Top 12 Evangelical Christians in Sports Today

Even if you stay home on Sunday to watch football, skip Tuesday night prayer meeting for the baseball game of the week, and miss Saturday's church retreat in favor of a pro golf tournament--chances are, you'll still hear about Jesus. Evangelical athletes populate the major sports, and many of them enjoy the chance to be outspoken about their faith--thanking God for that winning field goal, late-inning home run, or 18-foot putt.

Last year, we scanned the sporting world to come up with a gallery of some of the most dominant athletes and coaches working today. We present our list again this year, with changes reflecting one football coach's retirement and one quarterback's reemergence. Each of these men and women work hard, as their Bibles tell them, "to win the prize," both in their sports and in their faith.

Top 12 Evangelical Christians in Sports check slide

The Sunday Sport Dilemma

 

Increasingly Sunday sport is becoming an issue for Christian children and parents. More and more sport is being organised for Sunday mornings and this causes a clash with the traditional time for church. It is a problem for parents and pastors alike who find themselves torn between prioritising children’s spiritual growth whilst at the same time encouraging them in the sport they are evidently passionate about. They walk a tight-rope of difficult decisions between on one hand having children who do lots of sport but have no concern for Christ, and on the other hand children sitting in church resenting it because it is taking them away from sport! Does reorganising church to fit around sport send the wrong signals? If Sunday sport is where we find all the children and parents who aren’t Christians isn’t it crazy to disengage from it? What about our spiritual growth as a family, shouldn’t we all be at church together, rather than alternating who takes our daughter/son to the game? These are tough questions, it is a tough dilemma.

A Business Analogy

I have found an analogy from business helpful when it comes to understanding this idea of a turning point.

Suppose our sales people are seeking a new customer. They work hard to build a relationship and create a desire for that customer to do business with us. That process can take a long time. But nothing is ultimately accomplished until a particular event occurs – we get an order or a contract. That transaction is the turning point. Then, of course, we work closely with the customer to meet his requirements.
Success involves three distinct phases: preparation, the transaction and fulfillment.
I noticed there were similar stages in my spiritual journey. Initially, there was a period of preparation during which God was drawing me to himself. He showed me kindness – his love – as when I met Wendy. He allowed difficulties. He brought me to the end of my own resources. But he had a goal in mind. It was to “complete a contract.” It was to bring me to a place where I could trust him and release myself to his care.
From that point a new and deeply committed relationship began. I can say he has done everything possible to fulfill the commitment he made to me when I committed to him.
Let me tell you why I'm sharing my story.
I want to help others come to that turning point.

 Business success involves three distinct phases: preparation, 

the transaction and fulfillment. 

I noticed there were similar stages in my spiritual journey.
~John Beckett

‘Can You Explain What You Believe?’ New Christian Film to Promote Bold Defense of Faith

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – An upcoming film that challenges Christians to boldly defend their faith is generating considerable attention four months prior to its release.

God’s Not Dead, scheduled for release on March 7^th, is a creation of Pure Flix Entertainment—an Arizona-based Christian movie company. Pure Flix Entertainment has produced a number of well-known films through the years, including The Wager and Sarah’s Choice.

Already, the trailer for Pure Flix Entertainment’s new God’s Not Dead project has received 5 million views, according to the movie company. The film’s website explains that the plot of God’s Not Dead will center on a college student who faces the task of standing up to his ardent atheistic professor.

“Josh Wheaton (Shane Harper), a freshman college student, enrolls in a philosophy class taught by an infamous and dictatorial professor,” the film synopsis says. “Dr. Radisson (Kevin Sorbo) demands that all of his students must sign a declaration that ‘God is dead’ in order to get a passing grade. Josh refuses. But, he needs to take this class to meet his academic requirements.”

