Oh the day after a big loss in the sports world. The rain perfectly complements the mood of the 49er faithful as the season came to a disappointing end last night… an overtime loss especially hurts.
As I was thinking about how boring the Super Bowl will be in a few weeks, I thought about how it is almost exactly the opposite for the fans and players of the teams who will be playing. And then even the fans of whoever wins this year’s contest.
But soon after, I remembered a quote I once read from Deion Sanders, a famous former NFL player, the night after his team won the Super Bowl:
“I remember winning the Super Bowl that year, and that night after the game I was the first one out of the locker room, the first one to the press conference, and the first one to go home. And I remember my wife, Carolyn, saying to me, “Baby, you just won the Super Bowl! Don’t you have a party downstairs or something to go to?” And I just said, “Nah,” and rolled over and went to sleep. That was the same week I bought myself a brand new $275,000 Lamborghini, and I haven’t even driven a mile before I realized, “No, that’s not it. That’s not what I’m looking for. It’s got to be something else, I’m so hungry.”
Sanders went on to describe how he had finally achieved one of the greatest accomplishments that our nation can possibly think of, and yet he felt as though he hadn’t won anything, and was just as unhappy as before.
Now don’t get me wrong… how I would have loved to cheer on the 49ers to a Super Bowl win this year. I’ve experienced favorite teams of mine winning big events, and it’s amazing. But I can easily forget the reality that no matter what we are pursuing, everything seems to fail us… except Christ. Christ is the only one who can ultimately fulfill this longing. So it shouldn’t surprise us to read story after story of athletes, actors, lottery-winners, and others who have achieved some high award, and yet cannot seem to find the joy they were seeking.
So keep your heads up, 49er faithful (or those of you whose team already lost, or those of you who could care less about football). We have a greater joy, a higher purpose.
“You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11).
-Dustin
