Sports Spectrum - Football Sunday 2020 edition

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SPORTS SPECTRUM

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SPORTS SPECTRUM

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CONTENTS 2 — By the Numbers Leaders, records and... food consumption 4 — Super Bowl History Scores, locations and MVPs from previous games 5 — Fun Facts: Miami What you need to know about the host city 6 — Developing Through Disappointment Tests and trials throughout their lives have shaped Benjamin & Kirsten Watson into the obedient Christ-followers God desires them to be

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10 — Patiently Clinging to Hope As Nate & Lexi Solder watch their 4-year-old son, Hudson, battle cancer, they hold on to their faith in a loving and all-powerful God

Prince Amukamara (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast) Benjamin Watson (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) Nate Solder (Jeff Haynes/AP Images for Panini)

14 — A Prince Serving His King Prince Amukamara experienced an encounter with Christ in college, and as his faith has grown during his time in the NFL, he’s developed a passion to share God’s love and serve others

VP OF MINISTRY OPERATIONS Howard Haworth

18 — Hunting for Freedom L.A. Chargers tight end Hunter Henry has long had a heart for those subject to slavery, so he joined International Justice Mission’s Team Freedom to help end it in our lifetime 22 — The Genesis of Football Sunday A quarterback’s idea is now a worldwide movement centered around the Super Bowl 26 — Increase Devotionals 3 weeks of devotionals from professional athletes & chaplains 32 — Gospel Message You can know Christ personally

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SPORTS SPECTRUM

PUBLISHER Sports Spectrum Media PRESIDENT Steve Stenstrom

MANAGING EDITOR Jon Ackerman jon@sportsspectrum.com ART DIRECTOR Aaron Dean Sauer aaron@sportsspectrum.com ASSISTANT EDITOR Becky York CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Joshua Doering Kevin Mercer Joshua Pease PODCAST HOST/PRODUCER Jason Romano BUSINESS OPERATIONS Jacob House Tricia Hudson COPY EDITOR Lori Stenstrom

Sports Spectrum Global is a multimedia ministry with the purpose to impact people by connecting faith and sports in a relevant way, ultimately directing people, with resources for discipleship, toward a personal, loving God who demands Christ-centered lives. Printed in USA. Copyright© 2020 by Sports Spectrum Media. Bible quotations, unless otherwise noted, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright© 1973, 1978, 1984, International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers.

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SUPER BOWL BY THE NUMBERS

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MOST GAME MVPS TOM BRADY

Steelers (6-2) & Patriots (6-5)

11 Patriots (6-5)

MOST APPEARANCES

6

FEWEST APPEARANCES

0

Browns, Lions, Texans, Jaguars

MOST TACKLES 33 - Rodney Harrison

MOST SACKS 5 - L.C. Greenwood 2

SPORTS SPECTRUM

MOST TOUCHDOWNS 18 - TOM BRADY, PASSING

5 - EMMITT SMITH, RUSHING 8 - JERRY RICE, RECEIVING

MOST YARDS

2,838

TOM BRADY, PASSING

354 - FRANCO HARRIS, RUSHING 589 - JERRY RICE, RECEIVING

MOST WINS FOR A STARTING QB

TOM BRADY

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MOST INTERCEPTIONS

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LARRY BROWN ROD MARTIN CHUCK HOWLEY

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AP Photo/Winslow Getty Images/ Patrick Smith, Getty Images/Focus On Sport

MOST SUPER BOWL WINS

SUPER BOWL BY THE NUMBERS

SUPER BOWL SINGLE-GAME RECORDS:

505 - Most passing yards, Tom Brady (LII) 6 - Most passing TDs, Steve Young (XXIX) 204 - Most rushing yards, Timmy Smith (XXII) 3 - Most rushing TDs, Terrell Davis (XXXII) 215 - Most receiving yards, Jerry Rice (XXIII) 3 - Most receiving TDs, Jerry Rice (XXIX, XXIV)

FOOD

SUPER BOWL SUNDAY IS THE

2ND-HIGHEST FOOD CONSUMPTION DAY IN THE U.S. (AFTER THANKSGIVING)

