Jan 9 Devotional: Be Encouraged

Note: January is Steve's turn for the daily devotionals on the local radio station. If you're interested in sports and Christian faith but cannot tune in to CFMQ at 9:30 each morning, we'll post the text and a video version each day.

 Good morning, I'm the Rev Steve Page from St Patrick's Anglican Church, and you're listening to the Daily Devotional moment on CFMQ, sponsored by the Hudson Bay Ministerial.

This month, I'm drawing our images of Christian faith and spirituality from the wonderful and sometimes weird world of Sports.

Tonight is the championship game for American College Football. #1-ranked Louisiana State Tigers will battle second-ranked University of Alabama Crimson Tide, with the winner claiming this year's title of national champion.

Canada's Media Covets American News?

Two anecdotes today left me wondering if Canadian media is covering (and coveting) American stories more than homegrown ones.

1. Detailed coverage of US politics on CBC
2. More American (NFL) football on free-TV than Canadian;

First the politics. I awoke this morning to the CBC radio newscast. It dedicated 10-20% (I'm guessing; I didn't have my stopwatch ready) of its time to a political debate.

See, one political party occupies the nation's most powerful office. A political party NOT in this office is holding a long, protracted leadership contest. I could be talking about the Canadian NDP.

But the above description also applies south of the border, in the US. And it was that contest, the Republican party primaries in the US, not the Canadian NDP race, that occupied so much of CBC's time. Seems there was a leaders' debate in New Hampshire that we Canadians really needed to know about.

Did the last NDP leaders' debate garner so much time on the newscasts? (I don't know, I missed the news that day). And why the obsession with the Republican primaries? I can see a Canadian interest in the race for President of the US, what with the Most-Powerful-Human role the winner gets. But why the fascination with a foreign country's pre-race race?

Second the football. TV comes into our household via rabbit-ears. What we like to call "Boonie-Vision" - Free TV. We currently get 2 channels that way: crystal-clear CBC-TV and sometimes-clear-unless-it's-a-cloudy-day CTV.

I'm not aware of either station carrying a single Canadian football game over free-TV. Certainly not CBC. And CTV and cable-based TSN are owned by the same parent company, so it seems to me that all games went the pay-TV route.

Yet every minute of the American football playoffs, plus hours of pre- and post-game coverage, is available over free-CTV.

So here in the football hotbed of Saskatchewan, I can watch loads of NFL playoffs for free, but none of the beloved Roughriders, apparently.

Now, I can think of several reasons both the political and the football coverage was as it was. But what perplexes me is this:

In a land that struggles at times to articulate our own identity, where too often we define ourselves as "Not American," why the fascination and focus on American news and sports?

Devotional for Jan 6: It takes a Team

Note: January is Steve's turn for the daily devotionals on the local radio station. If you're interested in sports and Christian faith but cannot tune in to CFMQ at 9:30 each morning, we'll post the text and a video version each day.

 

Good morning, I'm the Rev Steve Page from St Patrick's Anglican Church, and you're listening to the Daily Devotional moment, sponsored by the Hudson Bay Ministerial.

This month, I'm drawing our images of Christian faith and spirituality from the wonderful and sometimes weird world of Sports.

Do you remember Bill Mosienko? He was a little before my time, but he played in the NHL back in the 50's. One night, in1952, he scored the fastest 3 goals in NHL history, a hat trick. 

Devotional for Jan 5: Things Fade, God Endures

Note: This month is Steve's turn for the daily devotionals on the local radio station. In case there is interest in the topic of sports and Christian faith among people who cannot tune in to CFMQ at 9:30 each morning, he will post the text and a link to a video version each day.

Good morning, I'm the Rev Steve Page from St Patrick's Anglican Church, and you're listening to the Daily Devotional moment, sponsored by the Hudson Bay Ministerial.

This month, I'm drawing our images of Christian faith and spirituality from the wonderful and sometimes weird world of Sports.

In the National Hockey League, the record for most consecutive games without a loss is held by the Philadelphia Flyers. Starting on October 14^th, 1979, they rattled off 35 straight games without a loss. They won 25 times, and tied another 10 – this was before the days of overtime and shootouts. It was a stunning streak, by a team that not only looked but for nearly 3 months actually was unbeatable. In fact, it still stands today as the longest unbeaten streak in any North American pro sports league.

