Seahawks Soar!

The NFC Division Championship is tasting very sweet for the long-suffering Seahawk fans. We have waited patiently for 30 years for the Championship. Maybe now, all those Mariners, Huskies, Cougars, and Sonics fans will start shifting their attention to the Hawks?

What is especially sweet for Christian fans is that the leadership of the Seahawks in the hands of three very strong Christians: Mike Holmgren, Matt Hasselbeck, and Shaun Alexander.

After the victory, NFL MVP running back Shaun Alexander said that "Prayer works" and credited prayer with helping to sustain him and his team to overcome his head trauma that he sustained during last week's playoffs game with the Redskins.

Alexander has said, "That's just how I live my life -- chasing after Christ, finding new ways to get closer to Him. I want to do what children of God do, and that's go all out for Christ."

Coach Mike Holmgren is a Christian speaker on the athletic motivational talks circuit.

Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck is someone I actually had the pleasure to meet with in person. He spoke free of charge at my church concerning his experiences of being a Christian player in the NFL.

At the time of Matt's speech, I was a newborn Christian, just saved. I was confused and lost. I was looking for a home church. One Saturday, I went to the church where I was saved (The Neighborhood Church), and just coincidentally, Matt Hasselbeck was there giving a speech.

Amazingly, one of the topics that he talked about was the process that he went through to find a home church after he moved to Seattle. He talked about how he and his wife just went around to as many local churchs as he could, looking for God to guide him to the place that he should be. One Sunday, he arrived at a church, and Jim Zorn, the Seahawks very first quarterback, was sitting there. At that moment, he knew he had found the right church.

And at that moment, I also knew that I found the right church because through Matt, God was speaking to me and telling me that I didn't need to look anymore, I had found my home church.

Matt talked about the challenges of being a Christian football player. The number one temptation that he said that he faced was with "cursing" and losing his temper. Given some of the temper tantrums we've seen out of him over the years, it is easy to see! He also joked that he and Mike Holmgren had the same temptation, but that Holmgren was much worse that he was!

Given what we've seen with other players (T.O.) and other teams this year (Vikings), I think that cursing falls pretty low on the list of temptations.

He said that many players supported him on his walk. Shaun Alexander being one of them. He made a special mention of Trent Dilfer (Superbowl 2000 QB, Seahawks 01-04), and how his walk with Christ really encouraged him. Matt said he had been a Christian pretty much his whole life, but Dilfer was not. Dilfer had walked on the wild side, like many NFL players are wont to do. But through the tragic illness and death of Dilfer's son, he found Christ. There is a famous story about how the two potential rivals broke down and hugged each other after a prayer meeting in Hasselbeck's living room. Sometimes we can only see God from knee level.

Matt has become a stronger Christian through Dilfer's encouragement. Even to this day, although Dilfer is no longer with the Seahawks, he continues to encourage Matt and the team.

For those who think its too hard to be a Christian, consider what Shaun Alexander said, "I crack jokes with people when they say it's hard being a Christian. To me it's not hard. The hardest thing is choosing whether you're going to go all out or not."


We will keep supporting these men with our prayers, and we will leave it in God's hands for the ultimate outcome. One thing we can trust is that God's Glory and Will will be served.

P.S.
Check out Shaun Alexander's foundation dedicated to mentoring young men. Click here.


P.S.S.
No rest for Shaun Alexander, the day after victory, he launches a program to help disadvanted kids learn to play chess! Click here.


P.S.S.S.
Shaun Alexander's favorite line of scripture Psalm 37:4. Click here.


P.S.S.S.S.
I was saved through a program called the Alpha Course. Click here to find out more.


P.S.S.S.S.S.
Mike Holmgren's wife will be unable to attend the Superbowl because she is doing a mission in the Congo. Click here.