1.5

50,000

$

MILLION

PIZZAS DELIVERED LAST YEAR ON SB SUNDAY BY PIZZA HUT

Cost to make the Lombardi Trophy, which weighs 7 pounds

(THE OFFICIAL PIZZA SPONSOR OF THE NFL)

1.38 BILLION

CHICKEN WINGS EATEN LAST YEAR ON SUPER BOWL SUNDAY

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MILLION

PEOPLE WHO PLANNED TO SKIP WORK LAST YEAR ON “SUPER SICK MONDAY” www.sportsspectrum.com

SPORTS SPECTRUM

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*All stats through 2019

LOCATION

FINAL SCORE

GAME MVP

Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Orange Bowl (Miami) Orange Bowl (Miami) Tulane Stadium (New Orleans) Orange Bowl (Miami) Tulane Stadium (New Orleans) Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Rice Stadium (Houston) Tulane Stadium (New Orleans) Orange Bowl (Miami) Rose Bowl (Pasadena, CA) Superdome (New Orleans) Orange Bowl (Miami) Rose Bowl (Pasadena, CA) Superdome (New Orleans) Silverdome (Pontiac, MI) Rose Bowl (Pasadena, CA) Tampa (FL) Stadium Stanford (CA) Stadium Superdome (New Orleans) Rose Bowl (Pasadena, CA) Jack Murphy Stadium (San Diego) Joe Robbie Stadium (Miami) Superdome (New Orleans) Tampa (FL) Stadium Metrodome (Minneapolis) Rose Bowl (Pasadena, CA) Georgia Dome (Atlanta) Joe Robbie Stadium (Miami) Sun Devil Stadium (Tempe, AZ) Superdome (New Orleans) Qualcomm Stadium (San Diego) Pro Player Stadium (Miami) Georgia Dome (Atlanta) Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, FL) Superdome (New Orleans) Qualcomm Stadium (San Diego) Reliant Stadium (Houston) Alltel Stadium (Jacksonville, FL) Ford Field (Detroit) Dolphin Stadium (Miami) University of Phoenix Stadium (AZ) Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, FL) Sun Life Stadium (Miami) Cowboys Stadium (Arlington, TX) Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis) Mercedes-Benz Superdome (N.O.) MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, N.J.) University of Phoenix Stadium (AZ) Levi’s Stadium (Santa Clara, CA) NRG Stadium (Houston) U.S. Bank Stadium (Minneapolis) Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta)

Green Bay 35, Kansas City 10 Green Bay 33, Oakland 14 N.Y. Jets 16, Baltimore 7 Kansas City 23, Minnesota 7 Baltimore 16, Dallas 13 Dallas 24, Miami 3 Miami 14, Washington 7 Miami 24, Minnesota 7 Pittsburgh 16, Minnesota 6 Pittsburgh 21, Dallas 17 Oakland 32, Minnesota 14 Dallas 27, Denver 10 Pittsburgh 35, Dallas 31 Pittsburgh 31, L.A. Rams 19 Oakland 27, Philadelphia 10 San Francisco 26, Cincinnati 21 Washington 27, Miami 17 L.A. Raiders 38, Washington 9 San Francisco 38, Miami 16 Chicago 46, New England 10 N.Y. Giants 39, Denver 20 Washington 42, Denver 10 San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16 San Francisco 55, Denver 10 N.Y. Giants 20, Buffalo 19 Washington 37, Buffalo 24 Dallas 52, Buffalo 17 Dallas 30, Buffalo 13 San Francisco 49, San Diego 26 Dallas 27, Pittsburgh 17 Green Bay 35, New England 21 Denver 31, Green Bay 24 Denver 34, Atlanta 19 St. Louis 23, Tennessee 16 Baltimore 34, N.Y. Giants 7 New England 20, St. Louis 17 Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21 New England 32, Carolina 29 New England 24, Philadelphia 21 Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10 Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17 N.Y. Giants 17, New England 14 Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23 New Orleans 31, Indianapolis 17 Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25 N.Y. Giants 21, New England 17 Baltimore 34, San Francisco 31 Seattle 43, Denver 8 New England 28, Seattle 24 Denver 24, Carolina 10 New England 34, Atlanta 28 Philadelphia 41, New England 33 New England 13, L.A. Rams 3