The Treasure Within

 

Do you feel like you are lacking in life? Are you discontent with what you have? If you’re waiting for something good to happen in life or something to magically appear, then it’s best you know that it might not come. Not if you don’t know where to look for these things. If you think you can’t fulfill your dreams or do anything because you don’t have the right resources, the prophet has something to reveal to you.
“Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked, “You of little faith, why are you talking among yourselves about having no bread? Do you still not understand? Don’t you remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered?” Matthew 16:8-10
Everything that you need is already within you. The supply that you are going after is not outside yourself it is within. Most people look outside of themselves to find their treasure, not realizing that their treasure is on the inside of them. Once you discover that you will never want for anything another day of your life. That is by far one of the most revealing truths concerning you. Life is all about discovery and discovering God in you. There are things that I thought that I knew twenty years ago, that now I realize are really not as I thought. Supply happens when you tap into yourself and begin to recognize how valuable the gems and precious stones are on the inside of you.
Speak to a prophet and discover these gems within you. God’s Word for you awaits and is ready to reveal His plans for you.  Get your free written prophecy to know more about how to uncover the treasure inside of you. Imagine the things that you can do!

Christian Woman Pays for Man’s Groceries After He Steals Wallet

GUTHRIE, Okla. – A Christian woman from Oklahoma recently stunned a man who stole her wallet after she offered to pay for his groceries.
The situation happened earlier this month when Jessica Eaves, who serves as an outreach leader at First Christian Church of Guthrie, realized that her wallet was suddenly missing.
She had been shopping in her local grocery store and remembered seeing a man come up behind her. The next thing she knew, her wallet was missing from her purse.
However, instead of immediately calling the police, Eaves decided to do something bold: she tracked him down. But as she did so, an admonition from the Bible came to mind.

OK Woman Gives Thief Choice To Return Wallet, Offers Help

OK Woman Gives Thief Choice To Return Wallet, Offers Help

What My Wife Taught Me About Women and Power

Today is my wife’s birthday. She probably wouldn’t want you to know her age, but it’s the time it took the Israelites to get from the Red Sea to the Jordan River.
I still remember the first time I heard my now wife’s name, “Maria Hanna,” mentioned in conversation.
I had no idea how she would live up to her name.
Hannah, after all, was a weeping, trusting woman, who longed for the blessing of children…and who longed to see her children bless the Lord. Her faith brought about the prophetic voice (Samuel) through whom God would give us the house of David, the line of our Lord Jesus.
And “Maria,” of course, is the most renowned woman’s name in history, the name of our Christ’s mother. And I see much of the quiet, fearsome beauty the Lord praised in her also in the face of my bride.
Things didn’t turn out the way I planned my life. The Lord pulled me out of politics and rekindled a call to ministry. As husband and wife, we’ve lived together through some unbelievably happy (and one miserable) ministry experiences. We were together through infertility, miscarriages, adoptions, births and a lot more. Through it all she’s had the same quiet, gentle spirit.

Lecrae Featured in Billy Graham 'My Hope' Film

Billy Graham's "My Hope America" film "The Cross" will also feature stories from some of the biggest names in Christian music.

Former lead singer of the group "FlyLeaf" Lacey Sturm and Grammy-winning rap artist Lecrae share their testimonies in the 30-minute film.

CBN News spoke with Lecrae about being part of the historic event.

"Billy Graham is iconic, unwavering in the truth of the gospel and it's amazing to me how a man can stand firm for a very divisive and offensive truth such as the gospel and still be heralded around the world by believer and non believer alike," Lecrae said."I think it's a testament of God's grace and God is doing something amazing with him and has done something with him," he added.More than 25,000 churches have signed up to host "My Hope America" events, including some of the largest congregations in the country.

see video 

Churches Standing for Fatherless on Orphan Sunday

Thousands of churches across America observed Orphan Sunday last weekend. It's a day meant to encourage Christians to consider adopting.

The campaign is getting a public boost from Christian singer Steven Curtis Chapman. He and his wife, Mary Beth, adopted three little girls from China and lost one in a tragic accident.

The Chapman family has a ministry that offers guidance to people considering adoption. The ministry is called Show Hope, and it aims to help adoptive families face the unexpected challenges.

Jodi Jackson Tucker, the international director of Orphan Sunday, said adoption is one way Christians can care for needy children. Tucker has adopted five children.

"When you adopt a child, under the biblical view that is a covenant relationship that can never be broken," Tucker told the Associated Press.

