With Super Bowl XLIII, being played this weekend, millions of people will be watching the Cardinals vs. Steelers on their big screen HD televisions. It is the big game! But a few people have noticed that a possibly bigger game was played on November 7th in a high school stadium in the Dallas-Ft. Worth Metroplex. It pitted two private high schools against each other; Faith Christian Academy versus Gainesville State. One school was Christian high school. The other was a juvenile detention facility and high school that included football in its rejuvenation program.
Several weeks prior to the game, Kris Hogan, the football coach at Faith Christian challenged this team and the student body to do something unique for a football game. He challenged the student body and the people who attend their games as fans to put their faith into action. He wanted them to fill the visitor's side with fans to root for the Gainesville State team when they came to play against his team. Gainesville State had very few fans attend their games. There was no band, no cheerleaders, only a few fans and security guards to support the team.
On game day, the visitor's side was filled with fans with signs and noisemakers. There were cheerleaders on the sidelines and every time a Gainesville player made a good play, the fans cheered and called out their name. Though Faith Christian won the game, the real winners were the players on Gainesville State team. They were deeply moved by such a selfless act of compassion by the opposing school. It was their Super Bowl.
Rick Reilly of Sports Illustrated caught wind of the story and wrote a column. Roger Goodell, the commissioner of the NFL read the story and was so moved, that he invited Hogan and his wife, to be his guests at the Super Bowl.
"At the beginning," Coach Hogan said, "I was really surprised because I feel like it shouldn't be that big of a deal that Christians take action and do things like this."
It shouldn't be a big deal, but when Christians seriously choose to act self-lessly and serve others, it shouldn't surprise us that the world takes notice. Didn't Jesus say, "Let your light so shine before men, that when they see your good works, they will glorify our Father which is in heaven."
Well done, Faith Christian Academy and Coach Kris Hogan... it is more than a game!
2 comments:
I hadn't seen this story.What a great thing they did. Those kids will remember that gesture long after the game was played, and to many it will make a big difference in their lives. It's good to read about positive things. We read way too much negative.
Dear Brother Ellis,
Thanks so much for this marvelous story. It would be nice if you would add the option of following your blog. You are an eloquent writer and I would like to know when you post a new blog. Glad to be back in touch with you. Thanks for your nurturing during college that surely helped me reach the point where I was ready to serve here in Kenya. Leah
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