Bart Starr, QB, Green Bay Bart Starr, QB, Green Bay Joe Namath, QB, New York Len Dawson, QB, Kansas City Chuck Howley, LB, Dallas Roger Staubach, QB, Dallas Jake Scott, S, Miami Larry Csonka, FB, Miami Franco Harris, RB, Pittsburgh Lynn Swann, WR, Pittsburgh Fred Biletnikoff, WR, Oakland Harvey Martin & Randy White, DL, Dallas Terry Bradshaw, QB, Pittsburgh Terry Bradshaw, QB, Pittsburgh Jim Plunkett, QB, Oakland Joe Montana, QB, San Francisco John Riggins, RB, Washington Marcus Allen, RB, Los Angeles Joe Montana, QB, San Francisco Richard Dent, DE, Chicago Phil Simms, QB, New York Doug Williams, QB, Washington Jerry Rice, WR, San Francisco Joe Montana, QB, San Francisco Ottis Anderson, RB, New York Mark Rypien, QB, Washington Troy Aikman, QB, Dallas Emmitt Smith, RB, Dallas Steve Young, QB, San Francisco Larry Brown, CB, Dallas Desmond Howard, KR, Green Bay Terrell Davis, RB, Denver John Elway, QB, Denver Kurt Warner, QB, St. Louis Ray Lewis, LB, Baltimore Tom Brady, QB, New England Dexter Jackson, CB, Tampa Bay Tom Brady, QB, New England Deion Branch, WR, New England Hines Ward, WR, Pittsburgh Peyton Manning, QB, Indianapolis Eli Manning, QB, New York Santonio Holmes, WR, Pittsburgh Drew Brees, QB, New Orleans Aaron Rodgers, QB, Green Bay Eli Manning, QB, New York Joe Flacco, QB, Baltimore Malcolm Smith, LB, Seattle Tom Brady, QB, New England Von Miller, LB, Denver Tom Brady, QB, New England Nick Foles, QB, Philadelphia Julian Edelman, WR, New England

SUPER BOWL HISTORY

DATE

Jan. 15, 1967 I Jan. 14, 1968 II Jan. 12, 1969 III Jan. 11, 1970 IV Jan. 17, 1971 V Jan. 16, 1972 VI Jan. 14, 1973 VII Jan. 13, 1974 VIII Jan. 12, 1975 IX Jan. 18, 1976 X Jan. 9, 1977 XI Jan. 15, 1978 XII Jan. 21, 1979 XIII Jan. 20, 1980 XIV Jan. 25, 1981 XV Jan. 24, 1982 XVI Jan. 30, 1983 XVII Jan. 22, 1984 XVIII Jan. 20, 1985 XIX Jan. 26, 1986 XX Jan. 25, 1987 XXI Jan. 31, 1988 XXII Jan. 22, 1989 XXIII Jan. 28, 1990 XXIV Jan. 27, 1991 XXV Jan. 26, 1992 XXVI Jan. 31, 1993 XXVII

Jan. 30, 1994 XXVIII Jan. 29, 1995 XXIX Jan. 28, 1996 XXX Jan. 26, 1997 XXXI Jan. 25, 1998 XXXII

Jan. 31, 1999 XXXIII

Jan. 30, 2000 XXXIV Jan. 28, 2001 XXXV

Feb. 3, 2002 XXXVI

Jan. 26, 2003 XXXVII

Feb. 1, 2004 XXXVIII

Feb. 6, 2005 XXXIX Feb. 5, 2006 XL Feb. 4, 2007 XLI Feb. 3, 2008 XLII Feb. 1, 2009 XLIII Feb. 7, 2010 XLIV Feb. 6, 2011 XLV Feb. 5, 2012 XLVI Feb. 3, 2013 XLVII

Feb. 2, 2014 XLVIII Feb. 1, 2015 XLIX Feb. 7, 2016 50 Feb. 5, 2017 LI S SPECTRUM 4 4, 2018 LII S P O R TFeb. Feb. 3, 2019 LIII

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AP Photo/Alan Diaz

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FB S | BE N J AM I N WAT S O N

DEVELOPING THROUGH

DISAPPOINTMENT

BY KEVIN MERCER

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AP Photo/Matt Rourke, Elise Amendola

Tests and trials throughout their lives have shaped Benjamin and Kirsten Watson into the obedient Christfollowers God desires them to be.

