It Was Fun
My friends and I went to watch the Sunday's game between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Golden State Warriors.
We sat on the third row behind the announcers. This shot was taken right before the opening toss.
This shot of the Clippers bench was taken during a timeout in the fourth quarter.
That's Blake Griffin. It was cool to see him in real life.
I have never sat this close before and so did not know that referees actually respond back to obnoxious fans. One fan kept calling out the ref on bad calls, and eventually, the ref turned back to wink at him. One of refs was Leroy and the other was Kevin.
Adrenaline
The Clippers were down for most of the game. Then, in the fourth quarter, they rallied from a 20 point deficit to tie the game with a few minutes to go. The crowd went wild. Eric Bledsoe kept stealing the ball. Blake Griffin made some amazing dunks. Reggie Evans was hustling to every corner of the court. Kevin, my friend (not the ref), started chanting "Evans! Evans!" Eventually, our side of the stadium started chanting his name too. That was fun to hear.
I noticed that as the Clippers got closer to tying the game, as we all started rising to our feet, as we all started chanting, that I could feel my heart beat faster and faster. My body had an immediate reaction -- one of dejavu. It was if my body was saying, "I know when you usually get this way, but you're not in that situation now. Why are you feeling this way?" Adrenaline was pumping through my veins -- urged on by the atmosphere of a packed crowd at the Staples stadium.
Then, my body rebelled and said, "No. I'm not going to let you get excited. I already got excited last Friday, and I'm tired. I'm not letting you get excited over this."
And so, while the whole stadium was excited and cheering, I started to get sleepy and my heart rate slowed down. It took me a while to figure out why my body was rejecting the excitement.
The last time I felt this way, was on Friday, when I was preaching the Gospel to my youth group kids. For an hour long, I kept at it, speaking of God's love for his name and hatred for sin. I begged my students with every fiber of my body to run and treasure Christ with all their heart, mind, and soul. My heart raced. And I loved it. It is the best feeling in the world. I don't know of anything that gets me more excited and makes me happier than shouting and declaring good news to people. I was so excited from youth group that I could barely sleep that night. I ended up sleeping at midnight and waking up at 4 am. I never wake up that early or sleep so little.
Adrenaline Junkie
Why do people become season ticket holders? Why do people invest so much time and energy to go to games? We do it because we are entertained by the excitement of games. Sports, after all, is entertainment. We all enjoy excitement.
I realized it was not my body that rejected the excitement -- it was my soul! My soul only gets truly excited and enthralled about one thing -- Jesus. I realized that just as I gain joy in fellowship with Jesus, and just as I gain joy in running with Jesus through preaching the Gospel, so many people invest lots of time and money in going to sports events to feel a hint of what I feel when preaching the Gospel!
People ride waves, jump off planes, jump into caves, to feel a rush of adrenaline. But none of those things are of lasting consequence. No one will care who won this Clippers game next week. And if they ever win a championship, no one will care the next year. We have fleeting memories. The next excitement catches on.
Not so with Jesus. He always excites. So if I am an "adrenaline junkie", I am one for preaching the Gospel and for magnifying the worth of my Jesus. That satisfies my soul. I pray it satisfies yours too.
Clipper Darrell
I've been to a few Clippers games before, and there has always been one man who has been a fixture at the games. It is not the owner, but a man who calls himself Clipper Darrell. He's dedicated over 15 years of his life to cheering for the Clippers. Darrell loved the Clippers when no one even liked them. He is definiltey not a bandwagon fan.
Then, last month, the Clippers organization contacted Darrell to tell him never to use the Clipper name again. Apparently, it was all about the money. You can read how devastated he was on his blog. Or read the article on Yahoo! Sports.
Clipper Darrell wasn't there at Sunday night's game. Or if he was, they purposefully didn't show him on the big screen. Fortunately for Clipper Darrel, as of today, the organization has since changed its mind and let him back.
Like Clipper Darrell, we all love to cheer because we were all made to worship. The problem is, we cheer for unworthy things. I don't mean to say that the Clippers are unworthy compared to the Lakers, I mean to say that both the Clippers and the Lakers, and every other NBA team are equally unworthy.
Basketball is a sport that civilization will one day forget. It will not endure. The Mayans played lots of sports. They had their champions. No one remembers them now. The solar system won't endure. It will go supernova one day. The galaxies will die. The universe itself will die a cold black death as all its energy is consumed.
So why cheer the ephemeral when you can cheer the eternal? Why worship created things when you can worship the Creator? Praise God instead of the Clippers! The Clippers will go away, but God is forever!
Are you a season ticket holder for that which matters most?
My friends and I went to watch the Sunday's game between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Golden State Warriors.
We sat on the third row behind the announcers. This shot was taken right before the opening toss.
This shot of the Clippers bench was taken during a timeout in the fourth quarter.
That's Blake Griffin. It was cool to see him in real life.
