What Football Teaches Us

We who are fans only of college or professional football have no idea what it must be like to walk out onto the field at game time.

Growing up, most of us played the game at some level. We’re used to the green expanse stretching before us and the guys on the other team facing us. But there’s one thing we never saw that is a powerful element in the game played by the big boys.

There are a jillion fans sitting all around them.

Think of it. On your field of vision as you exit the locker room is a sliver of green which is the playing field. But filling 90 percent of your eyeballs is a stadium filled with raving, cheering, expectant fans. When the ball is thrown into the air, the backdrop is the fans. When it’s kicked, the player has to pick the ball out of a mural of fans.

That’s the part of the game I cannot imagine. I have little trouble imagining the running, throwing, hitting, blocking, catching parts of the game. But what a difference it must make for a player to be the object of 75 thousand fans, all screaming for him to make it or break it, to catch it or miss it. He’s cheered, he’s booed, he’s a goat, he’s a hero.

I’m thinking of the time Rex Ryan, coach of the NFL’s New York Jets, gave the game ball (signifying their leading role in a victory) to the fans who helped his team to a rare win over the New England Patriots. The previous week, Ryan had sent a voice mail to every season-ticket holder calling on them to “be there and be loud” at the game.

It worked. Patriots quarterback Tom Brady admitted he had trouble being heard when calling signals to his players. At one point, twice in a row the referees threw the penalty flag on Brady’s team for getting out of sync.

Pastors know the difference the congregation makes.


But I suspect few ministers know better than the visiting preacher–that’s what I am these days–the leading and critical role the people in the pews make in determining what happens in a church service.

Did they pray before the service–for themselves, for the minister, for the Lord’s presence, for His will to be done? Are they expectant today–toward themselves, the outcome of the service, the Lord Himself? Are they totally involved in the praise, in the prayers, in the sermon–or are they passively sitting back expecting to observe, to be “ministered unto,” but not to actively participate? Are they happy or upset? Glad to be here or just enduring the hour so they can get on to more important things?

I confess to not being able to read a congregation the way I’d like. Some churches are liturgical and extremely traditional, yet the people are involved and alert and they get every nuance in the sermon. Some are at the opposite end of the spectrum as far as the type of service–sort of controlled bedlam–and equally responsive to what goes on when the preacher stands at the pulpit. If there is a pattern, if there are subtle clues as to what I can expect from a congregation when I rise to preach, I don’t know what they are.

I just know they are critical to the “success” of the sermon and the worship service.

Football fans bear this out.

“A great church will make a great pastor.” When, at the age of 33, I went to lead the First Baptist Church of Columbus, Mississippi, an astute observer of Baptist life made that observation to me. I never forgot it, and from time to time have reflected on what it means (and whether it’s true).

All things being equal–the pastor being a healthy-minded God-called and well-meaning servant–it’s probably right.

I know the opposite is true. A sick church can take a healthy preacher and turn him into a basket case.

The members can nitpick him to death. The deacons can ride him and harass him, reward him one moment and attack him another, and turn him into a candidate for the psych ward.

Or, they can love him for Christ’s sake. They can pray for him and encourage him. They can help him grow to the full extent of the Lord’s DNA for him. So much depends on their involvement.

Here are five suggestions for turning your pastor into a winner.

1. First and above all, pray for him. And I don’t mean just a “bless the pastor” prayer, although we’ll take that if that’s all you can give.

Pray God will protect him from critics, will give him discernment about the use of his time, and strengthen his family relationships. Ask the Father to give him quietness of soul, peace in his heart, and joy in his life. Pray for the Holy Spirit to speak to him in the study and to give him solid rest when he lies down at night.

Pray for his family, his wife and children. Pray for his recreation time and whatever he does to take care of his body. Pray for his mental health and his positive attitude. Pray for those times he’s in his study and someone drops by with a problem, needing his counsel. Pray for his leadership with the staff.

2. Speak well of him to others.

In fact, you bring the subject up. “Didn’t our pastor bring a wonderful message Sunday?” “I loved his series on the parables of Matthew.” “I’m so happy God sent Pastor Mike to our church.”

Set the standard. And challenge anyone who is determined to tear down the preacher. Even the best of ministers gets subjected to that from time to time. But you do not have to sit back and idly observe it. Speak up.

Do not retreat into a cowardly “Well, who am I to question him? After all, the critic is a church leader and I’m a nobody.” Wrong. Bad wrong. If you are a born again believer and a member of that church, you have a right to insist that church leaders be supportive of the pastor unless he is seriously misguided in doctrine, wrong in ethics, or offensive in manner.

Speak up.

3. Work your half-acre well.

The shepherd has responsibility before God for the entire field, but as a church member, you have certain areas as your assignment. You lead a choir, you teach a class, you serve as a greeter, you work in the nursery.

Do it well. Devote yourself to being the best member of the pastor’s team. Be fully prepared when you arrive for your job. Pray long and hard, train your team, encourage their faithfulness, follow up on problems and deal with them promptly.

When you do your work well, it strengthens the church and that blesses your pastor. It will actually make him feel better about himself and the job he’s doing in your church.

Anything that blesses and encourages a pastor is a good thing. Nothing does that more than team members serving well.

