Last night’s Super Bowl was pretty intense. After many years of SB blowouts, the last several years have been very good games. What made this one unique is that it became a defensive struggle. My oldest son made the observation early in the second half that it was boring. The score at the time was still 7-3….not much excitement. But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t an intense struggle. It reminds me of the difference between WWE wrestling and “real” wrestling (I just had to take a quick look over my shoulder to make sure Stone Cold Steve Austin wasn’t behind me when I wrote that). WWE is far more entertaining to watch than “real” wrestling (yep…still no Stone Cold), but “real” wrestling is way more intense. It’s exhausting. It sometimes looks like not much is going on, but those guys are straining with every ounce of energy in their body.
Last night’s SB was a lot like that. Interesting thing about those types of games…they may look boring early, but once the clock starts to wind down, it’s gets really good….because it’s still anybody’s game to win.
Every one knows the Patriots were HUGE favorites (18 points) and were undefeated coming into the game. They were looking to make history. The Giants had lost 6 games in the regular season and weren’t given much of a chance. Going into the fourth quarter, the Patriots still held a tight 7-3 lead. But the Giants pushed down the field and took the lead 10-7 early in the 4th. But the Patriots, showing the character and skill that had kept them unbeaten all year came back to reclaim the lead 14-10 with only 2:45 left in the game. That’s it…game over…champions do what champions do…and in this case the Patriots fought back to take the lead and win the game late…Not so fast my friend…the Giants decided they still had something to say.
This is where the life lessons kick in. Yesterday morning, we wrapped up a series of messages that have focused on pursuing something more in your life. The focus yesterday was in how you put that in motion to achieve it. We looked at a story found in 2 Kings 4 about a widow whose dreams for life looked pretty far-fetched. Game over! You tried but what can you do? Well, she decided that was not an acceptable answer. The passage tells a remarkable story of overcoming odds through the power of God at work in her life.
I thought the last drive by the NYG was a great modern-day picture of that (minus the God-element..but you know what I mean). The Giants had given it a good shot. No shame in that. But they decided that they came this far and they weren’t going down without a fight. In the last drive, there was one remarkable play that stood out in my mind. On that play, Eli Manning, the QB of the Giants, was being swarmed by the defense of the Pats. No way he gets out of that. But his sheer determination allowed him to escape their grasp, and fling a pass down the field. On the receiving end of that pass was yet another Giant, David Tyree, who was also unwilling to go down without giving every last ounce of energy and commitment to the fight. The two ends of the play looked like this:
Their perseverance ultimately allowed the entire team to rise up and experience the victory together. Our journey toward the “something more” that God has for us will require similar perseverance. There will be times it seems as if the game is over…nice try…don’t feel bad…you gave it your best. But DO NOT accept those platitudes as substitutes for achieving what God has placed in your heart. Your perseverance toward “something more” will not only allow you to get there, but you will have others with you as well. So press on toward your dream…God has something more for you.
Let’s hear from you! What did you see in the game that you enjoyed or that meant something to you?
Tags: church, Sports, Super Bowl