I have never sat this close before and so did not know that referees actually respond back to obnoxious fans. One fan kept calling out the ref on bad calls, and eventually, the ref turned back to wink at him. One of refs was Leroy and the other was Kevin.
Adrenaline
The Clippers were down for most of the game. Then, in the fourth quarter, they rallied from a 20 point deficit to tie the game with a few minutes to go. The crowd went wild. Eric Bledsoe kept stealing the ball. Blake Griffin made some amazing dunks. Reggie Evans was hustling to every corner of the court. Kevin, my friend (not the ref), started chanting "Evans! Evans!" Eventually, our side of the stadium started chanting his name too. That was fun to hear.
I noticed that as the Clippers got closer to tying the game, as we all started rising to our feet, as we all started chanting, that I could feel my heart beat faster and faster. My body had an immediate reaction -- one of dejavu. It was if my body was saying, "I know when you usually get this way, but you're not in that situation now. Why are you feeling this way?" Adrenaline was pumping through my veins -- urged on by the atmosphere of a packed crowd at the Staples stadium.
Then, my body rebelled and said, "No. I'm not going to let you get excited. I already got excited last Friday, and I'm tired. I'm not letting you get excited over this."
And so, while the whole stadium was excited and cheering, I started to get sleepy and my heart rate slowed down. It took me a while to figure out why my body was rejecting the excitement.
The last time I felt this way, was on Friday, when I was preaching the Gospel to my youth group kids. For an hour long, I kept at it, speaking of God's love for his name and hatred for sin. I begged my students with every fiber of my body to run and treasure Christ with all their heart, mind, and soul. My heart raced. And I loved it. It is the best feeling in the world. I don't know of anything that gets me more excited and makes me happier than shouting and declaring good news to people. I was so excited from youth group that I could barely sleep that night. I ended up sleeping at midnight and waking up at 4 am. I never wake up that early or sleep so little.
Adrenaline Junkie
Why do people become season ticket holders? Why do people invest so much time and energy to go to games? We do it because we are entertained by the excitement of games. Sports, after all, is entertainment. We all enjoy excitement.
I realized it was not my body that rejected the excitement -- it was my soul! My soul only gets truly excited and enthralled about one thing -- Jesus. I realized that just as I gain joy in fellowship with Jesus, and just as I gain joy in running with Jesus through preaching the Gospel, so many people invest lots of time and money in going to sports events to feel a hint of what I feel when preaching the Gospel!
People ride waves, jump off planes, jump into caves, to feel a rush of adrenaline. But none of those things are of lasting consequence. No one will care who won this Clippers game next week. And if they ever win a championship, no one will care the next year. We have fleeting memories. The next excitement catches on.
Not so with Jesus. He always excites. So if I am an "adrenaline junkie", I am one for preaching the Gospel and for magnifying the worth of my Jesus. That satisfies my soul. I pray it satisfies yours too.
Clipper Darrell
I've been to a few Clippers games before, and there has always been one man who has been a fixture at the games. It is not the owner, but a man who calls himself Clipper Darrell. He's dedicated over 15 years of his life to cheering for the Clippers. Darrell loved the Clippers when no one even liked them. He is definiltey not a bandwagon fan.
Then, last month, the Clippers organization contacted Darrell to tell him never to use the Clipper name again. Apparently, it was all about the money. You can read how devastated he was on his blog. Or read the article on Yahoo! Sports.
Clipper Darrell wasn't there at Sunday night's game. Or if he was, they purposefully didn't show him on the big screen. Fortunately for Clipper Darrel, as of today, the organization has since changed its mind and let him back.
Like Clipper Darrell, we all love to cheer because we were all made to worship. The problem is, we cheer for unworthy things. I don't mean to say that the Clippers are unworthy compared to the Lakers, I mean to say that both the Clippers and the Lakers, and every other NBA team are equally unworthy.
Basketball is a sport that civilization will one day forget. It will not endure. The Mayans played lots of sports. They had their champions. No one remembers them now. The solar system won't endure. It will go supernova one day. The galaxies will die. The universe itself will die a cold black death as all its energy is consumed.
So why cheer the ephemeral when you can cheer the eternal? Why worship created things when you can worship the Creator? Praise God instead of the Clippers! The Clippers will go away, but God is forever!
The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD sits enthroned as king forever. (Psalm 29:10)Praise God now, while you have breath!
Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, "I have no pleasure in them"... The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (Ecclesiastes 12)Praise God for the same reason that Clipper Darrell praises the Clippers. It feels good! In Darrell's own words, "GREAT NEWS!!! It feels soo goood to be back in the Building as Clipper Darrell."
Praise the LORD, for the LORD is good; sing to his name, for it is pleasant! (Psalm 135:3)
Praise the LORD! For it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting. (Psalm 147:1)Final Question
Are you a season ticket holder for that which matters most?
For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. (Psalm 84:10)
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