Why Pursue Athletic Greatness? Our Six-Point Outline
ByAfter re-reading my introductory post from yesterday, I realized that in seeking to answer the questions I raised, I might be able to blog for a year. And maybe I should, for I do want to one day write a book on the topic (and actually have a handful of chapters in rough draft form). But even if I should, I am not going to do so (at least not now). Instead, I am going to limit what I have to say to six blog posts. Why six? I am not sure. But six it is. So let’s begin.
As a reminder, here are the two questions I raised.
Why and how should a Christian pursue athletic greatness? Or, as a Christian, how can I justify my drive to become the best athlete I can be?
Here are my six up-coming posts.
3) A Christian can joyfully pursue athletic greatness because such a pursuit can and should serve others. Part 1and Part 2.
4) A Christian can joyfully pursue athletic greatness because he (or she) lives in hope that one day all things (including sports) will be made new and that here and now, in sports, he (or she) can serve as an imperfect preview of that perfect day to come. Part 1 and Part 2.
5) A Christian should joyfully pursue athletic greatness in light of the person and work of Jesus Christ. Part 1 and Part 2.
6) A Christian should joyfully pursue athletic greatness with utmost diligence and utmost humility. Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.
Those six may not be perfect, but they should serve us well. No doubt more could be said, but as I look at the clock, six seems to be a good number, for my blogging time is up. I look forward to covering point one tomorrow.
2 Comments
March 6th, 2011 at 8:50 pm
[...] player. You can find his blog here. The blog entry that really helped me sort things out is Why Pursue Athletic Greatness, where he said “I believe that however well-meaning we may be, it is wrong for us to view the [...]
April 15th, 2011 at 6:36 am
[...] One thing we do want to do is to consider if the sport is able to promote godly qualities in our children. For the most part, we believe sports can do that. Obviously, if we didn’t Joe wold not be playing basketball. But basketball is a great tool for refining him in humility, selflessness, self-control and regard for others. Many athletes will say they have to be a different person on the field (ie. mean and aggressive) than they are off the field (more relaxed, laid back and gentle), but we don’t believe that this has to be the case or even really is possible. You can’t be two different people. If an aggressive, arrogant attitude is present on the field that means those qualities lie in your heart. But you can still be competitive and play to your best ability, while desiring your opponent to be at their best as well. For an extended look at this, see my husbands series of posts on Pursuing Athletic Greatness to the Glory of God. [...]