>> UPCOMING FEATURE: Cheyna Matthews is profiled in Sports Spectrum’s Fall 2019 magazine, which will hit mailboxes in late August. Subscribe now to learn more about her journey of motherhood, playing in the World Cup and her strong faith in Christ.
Jordan and Cheyna Matthews have a typical marriage — they’re young, in love, have a child (named Josiah), and are juggling the tension of building a solid family while maintaining their careers.
It’s just that, in their case, their careers are as professional athletes. Jordan is preparing for his sixth season as an NFL wide receiver (now in San Francisco after four seasons with Philadelphia, one in Buffalo), while Cheyna is in the middle of her third season with the National Women’s Soccer League’s Washington Spirit, and fresh off starting for Jamaica’s World Cup team. Oh, and Cheyna is doing all this just months after giving birth in August 2018.
“It kinda just happened,” Jordan says about Cheyna getting back into playing shape post childbirth. “She would get up, have Josiah with her who is 100 percent dependent on her, make her own breakfast, drive 30 minutes across Philly to work out, and doing all this while having a baby with her. The whole time Cheyna is getting her body back Josiah is still right there. She’s carrying a kid on hips all day, cooking meals, and I get home at 6, and all that has happened. She’s amazing.”
The most remarkable thing about Jordan and Cheyna might be how unremarkable they make their lives sound. They carry a sense of peace about their careers, their marriage and their futures. How is it possible for them to live such intense lives and yet be so peaceful?
“People ask me that a lot,” Cheyna laughs. “‘How are you able to play soccer and have a baby but also go home and make a meal and be up at night sometimes with Josiah?’ And honestly, I don’t even think about it. I’m so centered, so rooted, it doesn’t overwhelm me. So many things were thrown at me the last year or two that it seems like a natural thing to have organized chaos.”
Both Jordan and Cheyna mention how their habit of reading the Bible together has created a rock-solid foundation for their marriage. They are currently reading through the New Testament, recently going through the resurrection story in the book of Matthew.
“This is the best part of our relationship, honestly,” Jordan says. “We have a foundation that we know is like concrete. The best part of being married to Cheyna is we don’t come with opinions. When it comes to raising Josiah, we’re not saying, ‘Well, this is how my parents did it.’ We say, ‘What does God say about this particular issue? What does God say about friendships we should have or the places we should go?’”
Looking to the future, Jordan and Cheyna say they’re looking forward to the day, after their professional careers, when they can dig deep roots into a city, community and church, build a family and eventually adopt.
“We want to have stability so we can do Kingdom work,” Jordan says. “We know we want to live in Nashville. I’d love to work for Vanderbilt (his alma mater). We can’t wait to have that home in Nashville because it is gonna be a place where we do a ton of Kingdom work. I want to adopt kids and say to them, ‘Welcome home.’”
>> UPCOMING FEATURE: Cheyna Matthews is profiled in Sports Spectrum’s Fall 2019 magazine, which will hit mailboxes in late August. Subscribe now to learn more about her journey of motherhood, playing in the World Cup and her strong faith in Christ.
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