Devotional for Jan 4: Don't Turn the Wrong Way

Note: This month is Steve's turn for the daily devotionals on the local radio station. In case there is interest in the topic of sports and Christian faith among people who cannot tune in to CFMQ at 9:30 each morning, he will post the text and a link to a video version each day.

 

Good morning, I'm the Rev Steve Page from St Patrick's Anglican Church, and you're listening to the Daily Devotional moment, sponsored by the Hudson Bay Ministerial.

This month, I'm drawing our images of Christian faith and spirituality from the world of Sports and athletics. Today, let's talk College Football.

I've always loved the Rose Bowl. It's a once-a-year spectacle of an event. The day starts with the Parade of Roses, with some of the most spectacular floats and marching bands you'll ever see. But the centrepiece of the day is the Rose Bowl itself, a battle between two of the best college football teams in the United States. This year's game featured the University of Oregon Ducks against the University of Wisconsin Badgers.

The Rose Bowl has a long and rich tradition; it's been around for a long time. In one game, more than 80 years ago, in the heat of the moment, one player turned the wrong way, and it led to disaster.

Devotional for Jan 3: Sports and Faith intro

Note: This month is Steve's turn for the daily devotionals on the local radio station. In case there is interest in the topic of sports and Christian faith among people who cannot tune in to CFMQ at 9:30 each morning, he will post the text and a link to a video version each day.

Good morning, I'm the Rev Steve Page from St Patrick's Anglican Church, and you're listening to the Daily Devotional moment, sponsored by the Hudson Bay Ministerial.

I don't know how many times, since I moved to Hudson Bay, that I have seen a grand idea shot down because of the popularity of local sports. Many times, a possible activity for children or parents or families has come up at our church leadership meetings, only to have someone deflate it by saying, “That will only work until hockey starts.” The implication being that nothing we do for church activities can compete against hockey.

So.. if you can't beat 'em, join 'em! Well, sort of.

The world of sport is about competition and winning and championships, and of course it's about lots more than that, too. And in the struggle, in the competition, in the sportsmanship, in the challenges overcome, we can find lots of lessons that will inspire our spiritual life, too.

Because the Bible does use sports and athletic imagery from time to time. It's by no means a sportscast; you don't look in the Bible to find out who won the Grey Cup in 800 BC or anything. But the apostle Paul, for example, uses the image of athletic competition in Philippians 3 when he says, “forgetting what is behind, and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Jesus Christ.” Or 1 Cor 9:24-27, when he compares the discipline and practice of an elite athlete to the spiritual disciplines necessary for a mature Christian life.

Recently, a teenage boy asked me if the Bible ever talked about hunting, which I suppose is another kind of sport. The first answer that came to my mind was the story of Jacob and Esau in Genesis 27. Now, the story is not about hunting, per se, but Esau's skills in bow-hunting are an important element of that narrative.

Join me this month, as we explore the Wide World of Sports – hockey, baseball, football, and more. If you miss a day, or if the sports fan in your life can't catch the devotionals on the radio, they will be available through the Anglican church office (call 3488) and I will also post them on YouTube.com each day, search for my username, PlaidEggnog.

Some of my inspiration comes from a book by John and Kathy Hillman, entitled “Devotions from the World of Sports” - a fine gift idea for the sports fan in need of a daily spiritual workout. We'll use these real-life sports moments to learn some lessons about how to grow in our faith and be better able to run the race that is before us.

After all, the Christian life is not a spectator-sport. God wants us to come down out of the bleachers, lace up our skates, grab a stick and get out on the ice, to live our faith actively, as part of his team. That's our challenge this month.

For St Patrick's Church, I'm Steve Page.

Coming Soon: Daily (Radio) Devotionals

I (Steve) will be commandeering the blog for the next month.

January is my turn to do the daily radio devotionals on Hudson Bay's local radio station (CFMQ 98.1 FM). My daily 5-minute thoughts use real-life sports events as a way of opening up a spiritual topic or Christian devotional thought.

Since this is a sports-mad town (and world?), but the devotional moments air at a time when many people will be at work or in school, I will post the text here each day.

And I will also include links to YouTube, where a video of the devotional will be uploaded.

Many of the stories, and some of the spiritual applications, will be inspired by 'Devotions from the Worldof Sports' by John and Kathy Hillman

Another resource for people looking to connect Sports and their Christian faith is my brother's blog, Living Up to my Name with frequent profiles of Christian athletes living out their faith.

I hope they will be enjoyable and helpful.

See you in January!