Tebow and 'Divine Intervention'

And... hibernation is over! Yes, that is the excuse I am going to use for not blogging at all for almost 9 months. What could have possibly brought me out of hibernation you might ask? Well...two things. First, I think I actually have something valuable to say, the time to write it, and feel like I should. Second, (I kind of cheated by sticking three things in my first point but...sorry. Just work with me.) I was awakened from my hibernation by someone yelling "TEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEBOW!!!!!!!!"

But on a serious note, it has been interesting watching Tebow and the.....what is the right word....hysteria?....that has gripped the bronco nation, christian nation, and fine.....just the entire nation in general. Hysteria might be too strong a word but to say that he is one of the most controversial figures to come on the scene recently would not be an overstatement at all. The fact that his #15 jersey is the top selling apparel in the NFL should be proof that this guy is someone that fascinates many....whether you're a sports fan or not.

The question that I have in my mind tonight is some peoples' talk of 'Divine intervention' and what role it plays in Tebow's, and for that matter, every other Christian's life? Now, some have said that the reason Tebow has had success on the field this year is because God is 'intervening' in the games and bringing the Broncos back (from sometimes almost impossible odds) to unexpected victory. The idea behind this is that because Tebow is so vocal about his faith and seems to lead such a God-honoring life, that God is blessing with the direct result of letting him and the Broncos win football games. And....I don't know what I think about this. I am inclined to think this is just a little bit ridiculous.

Here's why:

1. There are plenty of other Christians in the NFL....some even on the teams the Broncos have defeated (ex. Lovie Smith, coach of the Bears). So...if that is the way God 'blesses' Christians that follow Him and play football, how does one reconcile that? One guy who is a Christian wins....one loses. Seems like a double standard if that's indeed the way it works?

2. Just because you are honoring God with your life, doesn't mean you will have 'success' as the world defines it. Yes, many times you might, because the principles of God are wise and very often benefit our lives in physical, financial, and social ways. However, think about Job, or prettymuch any of the prophets. They followed God like few of us do, and yet they had much happen to them in their lives that the world would have definitely not defined as 'success'.

These are a couple of the main reasons I disagree with it. Now, as I stated above, winning football games could be part of some of the other benefits that come from leading a holy life. How? Well,  I would argue that hard work, character, teamwork, leadership....these are all traits that are laid out for us in scripture by Christ. However, these are also traits that can be developed by any aspiring athlete, Christian or not, because they see that doing so will benefit their gameplay and performance.

Now, to be clear, God is blessing Tim Tebow in some form directly for the way he is leading his life. I just feel it's important to realize that it might not be in ways that any of us will ever see and, in my mind, is not shown by the outcome of a game on a football field. That is my point. I know I may have simplified some things here but my desire was to give what I hope is an accurate reflection of the Christian life and, more importantly, check to be sure that we are presenting an accurate view to the rest of an unsaved world.