FBS | BEN J AM IN WAT S O N

“THE MORE I LET HIM TELL THE STORY WITH MY LIFE, THE MORE I SEE THINGS AND CAN AUTOMATICALLY GO TO TRUTH — EVEN IF IT DOESN’T LOOK HOW I WANT IT TO LOOK. I CAN SAY, ‘OK GOD, I’M TRUSTING. BECAUSE YOU HAVE SHOWN ME THAT YOU HAVE Benjamin and Kirsten Watson filming for Football Sunday 2020.

rom the outside, life for Benjamin Watson and his wife, Kirsten, appears idyllic. Benjamin has been an NFL tight end since 2004, the couple has seven energetic children and their name garners respect everywhere they go.

Benjamin and Kirsten are also both followers of Christ and have been for years.

Benjamin’s parents even remember when he wanted to be a missionary, or a football player, when he grew up. Yet it has been through a series of unmet expectations and heartbreak that the Watsons have experienced the greatest joy possible: a deeper, more satisfying and transformative relationship with God.

AP Photo/Steven Senne

o much of who the Watsons are is tied up in Benjamin’s job in the NFL. It’s the reason the family has moved so often and why Benjamin isn’t home much on Sundays in the fall.

But in March 2018, the couple’s deepest despair came not on a football field but in an ultrasound room.

Kirsten remembers the words of the doctor as she and Benjamin anticipated becoming parents again: “The baby is not growing. There’s no heartbeat.”

It had been the couple’s second

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BEEN FAITHFUL AND YOU HAVE LOVED ME AND YOU HAVE BEEN THERE AND HAVE NEVER FORSAKEN ME.’” — KIRSTEN WATSON

miscarriage in four months. They had both felt God’s call to expand their family, but twice were met only with grief.

“I felt isolated and I felt alone, and I just didn’t know what to do,” Kirsten said in her interview for Football Sunday. “I didn’t know what to tell people to do to make me feel better, because I was just angry.”

The couple knew the truth. They knew God loved them. But they couldn’t understand why they had to endure such tragedy when all they tried to do was be obedient. Benjamin felt helpless to take away his wife’s pain while dealing with his own.

Yet that July, only a few months after the miscarriages, Kirsten became pregnant again. The Watsons made it through the beginning stages of pregnancy as nervous wrecks, all too aware of what could lie ahead. Kirsten couldn’t even look at the ultrasound when she was given the news.

Only this time, it was good. She would be having two healthy identical twin boys. “[It was] like God saying, ‘I do love you, Kirsten,’” she said. “‘And you were right that your family wasn’t finished, so that was from Me, that you weren’t settled with five. And the journey didn’t look like you thought it would.’”

The Watsons can’t imagine life without their twins. They now make space for seven kids, not five, and they couldn’t be happier.

Even so, they realized that new

blessings don’t heal old scars, and probably never will. In all the excitement, Kirsten turned to Benjamin.

“I remember saying, ‘I still miss my other two.’”

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FB S | BE N J AM I N WATS O N

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The 2018 season was supposed to be Benjamin’s last, and he intended to keep his word. During his retirement, his doctor prescribed him a testosterone supplement to assist in healing from his long football career.

But Benjamin developed a nagging itch to play again, and he soon received word that the testosterone supplement caused him to fail a drug test. Now he had a decision to make: either stay retired and the test wouldn’t become public, or return and face a four-game suspension.

Benjamin decided to play.

He drafted a letter to explain the situation, sent it out before the NFL released the news and prayed for the best.

“The response was overwhelming,” Benjamin said. “It’s like people understood.”

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AP Photo/Brad Penner

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“Crushed. Really crushed,” Benjamin said. “Because in my head, I had this awesome story: ‘I had appendicitis, God healed me, I came back in the NFC championship, caught the winning touchdown,’ you know? I was going to be a Christian sensation. That’s how my mind was rolling.”

