One of the most common messages I give to the athletes, is to encourage them to trust and realize where their true identity lies. As believers, we know the Sunday School answer is “Jesus” which is actually way more than a Sunday School answer, it’s absolute Truth. Luke 18:17 challenges us to receive the Kingdom of God like children. So, when a child says, “I love Jesus!” their hearts are pure, and they have accepted the most important Truth.
Jesus preaches in Matthew 6:25-27
“Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?”
Do we really believe this passage?
OK, how about this question.
Do we really trust this passage?
Do we live like it?
When we trust that our worth lies solely in Christ, that he is our reason for existence, that he is the reason we get to do what we do, our lives become a life of freedom. We are not let off the hook from working hard at our tasks, we are to do everything with everything we got!! (I know, improper English) This glorifies The Father and it’s such a great reminder for us that we are His.
So often, we see the career of an athlete end, leaving them wondering what to do. For so long, the athlete trained, worked out, did thousands of drills all to perfect their game, which is absolutely what you should do as an athlete, but then it’s over. One day, it will end. You will no longer be competing as an athlete at that level.
Now what??!!
A good friend of mine works with gangs in the inner cities in the U.S. He told me that 20-25% of gang members are former high school athletes. Only 7% of all high school athletes go to the next level and play a varsity sport in college (all levels). When a young man or young lady is “the man” or “the lady” in high school and so wrapped up in getting to the next level, and they don’t – their world has collapsed! Their influence has dropped to hundreds and thousands of fans and classmates to zero. For some, the only way back to that level of importance and influence is getting into gangs and gang activity. Their identity and status come from their athletic performance, which lasts only for a short time, no matter what level is achieved.
This saddens me deeply. To feel as though your life is no longer significant because you no longer lead a team to victory is tragic.
This is where we, as sports chaplains, step in. There is something different about athletes. Their intensity, their dedication, their drive (all things that I love about them), are sometimes the hardest things to break through.
How do we break the pattern of so many athletes stepping into depression, anxiety, or hopelessness after their career ends?
We keep pouring into them. We keep reminding them that they are first, and foremost, a child of God. We remind them that their worth is not dependent on grades, accomplishments, or victories. Their worth has been given to them by Christ, through his sacrifice. That’s it. We are who Christ says we are - his children!
I have had the pleasure of working with the wrestling team at the University of Michigan for two years. I love their passion, their drive, and their work ethic. It is a tough sport and the men and women that wrestle at this level are beasts. Tyler Meisinger is one of these young men.
Tyler has been involved in our weekly bible studies the last 2 years. One thing I love about Tyler, is his thirst for spiritual knowledge. He asked questions, he wanted to have conversations, he wanted to learn more. He was one of the more consistent attenders of bible study, I could always count on him being there.
During Tyler’s first two years at Michigan, he competed in open tournaments, but didn’t see any dual matches on the varsity team. His junior year, he sat out due to a knee injury. As his senior season started, it didn’t look like he would get many varsity dual matches, as Michigan had a lot of talent at his weight class, 157.
In sports, you never know when you may get called in. Due to some injuries, Michigan’s coaches asked Tyler if he would go up a weight class and wrestle at 165 pounds. Now, for you and I, gaining 8 pounds isn’t hard to do, but for a D-1 athlete, it’s not an easy task! Tyler put his team first and wrestled at 165 pounds, which is one of the toughest classes in the Big Ten, with 3 guys from the Big Ten ranked in the top 5 in the NCAA.
Tyler struggled, but hung in there. He worked, he trained, he kept up his intensity. Tyler’s commitment to himself, his team, and his identifier (Christ) pushed him into the Big Ten tournament, where he placed 8th. After the Big Ten Tournament, his record was 9-11, very respectable for a 157-pounder wrestling in the 165-pound class. What is even more cool, he qualified for the NCAA Tournament based on his wins versus specific opponents. It’s a crazy equation on how the NCAA chooses their “at-large” picks, but he was picked!!
The Big Ten tournament was March 7-8. I remember, we had our weekly meeting on March 11 and that day the crowd was going to be limited to 1500, but the guys all got to wrestle. There were a couple other NCAA qualifiers in our bible study, they were bummed but still excited to go to Minneapolis for the NCAA’s.
Then March 12 came
The NCAA cancelled the National Tournament. I felt horrible for all of the guys, but especially for our Michigan wrestlers and coaches that had put in so much work. But I had a deeper hurt for Tyler. There was another senior that qualified, but I didn’t know him too well, Tyler and I have gotten to know each other these last couple of years.
I remember speaking to him on the phone.
I’ve talked to men that have had injuries and could no longer participate. I’ve talked to athletes who realized they were done, their season was over, and they were not moving to the next level.
This one was different.
No doubt, Tyler was disappointed. He had qualified for the highest tournament in the country, out of the toughest conference in the country, yet he would not be able to step on a mat at that tournament. The NCAA didn’t offer another year of eligibility to the winter athletes and Tyler graduated from U-M in April. His wrestling career was finished.
As far as sports go, this could be considered a sad story. For me, it’s inspiring. Tyler took it in stride, remembered who he is, realized it was out of his control, and moved on to the next day. The most important thing was he remembered who he is, a Child of God!!
Tyler is living back home in California, has gained employment, and even has his own apartment now. Thinking and looking at his present situation, it would probably be the same outcome even if he did wrestle at the NCAA’s. I pray he remembers that he is God’s always!
So, where do you put your hope? Please put it in Christ. He is our hope for eternal life. When we choose him to be Lord’s over our life, the outcomes of earthly situations can become less critical when we remember our eternal fate.
“So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith” Galatians 3:26
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