about sports in general, and my girlfriend gives me a hard time about how I need to give up sports (and she's only kidding, I hope...), and I was thinking about the futility of it.  I have had this post rattling around in my head for the past couple of years, and I'm just now getting it out there.


Sports are futile.  And I know this, but lets think about it practically for a couple of seconds. No matter who you cheer for, you will almost always be disappointed with the outcome of a season.  As Butler fans know, this is two years in a row, where they got all the way to the end, and came up short.  And as Steelers fans can attest, they played a great season, only to be taken out to the superior sixth seeded Green Bay Packers (you do the logic in your head).  All I am saying is, that except for the 2006 NFL season, I end each year, no matter what sport, it has ended in disappointment, but I always come back for more!  Why do I do this?


One thing is that the ride is incredible. Following a team in such a way as I do the Colts or Badger football or basketball is just ridiculously crazy, and its fun!


But at the end of the day it will always run out, only UConn fans are excited about their team's collegiate basketball season.  There must be more to life.
This became a very real truth to me following Super Bowl XLI.  All season, and  most of my life, I was rooting hard for the Colts to win this thing.  A lot of efforts, studying, and cheering was done in order to see that the Colts would win the whole thing.  Finally my time came! I was so pumped.


Then what happened? I went to basketball practice, just like every other day.  Nothing changed. Nothing was different.  But even though I rooted and cheered and agonized over this season why did it feel like nothing changed.  Because the reality was that nothing did change.


I love sports, but I need to be careful to not elevate sports, and the Colts above other more important things in my life.  Sports will always leave you feeling empty.  Sure maybe you are a UConn fan and you're on cloud nine tonight, but a year from now, they most likely won't be on the same place, that is why we need to have our hope in something other than sports. Other than things. Other than people.  There truly is only one thing that is unchanging, and never ending.




Butler fans, I feel for you, but just remember that this will happen again.  And sports, and things, and people will let you down.  Only a life filled with Christ will give you complete satisfaction.  Seek in him today, and find your self worth in him, not in the UConn Huskies.