Down But Not Out

     I'm sitting in the living room typing this up after just finishing the Super Bowl game on television. It doesn't get bigger than this game. It beats the baseball and basketball best of seven series. Only one game for the championship. It's win or lose. I grew up with football. I love it. I sometimes hate it. I love the sport because of the toughness, the teamwork, and the strategy on both sides of the ball. I hate it because I get so wrapped up in it with stats, anxiety, and a lot of times anger when something doesn't go right for my team. Football was, for a lot of years, a false god I worshipped.
     As a kid, I remember Sundays being a day where we all gathered at Grandma's and planned out the day of BBQ, family, and fun. There's nothing at all wrong with any of this except for the most important part of Sunday--the most holy sacrifice of the Mass, Jesus. Oh, yes, we did go every Sunday, but keeping the sabbath holy was definitely not on my mind for the rest of the day. When I moved to Kansas at age 12, the Mass and Jesus were almost completely removed as part of my life. The one thing that I did do was football. And even more of it. I was addicted.
     The early 1990s was more of a temptation to keep me hooked as my team was winning a lot more and was suddenly more competitive. I was definitely riding a high when the Dallas Cowboys won 3 Super Bowls in four years. It was not easy having losing seasons after that and knowing that we had bad teams with little to no chance of winning. It was so hard knowing that the only thing that I thought was constant on that day could bring me such pain. I was in deep.
     I have sometimes heard drug addicts say they started to realize how bad it was when they hit rock bottom. One day changed my life for good-- thank God! My family and I were watching a game that was coming to a last-second field goal. Make it and Dallas wins. How hard can this really be? He better make this or else.....The kick was up....wide right! For those of you who know me, I am pretty much a cool/quiet guy. Not that day. I grabbed the remote control and slammed it very hard on a pillow that was on the floor. The remote bounced off and hit my oldest daughter on her face and made her cry. I hit rock bottom. I immediately began to feel very embarrassed as all eyes were on me. The room emptied out slowly and my heart was burdened. This was totally unacceptable. I obviously didn't mean to hurt my daughter but it still happened. Stacie had pulled me off to a side and we talked. The hardest part for me to understand was how to let go.
     Nowadays things are more calm. I'm not stressed out and yelling at those in the TV. I love life. I have learned about moderation. I don't HAVE to watch every single game. I don't HAVE to watch every single play. My priorities are more in order and I thank God that He has shown me the joy of keeping His commandments. I remember putting ALL of my energy into a game that would be decided by the players not by what I did. I also like to think of my life now and what Jesus has for me if I put all of my energy towards Him! Yes, I sometimes fail (and sometimes miserably) but it doesn't end there. No matter how many times Satan knocks us down we have to dust ourselves off and get right back up and in the game. We are on the Lord's team. Jesus wins!

Vince Lombardi (Green Bay Packers Head Coach-1960s) quote on life: "After all the cheers have died down and the stadium is empty, after the headlines have been written, and after you are back in the quiet of your room and the championship ring has been placed on the dresser and after all the pomp and fanfare have faded, the enduring thing that is left is the dedication to doing with our lives the very best we can to make the world a better place in which to live."

"It's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get up."