To that end, she said it's important to make sure Christians adopt orphans for the right reason. And that reason is to offer them a committed, loving family.

Kerry Urges Nations to Fight Religious Persecution

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry marked "International Religious Freedom Day" by urging people and governments to speak out against religious persecution.

On Sunday, he said freedom of religion is a priority because it is essential to human dignity and individual liberty, and is "enshrined" in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The declaration states that people everywhere have the right to practice, teach, or even change their religion.

U.S. ambassador for International Religious Freedom Suzan Johnson Cook resigned earlier
see video

Machine Gun Preacher' Receives Mother Teresa Award

The movei

Most people know Sam Childers as "The Machine Gun Preacher."

Hollywood even produced a movie about how he rescued children from the clutches of the notorious Lord's Resistance Army.

Now, Childers is known for something else. In Mumbai, India, this week, he became the first American to win the Mother Teresa Award for Social Justice.

Childers said he will consider his life a success if he can do a fraction of the good work Mother Teresa did for humanity. He's off to a good start.

His ministry has already housed more than 1,000 South Sudanese orphan and feeds more than 4,000 children daily in neighboring Uganda.

Childers said he's now starting ministry work in India. 

see video

Kenyan pastors ask for guns amid Christian-Muslim violence

As attacks on Christians mount in Kenya’s coastal region, some evangelical pastors in Mombasa area no longer may be willing to turn the other cheek.

Worried about attacks against their churches and congregations, some pastors are asking for rifles to protect themselves from suspected Islamic extremists.

The violence intensified on Oct. 20 and 21, when two evangelical church pastors were killed inside their churches. Pastor Charles Mathole, 41, was killed Oct. 20 as he prayed inside his Vikwatani Redeemed Gospel Church. The following day, East African Pentecostal Church pastor Ibrahim Kithaka was found dead in Kilifi, about 35 miles north of Mombasa.

Christian leaders blame the attacks on increased radicalization of Muslim youth. The attacks have occurred amid protests by Muslims that they were being targeted in Nairobi’s war against terrorism.

“Our many churches are not under any protection. They do not have walls or gates. The government should issue AK-47 rifles to every church so that we can stop them from being burnt, our property from being looted and our pastors and Christians from being killed,” said Lambert Mbela, a pastor at Mathole’s church, during his funeral.

The Loaf of Time

How significant is what you do today?
I think of daily time like daily bread. Each one of us has a “loaf” of time, if you will. Each day consumes one slice, and the loaf becomes smaller as time passes. We eventually realize this, to our dismay, and it becomes so very important to use our given time wisely—to make our lives count for something meaningful.

    “What we do in life echoes in eternity!”
That’s what KingdomNomics is all about: knowing and experiencing the benefits of joyfully trading earthly, temporary gratification for something that will last forever.

The movie Gladiator opens with a scene in which the Roman General Maximus is getting his troops excited before they go into battle against barbarians in Germany. He rides his horse back and forth at the head of the line, and he shouts so that all his troops can hear him, “What we do in life echoes in eternity!”

This statement is true on every battlefield, whether in a deep forest with the Roman army or in the ordinary decisions you make in the course of each day. What happens here has eternal repercussions.

Sexting trend inspires new app to give back Oversight control to parents

The alarming Sexting trend among young people has prompted the Legacy Technology Group to create a new app that allows parents to monitor their children's smartphones.

The group's founder Damon Davis said Sexting - the texting of sexually explicit or graphic content - had become a dangerous phenomenon and a growing one after a recent FBI study revealed that one in five teenagers in the US with online access had sent or exchanged nude photos of themselves.

The material can end up being exchanged with others and posted on adult-orientated websites, with devastating consequences for the original sender.

Davis said parents needed to be aware of what their children were doing and how vulnerable they are to online predators and even their peers.

The Smart Shepherd app has been created with that in mind and allows parents to remotely monitor and control their children's online activity.

Parents can download the app onto their smartphones and use it to remotely monitor real-time activity on their children's phones, including incoming and outgoing calls, text messages, emails, social media activity, pictures and videos viewed, and all internet activity.