Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and Why You Should Come to Church Next Sunday
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult.”
Psalm 46:1-3 NRSV
If you are attuned to the sporting world at all, the name Caitlin Clark has surely passed your radar. Most likely, you’ve then also heard the names Angel Reese, Cameron Brink, JuJu Watkins, Paige Bueckers, and maybe Kamilla Cardoso. If you haven’t heard of them, they are all superstars in the world of women’s college basketball and either have played in or are still playing in the NCAA tournament currently.
The other thing these players have in common is, with the exception of JuJu Watkins they were all part of the 2020 recruiting class. Meaning this is their 4th season playing.
How many superstar athletes stay in college for 4 years anymore?
Wait, I need to rephrase that: “How many male superstars athletes stay in college for 4 years anymore?”
With the lucrative money of the NBA, NFL, etc., very few of the superstar players stay around long enough for college sports fans to really develop a deep affinity for them. They appreciate one magical season, but few would label Paolo Banchero a legend for Duke basketball over a J.J. Reddick or Bobby Hurley (who both played four years).
- Longevity permits the intrigue of records that get broken.
- Longevity allows for adversity to be overcome.
- Longevity allows for heartbreak to be redeemed.
- Longevity allows for a relationship to be formed.
That’s why tickets to the women’s Final Four sold out 6x faster than the men’s this year. The superstars listed above have all been around long enough for fans to get invested. But that didn’t happen overnight.
Go back and read the opening portion of Psalm 46 above. It’s about longevity. Notice where the Psalmist says God is working: earthquakes, volcanoes, and floods.
The Psalmist has enough longevity with God to really know God, and really know that God is still present and working for good even when things go bad. The Psalmist has put effort and diligence into is relationship with God to know that one bad game isn’t the end of a career, and eventually it will get better. Which, in turn, inspires the Psalmist to keep centering his life around the things of God.
Easter tends to be the “one and done” of worship attendance. It can sometimes be the great athlete who comes in and gives you one great season, makes you really excited, and then leaves a void the next season when it’s not there. Well, you don’t have to worry about that at Creekwood United Methodist Church. We’re here every week! And by staying all four years (or making worship a habit) you develop the longevity that really allows you to know the depth, intrigue, and promise of God.
- It doesn’t happen overnight.
- It’s not always exciting.
- Not every basket Caitlin Clark makes is a 30′ 3 pointer.
- Not every blocked shot from Angel Reese is SportsCenter worthy.
- But we get those moments because they stayed – and we stayed – and over time we saw greatness come about.
- And those memories will stay with us.
Easter is great and we had a wonderful celebration – as is warranted by the resurrection of Jesus. But just Easter won’t get you the faith of the Psalmist. Just Easter won’t bring you the peace in the hard times.
I look forward to seeing you Sunday as we keep developing the richness of relationship with God and each other, so that we might continue to be the branches of God’s vine (John 15:5) and share love to the world!
Peace,
David Lessner
