Every year at this time I am reminded of the same thing. It’s basketball playoff time in Oklahoma and there aren’t a lot of things in the high school sports world more exciting than small school basketball playoffs. I love watching kids compete. It doesn’t matter at what. It is just fun. They have a desire to be the best. They want to come out on top. Every player and coach in Oklahoma wants their team to finish the year in the “Big House”. Only one team in each class wins their last game that year. Every team and every player has that same goal in mind when the season begins. But only one team truly achieves that goal each year!
What also makes it fun to watch is the environment. The crowd noise is electric. There are fans that cheer for their team and stand and clap and yell and high five each other. Why do they do all of this? Because they are passionate. They are passionate about their team. They are passionate about their kid or grandkid that is part of that team. They are passionate about their son or daughter that is the coach. Fans don’t only yell for the players though. They also yell at the refs. They stand up with their arms up in the air and scream their displeasures at the officials in hopes that one time, just one time, that ref will stop the game and say, “you know what, these fans are right” and reverse the call. Why do they do this? Because they are passionate. They want their team to win. They want their family member to be successful. It all stems from passion.
The fans, players, and coaches aren’t the only ones with passion out there. There are also the officials. Many people don’t think of them as having a passion for what they do. But they have to have a passion for it. Otherwise there is no way they would go to a gymnasium, after working their other job, and officiate a ballgame knowing that they are going to be yelled at and disagreed with by one side of the gym every time their whistle is blown. They have a passion for being a part of a game that they have loved since they were kids. That is why they do it.
As I watched our teams compete last night I thought about all of this. I thought about how all of these people mentioned above are passionate about a common cause. I thought about that passion and how it relates to our relationship with God. I asked myself, “Am I as passionate about God as I am other things in my life?” The answer would differ depending on where I am in my life at that moment to be honest. We all know that the Christian walk is a roller coaster ride at times. There are highs and lows. Hopefully the highs outnumber the lows.
While sports is a great metaphor for life, passion for God can be similar to sports in many ways. But, it can also look different in some ways. We probably aren’t going to go to church and stand up and yell and scream and raise our arms in excitement and high five each other every time the preacher makes a great point. We also probably aren’t going to stand up and throw our arms up in the air and yell at the preacher every time we disagree with something he says. Hopefully no church members will be ejected from the service when the preacher has had enough of their displeasure either. Everyone that has been to a ballgame and a church service is probably picturing that happening in both of those venues right now. While that church service scenario is all made up for entertainment, the truth is passion for Christ does look different than it does sports in some ways. In sports, you earn what you get. As a Christian, we won’t get to heaven because of what we do, but because of what God has done for us. We are saved by God’s grace and mercy. While both instances do require passion and dedication, one has an immediate and temporary reward and the other an eternal prize, according to Philippians 3:14.
Having a passion for God and doing His will is something that is internal. It is a burning desire inside us to be more like God each day. It is wanting people to see God shine through us when they see us each day. It is wanting to be better for our Creator every day. So as I got up this morning and did my Bible study I had all these thoughts running through my head. As I do a lot of times, I spent some time in self-reflection. Just like in all areas of life, our Christian life can always improve. Our passion can always be greater. Mark 10:27 says, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and Love your neighbor as yourself.” That takes passion and dedication and we should all strive to be better at it every day.
I love watching our kids compete. Not only my own kids, but the kids that I have the privilege of going to school with each day. I am passionate about them. I am passionate about my own kids and our school being successful. Not only in sports, but in every activity we are a part of and in every aspect of life. While those activities teach us a lot and can make us better people, they should not be our greatest passion. Our greatest passion should be being a disciple of Christ. Is our passion for being God’s children as strong as our other passions in life? If it is not, then there is a hole in our life. There is something missing. Only God can fill that hole. When that hole gets filled up, it makes those other things we are passionate about so much better. Every basketball player and coach in Oklahoma has a desire to finish their season in the “Big House”. Their passion is what drives them to work hard to reach that ultimate goal. Just the same, every Christian has a desire to spend eternity with God someday. We all can’t wait to hear those words, “Well done thy good and faithful servant.” We know that our God is loyal and true to us. We know that He promises us that one day we will finish our Christian walk with Him in the “Big House”!