4. Do something nice for his family.

The tendency here is to suggest you give a little present to the pastor–a gift card to a book store or men’s clothing shop. Those are nice things to do, but they are the first thing people think of. Consider the pastor’s family.

What if you sent the pastor’s wife a gift card to her favorite coffee shop or dress store? Or simply sent her a note of appreciation and included a 20 dollar bill? (Or a hundred!) A gift card to a toy store or a play station for the children would be nice, but send it to the wife, not to the children.

Take it upon yourself to get up the money to send your pastor and wife to the Holy Land. Or the entire family to a resort in the Ozarks or a condo on the beach.

5. On Sundays, be one of the faces that inspire the pastor.

Teachers learn that just because a pupil looks bored or seems to be daydreaming does not automatically mean they’re not listening. However, a person’s doodling or slumped posture or the glazed-over look in their eyes can be discouraging to one trying to speak to them about important matters.

My wife will come into my study to hear something I’ve found on the internet or to be a sounding board for something I’ve written. She sits at the drawing table (not a desk) behind me and I begin reading. Often she will start straightening the pencils or arranging the lamp or tidying the papers.

“Honey,” I will say, “I need you to listen to this.” She was listening, but she also knows I want her undivided attention. She turns toward me and I have it.

It’s a pastor thing. I guarantee you he would love to stop at several points in the sermon and say to you the congregation, “Honey, stop that. I need you to listen to this.” (Well, okay, he wouldn’t say “honey.” Beloved, maybe.)

Ask any preacher. On Sunday, during the sermon, his eyes roam the congregation in search of other eyes that are fully present and totally involved and “with him.”

You be one of those.

I recall hearing how Colt McCoy, at the time quarterback for the University of Texas’ Longhorns, illustrated a lesson about football and life. He’d been battling the flu bug all week and was feeling below par. His team was playing Texas Tech, an important rivalry for both schools.

When the teams went into the locker rooms at halftime, McCoy wolfed down several peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and drank a can of Pedialyte, a children’s hydration drink. A few minutes later, he ran onto the field with new energy.

We all need nourishment.

That’s what the worship service and the sermon are all about–nourishment for the Lord’s team members who have paused in the middle of the game and want to finish strong.

Think of the pastor as the chef. He has labored all week over this menu. You come into the locker room, aka the worship center, hungry and weak and tired. He and the worship team have a smorgasbord, a spiritual buffet, laid out before you.

This is no time to be distracted or uninvolved. Dig in. It was prepared with you in mind.

Nothing will encourage him more than to see you feasting on what he serves and returning to your assignment with new energy.

On Monday morning, he will re-enter his study with a new zest.

One of these days, when your preacher stands before the Lord and hears His “well done,” I can tell you what’s going to happen.

He’ll turn to you, his church members.

He’ll hand you the game ball. He could not have done it without you.

6 thoughts on “What Football Teaches Us

  1. Wow. Great stuff. The question now is how to get it into the hands of church members all across the country Pastors are reading this thinking, “I wish my people could read this.” These are things pastors can’t really say from the pulpit without coming across as self-serving (and no, I’m not talking about myself. I’m thinking of many pastors and churches I know). So, for all you lay people who read this, print it out, spread it around, and be a catalyst in your church. You’ll see a better pastor and a better church for it.

  2. As always, good food for the flock, Joe. The body of Christ would do well to remember that the pastor or pastors need to be fed as well. Too often not enough love flows from the body back to the pastor and he feels used or used up.

    Your points about showing appreciation are spot on. Good words and deeds to remember as well. If the pastor has young children, offering to take his kids so he and his wife can get away for a weekend of recharging their marriage is good as well. (I didn’t see that suggestion, but if you did suggest it then I need better glasses).

    Again, great stuff!

  3. Your post reinforces a long held belief of mine imparted to me by one of my role models for being a Director of Missions (not that I have figured any of it out yet, by any means!), Dr. Luther B. Hall of Farmerville, LA and other places. Dr. Hall said that there were three keys to being a good preacher (and I would say to being an effective pastor or church leader): 1. A sympathetic audience. 2. A sympathetic audience. And, 3. A SYMPATHETIC AUDIENCE! What you have written reminds me of that. This is one I will save.

  4. Neither can I tell what makes a good audience, but “I know one when I’m in front of one.” You can tell they are alert and listening. There have been audiences where I have wanted to stop the message and ask straight out, “What’s with you people? Where are you this morning? I preached the same sermon to another congregation last week and they loved it. Get with it, people.” I once did a nursing home service with a little black guy sitting near the front. He spoke softly, but encouraging. He would say things like,”that’s right,” “yeah,” and the like. Probably made it the best nursing home sermon I ever did. Wanted to get him in my church every Sunday on the front row.

  5. Joe,

    You just never cease to amaze me. You hit the nail with your head again. Right on target. Just like always. Yes, I did see the cartoon.Keep up the good work. Articles are such a blessing. Cartoons also. It is a shame that every preacher and church member doesn’t read the articles and cartoons as well. What a difference it would make if we all would take to heart all of this. Love you, Joe.

    P.S. One good thing about being an interim is that you can tell them all of these things. Tomorrow is my last Sunday at Ridgemont B. C. in Abilene. New pastor next Sunday. I am preaching both services on Ministering to Your Minister or How to Pull Your Part of the Load.

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