Super Bowl LVII took place this past Sunday and featured two openly Christian star quarterbacks, Jalen Hurts and Patrick Mahomes. It was a great change of pace for fans who had grown tired of the woke agenda of the NFL, to get to hear the leader of each team speak about the huge role that God plays in their careers and lives outside of the game.
Following his heartbreaking loss, Eagles QB Jalen Hurts remained gracious in defeat, and a clip from media day before the Super Bowl makes that no surprise. Hurts, a devout Christian, was asked about the role that faith plays in his life and what he would be asking God for on Sunday. Here is his answer:
“I usually keep my prayers to myself, but I say, ‘God knows, God knows’. And you know, I lean on Him, I really lean on Him and I try and keep Him in the center of everything I do because I know, without God, I wouldn’t be where I am today. I wouldn’t be the man I am today, without having that faith in him, without having integrity, and leadership and diligence and all those things. But, you know I think the biggest thing is you get so influenced by so much around you, you just wanna pray that you’re the person that God called you to be. So, that’s what imma do, you know, be who God called me to be.”
That response shocked viewers in the best way. Ahead of the big game, on the biggest stage in his profession, Jalen Hurts told viewers what he wanted from God. And it had nothing to do with winning the football game, nothing to do with physical health, nothing to do with anything earthly. All he asked for was to be able to play his role in God’s plan and to be what God created him to be.
This is not something that Christians often get to say, but that NFL player is a great role model for the next generation. Hopefully, some kids listen to this and use it as motivation to fight against the peer pressure that is ever-present today and to become better men. There are many people, including myself, who cannot stand the Philadelphia Eagles, but you’re not going to find very many people who root against Jalen Hurts.
This recent wave of NFL players beginning to open up about their faith all seems to harken back to the recent Damar Hamlin injury, where he suffered a cardiac arrest on the field during a game in the regular season. Teams all around the league gathered at the 50-yard line to pray and talking heads at networks like ESPN began during their shows. Faith is seeing a resurgence in the public eye, and ironically, the NFL seems to be helping push that movement forward.
So, hopefully, this isn’t the last that we hear from stars as Jalen Hurts about the faith that they have and the role it has played in their careers. And hopefully, he inspired a few people to begin their path to being “the person that God called” them to be.
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