Isn\u2019t it great when sports superstars live as well off the field as they do on it? I\u2019ll tell you about a couple of them — and their faith.<\/p>\n
A few weeks ago, Yankee shortstop Derek Jeter made his last All-Star game appearance, becoming the oldest player ever to collect two hits in the mid-summer classic.<\/p>\n
As my colleague Roberto Rivera pointed out on the BreakPoint blog, on the day of the game, a Washington, DC, sports talk radio show asked listeners if any superstar in sports had \u201cworn\u201d his superstar status as well as Jeter.<\/p>\n
Well, if you\u2019re wondering what it means to \u201cwear\u201d your superstar status well, you\u2019re asking the right question. The show\u2019s hosts referred to all the famous and beautiful women Jeter had dated without any hint of scandal. They cited his opulent lifestyle \u2014 his mansion in Florida is nicknamed \u201cSt. Jetersburg\u201d \u2014 and his ability to preserve his privacy.<\/p>\n
The consensus of the radio listeners was, no, no one wears his superstar status as well as Derek Jeter.<\/p>\n
Well, I beg to differ. Not because I dislike Jeter or even care about what he does off the field. And I won\u2019t deny that his on-the-field deportment is the embodiment of class.<\/p>\n
No, my problem is that I think there\u2019s more to \u201cwearing\u201d your superstar status than where you live and with whom you sleep. And while I think avoiding scandal is a good start, it\u2019s setting the bar much, much too low.<\/p>\n
In fact, I can think of several superstars whom I would prefer my children emulate more than the Yankee captain and the future first ballot Hall-of-Famer.<\/p>\n
Like Clayton Kershaw. This Dodger southpaw has also been in the news lately. In late June and early July Kershaw threw 41 consecutive innings without allowing a run \u2014 the fifth longest such streak since 1961. He also became \u201cthe third pitcher in the last 100 years to win eight straight starts in one season while striking out at least seven batters in each one.\u201d The other two were named Sandy Koufax and Juan Marichal.<\/p>\n
Kershaw\u2019s latest accomplishments only built on his growing legend: his career ERA is the lowest of any starting pitcher in the live ball era with at least 1,000 innings pitched.<\/p>\n
But that\u2019s not why Sports Illustrated\u2019s Tom Verducci argued that he should have been that magazine\u2019s \u201cSportsman of the Year\u201d in 2012. Verducci cited Kershaw\u2019s work with AIDS orphans in Zambia and the young people in his hometown of Dallas as examples of what he called \u201cthe awesome power of faith.\u201d<\/p>\n
Verducci wrote that Kershaw, \u201cis one of the best pitchers in baseball who is making an even bigger impact without a baseball in his hands.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kershaw isn\u2019t the only superstar whose impact off the field is greater than his impact on it. The winner of the NBA\u2019s \u201cCommunity Assist Award,\u201d given each year to players for \u201ccommunity engagement, philanthropic activity, and charity work\u201d is, as the inscription on the plaque reads, \u201cFollowing the standard set by NBA Legend David Robinson, who improved the community piece by piece.\u201d<\/p>\n
While playing for the San Antonio Spurs, Robinson, a member of the original USA \u201cDream Team,\u201d founded the Carver Academy, an inner-city school that offers \u201ca challenging academic program … and a nurturing family-like environment based upon the foundation of Judeo-Christian scripture.\u201d<\/p>\n
Not surprisingly, both Kershaw and Robinson are Christians. They\u2019re doubtless aware of our Lord\u2019s words, \u201cEveryone to whom much was given, of him much will be required.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thus, they use what God has given them to further the Lord\u2019s work of restoration in this broken world \u2014 at home and abroad. It may not be the stuff of drive-time sports talk radio, but it is the stuff of lives worth emulating.<\/p>\n
________<\/p>\n
Copyright (c) 2014 Prison Fellowship Ministries. Reprinted with permission. “BreakPoint” is a radio ministry of Prison Fellowship Ministries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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