By Brad Locke
March 5, 2004

(AgapePress) - Most of us have thought it, most of us have said it, and many of us -- myself included -- have even written it.

It is this: "God doesn't care who wins."

Seems sensible enough, a theological point Christians and non-Christians can agree on. Most people, regardless of their religious persuasion, cringe when an athlete thanks God for a Super Bowl or World Series victory, as if we're inside a giant PlayStation and He's working the joystick. I don't think any right-minded person believes that our sporting arenas are playgrounds for the heavenly hosts (like in Angels in the Outfield). God isn't wearing a Patriots jersey or waving Laker pom-poms.

God doesn't care who wins. But that doesn't mean He doesn't care. He's not an apathetic God, nor is He too busy to expend energy on seemingly trivial matters like ballgames. Sports and competition are part of His creation -- they're something He made for our pleasure and betterment. I believe that God indeed has a hand in our sporting events, because it's something He created. Nothing is too insignificant that it isn't integral to God's ultimate plan.

So, in a sense, God does care who wins. He has chosen a path through life for each one of us. We all experience different blessings and trials. For athletes, blessings can come in the form of thrilling team and personal triumphs, and trials in the form of crushing defeats or injuries. God can and does use all these things to His glory, just as He blesses the rest of us with job promotions or children, or allows us to be put through trials such as job loss or death of a loved one.

Certainly, the outcome of a football game weighs less on the scales of fortune than someone's job or life. And certainly, there is as much, if not more, to be learned from merely playing the game than by its final result. Nevertheless, God cares about what happens, insofar as it serves His divine purposes. He can use those moments of athletic excellence to His own glory -- the victor, if he's a true Christian, will thank the Lord for the blessing of such a wonderful moment -- and He can also use disappointment to help an athlete or coach take comfort in their faith, without which one may let failure consume him (see Donnie Moore, the Angels pitcher who committed suicide in part because of the distress he felt after giving up a crucial home run in the 1986 American League Championship Series).

Like Romans 8:28 says, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose."

I also believe God can use athletes to spread the Gospel. Kurt Warner has been given a very visible platform, and he's used it well. I believe God blessed the Rams quarterback with such fame so that others could see a Christian who is a strong leader on the field and off it, and so Warner could help others financially and spiritually. Now Warner -- who screamed "Thank you, Jesus!" after the Rams' Super Bowl XXXIV victory -- is struggling as a second-stringer, but he's handled this trial with the same aplomb he did his success.

But there is an underlying question here: Should athletes publicly thank God following a triumph? It's a tricky thing. As I did then, I still believe Warner's words after the Super Bowl were heartfelt. It seemed to me he was thanking God for a lot more than just one positive result. He was thanking God for the opportunity, for the moment, for the feeling, for a fulfilled dream that had seemed so far out of his reach just months earlier.

On the other side we have Warner's favorite target, wide receiver Isaac Bruce, who claimed God directly intervened on the game-winning touchdown catch. I don't doubt that our omniscient God, who pre-ordained every single moment in history, had something to do with it, but Bruce's comments came off as very obtuse.

Christian sports figures should behave less like Bruce and more like Indiana Hoosiers coach Mike Davis, who before every interview during IU's Final Four run two years ago prefaced his comments by thanking God for the opportunity to win. Davis was genuine, because he fully realized the blessing God had granted him and was eager to make the most of it.

Athletes and coaches are given a grand stage in America, and they can choose to use it for good or for evil. When one abuses the privilege, we condemn him. Too often, when one uses it to publicly declare God's goodness, we condemn him then, too. But an athlete's life is as important to God as anyone else's, and I can't fathom the Lord not utilizing a superstar's far-reaching influence to His greater glory.

Regardless of who wins or loses, God can use whomever He chooses however He chooses whenever He chooses. And being a part of His advancing kingdom, regardless of the final score, is reason enough to shout praise into the microphone.