thefinishline 03/11/10
The Life of a Professional Athlete Part II: Integrity
By Shawn Brown
On Tuesday, March 9, Dr. Henry Cloud was a guest on The 700 Club. He talked about his new book, Integrity: The Courage to Meet the Demands of Reality, in which he highlighted six qualities of character that define integrity. One of those qualities stood out to me more than the rest: "Embrace the Negative". He stated, “The ones who succeed in life are the ones who realize that life is largely about solving problems. The ones who can get with that find much success, and the ones who can’t, don’t.”
In my experience with CBN Sports, interviewing a wide variety of athletes over the years, my mind went to the young collegians about to be drafted by the NFL. On April 22, they will sit in New York’s Radio City Music Hall awaiting a phone call from one of the 32 NFL General Managers hopefully offering a job. Among these young men are Tim Tebow (QB Florida), Sam Bradford (QB Oklahoma), Colt McCoy (QB Texas) and Gerald McCoy (DT Oklahoma). These four are young men of faith, but like all of the other draftees, they will be faced with the temptations that come with instant millions and national celebrity. The media coverage naturally centers on athletic ability and what each player could bring to a prospective team’s game plan. Does anyone care about the 21-, 22-, 23-year-old kid about to pull up a chair to the metaphorical all-you-can-eat buffet of sports stardom where not every dish is healthy for you?
Back to Dr. Cloud, I think he hit the nail on the head. If athletes have the courage to meet the demands of their reality when they go pro (e.g., the onslaught of temptations to jeopardize integrity), their chances of success on and off the field are dramatically improved.
In the Bible, Paul wrote, “Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13- 14). Paul is saying he hasn’t arrived yet. He understands he has to continue with the struggle (whatever problem needs solving) in order to reach the prize God has for him. My prayer for both my Christian brethren and the rest of this year’s draft class is that they will find the strength to be true to who they are and to realize football is just a phase of life, not the pinnacle.
On Tuesday, March 9, Dr. Henry Cloud was a guest on The 700 Club. He talked about his new book, Integrity: The Courage to Meet the Demands of Reality, in which he highlighted six qualities of character that define integrity. One of those qualities stood out to me more than the rest: "Embrace the Negative". He stated, “The ones who succeed in life are the ones who realize that life is largely about solving problems. The ones who can get with that find much success, and the ones who can’t, don’t.”
In my experience with CBN Sports, interviewing a wide variety of athletes over the years, my mind went to the young collegians about to be drafted by the NFL. On April 22, they will sit in New York’s Radio City Music Hall awaiting a phone call from one of the 32 NFL General Managers hopefully offering a job. Among these young men are Tim Tebow (QB Florida), Sam Bradford (QB Oklahoma), Colt McCoy (QB Texas) and Gerald McCoy (DT Oklahoma). These four are young men of faith, but like all of the other draftees, they will be faced with the temptations that come with instant millions and national celebrity. The media coverage naturally centers on athletic ability and what each player could bring to a prospective team’s game plan. Does anyone care about the 21-, 22-, 23-year-old kid about to pull up a chair to the metaphorical all-you-can-eat buffet of sports stardom where not every dish is healthy for you?
Back to Dr. Cloud, I think he hit the nail on the head. If athletes have the courage to meet the demands of their reality when they go pro (e.g., the onslaught of temptations to jeopardize integrity), their chances of success on and off the field are dramatically improved.
In the Bible, Paul wrote, “Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13- 14). Paul is saying he hasn’t arrived yet. He understands he has to continue with the struggle (whatever problem needs solving) in order to reach the prize God has for him. My prayer for both my Christian brethren and the rest of this year’s draft class is that they will find the strength to be true to who they are and to realize football is just a phase of life, not the pinnacle.