He stood on the sideline as his team fell 26-23 in overtime. Late in regulation, a flag wasn’t thrown when a Rams defensive back interfered on a crucial third-down play deep in Rams territory. Had the Saints won, Benjamin would have been able to play in the Super Bowl.

“That just doubled the disappointment,” Benjamin said, “and for a month afterward, I thought I was in a dream or a nightmare of some sort.”

AP Photos/Bruce Kluckhohn

isappointment is nothing new to the Watsons. It’s been a part of their story ever since the New England Patriots drafted Benjamin out of Georgia with the last pick of the first round in 2004.

Benjamin and Kirsten didn’t marry until 2005, but Benjamin had to pack up and head north. Life in New England came as a culture shock to Benjamin, who is from South Carolina.

And almost as soon as Benjamin had tasted NFL football, he was forced out. In the opening game of the season against Indianapolis, Watson exited in the third quarter with a season-ending ACL injury.

In his absence, the Patriots posted a 14-2 record and a 24-21 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl.

Watson received a ring, but he didn’t feel like a champ. He felt distant from the team and from his supporters back home.

“I just felt really far away,” Benjamin said in his interview for Football Sunday. “I felt really alone and I felt like I let a lot of people down.”

Watson said it would take years to rid himself of that feeling — ­ what he called a lie from the enemy. Eventually, by God’s grace, Watson overcame much of the selfdoubt. He began to appreciate the title of Super Bowl champion that no one, not even the enemy, could take away.

Watson played with the Patriots until 2009, then spent three years in Cleveland, three in New Orleans, two in Baltimore and finally headed back to New Orleans. It was there that a chance to play in another Super Bowl narrowly eluded his grasp.

As the Saints prepared for the NFC championship game against the Los Angeles Rams last season, Benjamin was dealing with a pain in his abdomen that grew worse by the day. Of all the weeks, this was the one in which he endured acute appendicitis.

Benjamin and Kirsten, their family and friends all prayed for a quick recovery, and Benjamin was placed on antibiotics. To everyone’s surprise, the antibiotics worked, his appendix healed, and Benjamin was back at Saints practice. Yet due to missing the first two practice days, Benjamin was informed that he would not play. He pleaded his case to everyone, to no avail.

The coaches had made a decision.

FBS | BENJ AMIN WAT S O N

“THE GOOD THAT GOD HAS FOR ME AND FOR US IS ALWAYS GOOD. LIKE, THAT’S A PROMISE. IT MIGHT NOT ALWAYS BE PLEASANT AT THE TIME, BUT THE GOAL IS NOT ALWAYS TO BE PLEASANT OR HAPPY, THE GOAL IS TO BE HOLY, AND THAT’S WHAT HE’S TRYING TO DO.” — BENJAMIN WATSON

AP Photo/Steven Senne

Yet again, Benjamin saw God at work in disappointment. After his suspension and aside from a week in which he was cut, Benjamin has spent the 2019 season where it all began — back in New England.

He desires them to be. Kirsten summed it up: “The more I let Him tell the story with my life, the more I see things and can automatically go to truth — even if it doesn’t look how I want it to look.

I can say, ‘OK God, I’m trusting. Because You have shown me that You have been faithful and You have loved me and You have been there and have never here have been other disappointments for forsaken me, and because of that, I can walk through the Watsons, like when Benjamin was twice this and be real, but I can walk through it and know nominated for the Walter Payton Man of that You are there.’” the Year Award (in 2015 with the Saints and Benjamin and Kirsten Watson have learned to count 2017 with the Ravens) for his and Kirsten’s it all joy, even in the trials (James 1:2-3), even in the vast charitable work, but didn’t win either unanswered questions. They’ve learned to rest in God. time. Or when they had to uproot their lives, move to “The good that God has for me and for us is always a new city and join a new team not once but six times good. Like, that’s a promise,” Benjamin said. “It might in 16 years. not always be pleasant at the time, but the goal is not Yet God has used disappointment after always to be pleasant or happy. The goal is to be holy, disappointment to grow the Watsons into the people and that’s what He’s trying to do.” www.sportsspectrum.com

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F BS | N AT E SOL D ER

PATIENTLY CLINGING TO

HOPE

BY JOSHUA PEASE

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AP Photo/Jeff Haynes, Elise Amendola

As Nate and Lexi Solder watch their 4-year-old son, Hudson, battle cancer, they hold on to their faith in a loving and all-powerful God.

