Hey Friends, Family and all you Spartan Fans out there!!
(Blogs a little long…hang in there, it builds I promise :))
Some would say that God doesn’t really care about things like sports. I sorta buy that. I mean there are Jesus lovers on both sides of the ball right? I’m sure there are people praying for their outcome on both sides, so does God answer sports prayers? Does one side pray harder?
I don’t think it works like that exactly, I don’t think its a plus minus – who prayed more – type of outcome. I DO think God cares about Me (And You) on an incredibly detailed individual level.He is so involved in us that he gives us things like sports to enjoy. I mean REALLY ENJOII! He filled this whole world with amazing color in every category, why not sports too?
Enter: Sports Miracles 😀 …I enjoy those a LOT.
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We’re sitting there in the sports bar, East Lansing Michigan, home of my beloved Spartans, on Michigan Day. The biggest sports day of the year. Im ALWAYS nervous for it, it doesn’t matter if we’re supposed to win or lose by 50. I’ve been there for the joyous wins, and heart wrenching losses (I wasn’t born 8 years ago like some spartan fans). And I’m Decked out. In everything Green. Hat – check. Screw Michigan Shirt – Check. Jersey – Check. Green boxers – check. Dad’s Spartan Tie – Check. Family Spartan Flag – worn as a cape – Check. No one in the building is more outwardly passionate.
And I ALWAYS BELIEVE that WE WILL WIN.
But the end of the game comes, both teams played well. I’ve jumped out of my chair more times than I can count by now, hugged the random guy 3 tables away multiple times…but also slammed my now bruised hand on the table numerous others. We’re on our last drive, this is it, we’re all on the edge of our seats. Into scoring territory – Then we get sacked…Ok. We still got this. Then an incomplete pass…twice. 4th and 19, yikes. A whole week /year of emotions rests on this (I know, Im obsessed). We miss a block, make a late throw…
Incomplete again.
Heart sinks. A lot. Everybody’s. I don’t have to explain it, you’ve all been there for your team. Our defense comes out, plays well, does there job, but there’s just not enough time. I hope, I believe it COULD happen, but I lost faith that it will.
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It reminds me of a time in the bible. (I know you’re all thinking don’t make this spiritual Jake) But for real, days after I’m thinking about this. Jesus is at the end of his 3 year mission. He has a solid following, including a particularly loyal, passionate 12. They come to Jerusalem. Jesus knows what’s up. He is going to die here. He’s told his disciples this. A few times. But they don’t really get this, at least not to the detail.
But would I believe it? Nope. I wouldn’t believe our football coach if he would have predicted this weekends detailed outcome.
Look at it from their prospective for once. They KNOW Jesus is gonna win. WIN BIG. They’ve already played out what they are gonna do when it happens. How it will happen. Maybe they shove it in the pharisees faces, or maybe just sit there and soak in it. They Believe, they really do, they’ve given up their entire life at a drop of a pin for it after all.
Jesus takes them in a room to celebrate Passover, but he’s disturbed. He says one of them is going to betray him. “Yea right, Jesus, we are literally the most passionate men in the world about you and God.” Later he takes them to a garden to pray, they were used to this, just like ever other time…so it seemed. They fall asleep…a lot. Meanwhile, Jesus is a wreck, he knows death is coming. His best friends can’t get the hint. He even thinks dodging it would be nice.
Then the guards come, they arrest Jesus. The disciples react – An ear is chopped off. Jesus heals it and tells the disciples to cool it, for some reason he’s the calmest. Disciples fire out jeers at the guards, it’s not right, this is a good guy. They think, “This can’t be, isn’t how it’s supposed to go. Jesus is supposed to WIN”….Positive pete says,”Maybe he’ll break loose, sneak away, or maybe we can sneak him away.”
Some disciples think that anyway, most scatter. #1 fan Peter follows closely, but denies that he’s Jesus’s buddy…3 times. Most loyal John also watches from a distance, in disbelief.
It’s looking more and more like the worst. Looking like 4th and 19.
Beatings, mockings, and suffering goes on. Jesus gets nailed to a cross. Even then the disciples think, “Ok, we got this, God is BIG, God can get him down…Jesus IS God, he can get himself down right?” They ask each other. Waiting for another humanly improbable but magnificent work of God. Waiting, Waiting, Hoping.
Nothing. Some say he’s dead, some say no way. Then the guards declare him dead.
“What?!? This is JESUS. He can’t DIE. What about all that saving the world stuff? Wasn’t he supposed to lead the charge, I even heard he was gonna over throw the romans. Dang Romans. Did he run out of miraculous acts that he couldn’t even pull one out for himself? What in the world have we been doing the last 3 years?” – moral drops.
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Back to the sports bar – spartan fans everywhere are asking for the bill, gathering their things, thinking of what they’ll say to their U of M neighbor. Heart broken, I’m getting ready to shake the “other schools” fans hands and say good game. We droop our heads to toward the TV screen. 10 seconds left… “man, we were so close, almost had it. This would have been such a HUGE win.”
Then this….(MUST WATCH TO CONTINUE READING 
)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dqv48MwEbaQ
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!! GOOO GREEEENNNN!!!!!!! GOOO WHITE!!!!
FLOATING
There are no other words to describe what the next couple minutes were like. Maybe you experienced it yourself. The football team, the 50,000 spartan students, the Millions of fans, Even well articulated Dantonio is Dazed…No body’s feet touched the ground for at least 5 minutes. No body knew what was going on, no body had ever experienced anything remotely close to this before. Not really sure how to react to the magnitude of this miracle…floating is good.
We were left in dream. I pinched myself (serious) multiple times, even had a buddy try it out. I flew around the room, hugged everybody and anybody, danced on tables, Led every MSU cheer I could think of, tried to cry…to excited, got kissed by a 70 year old lady, ran out into traffic, a thousand high fives, a thousand hugs, a thousand Go Greens, went to the Cedar Village – did our thing there for a while, bought Hot ‘N’ Ready’s, and re watched every highlight we could find. In the end all we could muster up was…
“Did that REALLY just happen????”
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So imagine the disciples, their master is Dead. Game is over. And then 3 days later the universe was changed forever. Jesus rose from the dead. Can you imagine the FLOATING that must of gone on? News traveled much slower back then, but still Jesus appeared to 500 people afterwards, more heard via word of mouth. 1000’s of Jesus Fans flying through the streets like “WE WON!!! WOW WOW WOW! JESUS WON!!!” Singing every God song/chant they know.
“Did that REALLY just happen?”
I wish I had a highlight video to show you, it would of put our MSU miracle celebration to shame. You can read about the highlights in the bible though, Mark 14-16.
There are differences for sure. For us this was a GAME, we will play the school down the road next year, but for them this was LIFE. This literally changed EVERYTHING. Jesus didn’t have to re-die, re-resurrect. One and done baby 🙂 In the most miraculous shift of emotion in History Christianity was born. Death was knocked out, Abundant Life given to every one who believes in Jesus, for today and for the rest of eternity.
Yea, it REALLY happened 🙂
I have celebrated our miracle MSU win for a LONG time. I wore only MSU gear 12 straight days. My voice is still gone – 3 days later. The MSU miracle opens my eyes up to just how big the Jesus miracle really is. How unlikely it really was. But while I’ll always celebrate this win, I won’t do so nearly as often or to the intensity that I celebrate the Jesus miracle Everyday.
And let me tell you, if you can’t tell already….Celebrating is a real JOY 🙂
Go Green! And God Bless!
Jake
