God is on the move in the midst of the storm.
It’s always discouraging when you lose games or the season doesn’t go as you expect it to. We experienced that at the beginning of this season—games were being lost and coaches and staff were losing their jobs. It was a really discouraging time. Life in the NFL is unstable. Life is unstable.
“When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?” —Psalm 11:3
The answer is that you can trust the trustworthy God. God is still on the throne; God is still in control. Even though you don’t know what tomorrow’s going to look like, or next week, or next season, you can put your foot forward because the ground that you are standing on is solid—the rock of Christ.
“The Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord is on His heavenly throne.” —Psalm 11:4
“Everything else may be crumbling, but we are going to stand on solid ground.” This has become the anthem for the believers on our team this season.
With that vision in mind, the faith of the guys in our chapel grew leaps and bounds. Not only that, we grew in numbers. Chapels soon were filled each week with 30-40 guys who were hungry for the Word of God. There was a real sense that we all needed something solid to trust in and Jesus was just that.
He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along.” —Psalm 40:2
This season I, myself, was reminded that there is nothing certain in life. Players know that better than anybody, their future is so fickle, anything can happen at anytime. But it’s the same for all of us, isn’t it? We need to go back to the solid truth of God and rely on that alone. This solid truth becomes so much more real when you are going through the storm. Sometimes it can feel like Jesus is asleep in the bow of the boat. But He is there to say, “I have this under control; if I want to calm this storm with a word, I can.”
You don’t need to be afraid of the storm, you need to trust in the One who is control of the storm—His name is Jesus. You don’t have to fear because He’s got it.
Great things happen for the Kingdom of God through uncertainty. This season was a testament to that as we saw players and coaches grow in their love and trust in Christ, some even accepted Christ as their Savior for the first time! It’s great to see coaches and players come to have a vision beyond themselves. Searching for something greater, they’ve found it in the truth of Jesus Christ.
“Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” —Acts 2:46-47
— Dave Wilson, Detroit Lions chaplain
The Increase, part of the Sports Spectrum Network, is a community of Christian pro athletes sharing their personal stories of the decrease of self and the increase of Christ (John 3:30). Visit TheIncrease.com for more stories and videos.
