Friday; October 22

Since my college football teams don’t usually play the early games on Saturday afternoon, I haven’t been watching the national pregame shows lately. Last weekend, since my team was featured in one of the early games, I tuned in and what I saw was disturbing. No, it wasn’t the announcers this time, it was the fans’ display that dismayed me. The homemade signs that were shown behind the set were, at best a display of bad sportsmanship and, at worst, just out and out rude! I am familiar with good-spirited ribbing between fan bases; but it seems to have been elevated to a new level (or maybe I should say has deteriorated to a new low). After being discouraged by what I saw early in the day, I was completely dismayed by the behavior at a nationally televised game later that night in which the fans delayed the game and put people in jeopardy by throwing trash onto the field when a call didn’t go their way. I understand being a huge supporter of a team – and even disappointed when things don’t go our team’s way; but a lot of what I saw on Saturday was indefensible.
I am not naïve enough to believe that meanness is the product of our generation, but we need to take a stand or it is going to get worse before it gets better! There are several things that can be done to correct the issue, but one of the simplest is to return to an emphasis on basic courtesy. Sure, it might sound corny, but we can stem the tide just by being polite to each other. Not only is this a simple concept, but it is also a biblical one. The New Testament admonishes us, “To sum up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing.” (I Peter 3:8-9).
I wish you and your team the best this weekend. Yet, no matter what happens on the field, let’s treat each other with the respect we all want and deserve.

Think About It!

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