Faith Like a Lions Fan

This is going to be a stream-of-conscious post – no forethought or planning outside of the title.

I wrote on Wednesday about faith in God to provide and I want to expound a little on a question I came up with:  Why do I have constant faith and love for the Detroit Lions, yet quickly turn away from God when our relationship requires faith?

The Detroit Lions are, as some may say, awful.  3 seasons ago, they set the record for the worst Win/Loss record in the NFL:  0-16.  Awful.  Despite their recent lack of success, I love them.  I tell people that I bleed Honolulu Blue and Silver (team colors).  It doesn’t matter if they lose – I believe and hope for success next week.  Hope springs eternal.

If the Lions, who have never failed to fail, keep my faith and hope, then why doesn’t God, who has never failed to provide, keep my faith and hope?  It isn’t like I have any reason to doubt him; in fact, I have many reasons to have faith in God:

• ·      Spring 2008 – My Mom was laid off from work
• ·      Fall 2008 – My Dad was laid off from work
• ·      February 20, 2009 – I had a $2,000 tuition payment due to school.  I didn’t have the money and my parent’s couldn’t help but my statement showed that it had been paid and I owed nothing.  $2,000 to $0.
• ·      Spring 2009 – Planning on going to grad school.  I got accepted everywhere I applied, invited to visit the University of Minnesota, and was offered complete funding.  That doesn’t happen often with Masters students.
• ·      Moving to Minnesota helped break apart a mutually destructive relationship and repair hurts between my parents and me.
• ·      An old family friend mentioned Jacob’s Well.  Though leery to join, I started going and soon developed a great friendship with Nate Ray.  I’ve never been more challenged to grow and learn and disciple and evangelize than at Jacob’s Well.
• And More....(friendships, my roommate, conversations, lessons learned from reading, etc)

And the latest?  My Passport/Visa arrived in the mail yesterday so that I can go on a Missions Trip to Sao Paolo, Brazil with 5 others from Jacob’s Well.  I have no doubt that this trip is in the center of God’s will – that he provided is evidence of that.

So why do I trust in the Lions but not in God?  I don’t know completely.  But what if we had the faith of a Lions fan?  Not a blind, naïve “confidence,” but a faith built on a loving relationship. What if we loved God even if his plan didn’t match ours?  What if we had faith?

I echo the words of the father whose son was demon-possessed:  “I believe, help my unbelief!”