FBS | N AT E S O L D E R

“YOU PRAY FOR AN OAK TREE, YOU PRAY THESE BIG, GRAND PRAYERS … AND THEN GOD GIVES YOU AN ACORN. IT’S NOT WHAT YOU EXPECTED, AND IT MIGHT NOT EVEN SEEM LIKE AN ANSWER TO PRAYER, BUT OVER TIME THAT ACORN Nate and Lexi Solder filming for Football Sunday 2020.

AP Photo/Brad Penner

ate Solder is good at keeping quarterbacks safe.

He was drafted 17th overall in the 2011 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots, where he spent seven years and won two Super Bowls. In 2018, Solder became the NFL’s highest-paid offensive lineman when he signed a four-year, $62 million contract with the New York Giants. Tom Brady, arguably the best quarterback of alltime and whom Solder protected in New England, once said of his left tackle, “I love the guy … He’s a very quiet, humble person who wants to do a great job every day. He means a lot to me and this team.”

But the moment Solder’s son, Hudson, was born, he realized he had a new, more challenging assignment: keeping his newborn safe.

“I wanted to be [at his birth] for every detail,” Solder said in his interview for Football Sunday. “I was crying more than [my wife] Lexi was crying. And after he’s born, Lexi is doing skin to skin … and we’re looking at each other like, ‘Now what do we do?’ Newborns seem so fragile and small. I had to ask the nurse to show me how to change a diaper.”

Hudson was born in 2015, right as Nate and Lexi were feeling stable for the first time as a married couple. The Patriots had just picked up Nate’s two-

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GROWS, AND YOU KNOW YOU JUST HAVE TO BE PATIENT. THAT’S WHAT WE’RE TRYING TO DO.” — LEXI SOLDER

year extension, and Nate and Lexi’s life together was going according to plan.

But in Week 5 that year against the Dallas Cowboys, Nate tore his bicep.

“He missed a couple snaps in college, but never missed time for injuries,” Lexi said in her interview for Football Sunday.

“That was new and scary for us. He went on injured reserve and had surgery … And that week we were giving Hudson a bath, and Nate said, ‘This feels weird.’ There was a lump on [Hudson’s] right side.”

Nate and Lexi took Hudson to their friend and pediatrician that Saturday.

She told them it wasn’t anything to worry about, but to have it checked out after the weekend.

“Then Monday morning, we get a call from our pediatrician first thing in the morning,” Lexi remembered. “She told us, ‘I didn’t want to make you nervous, I didn’t want to scare you, but there’s nothing I could do on a Saturday evening. But I do think it’s something serious and I think you should go to Boston because if it were my kids, that’s where I would want to go. I want him to have an ultrasound today.’”

After a battery of tests, the radiologist told them the news: 3-month-old Hudson had tumors in both of his kidneys.

“I started balling, crying,” Nate remembered. “I felt guilty, like I screwed up. I was supposed to protect him and I

couldn’t. And [Hudson’s] in the back seat of our car cooing and laughing and stuff and … he has no idea what he’s going to have to go through.”

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F BS | N AT E SOL D E R

s his son’s first round of chemotherapy began, Nate was reminded of the Biblical account of Abraham. “If God asks me to sacrifice my son,” Nate remembered thinking, “I would rather You take me and I burn in hell than sacrifice my son … I still feel that way, to be honest.”

Hudson was diagnosed with Wilms tumor, an extremely uncommon kidney cancer usually found in young children. Wilms normally develops in only one kidney. Hudson had it in both.

“When he was diagnosed, they said his kidneys were the size of pears,” Lexi said. “In a 3-month-old, they’re supposed to be the size of peanuts. On his first MRI, you basically couldn’t see healthy kidney tissue — just one big tumor.”

Hudson’s initial treatment plan was supposed to last 19 weeks. His first round of chemo went a full year.

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SPORTS SPECTRUM

The tumors shrunk rapidly, but after going off chemo, one of the tumors started to grow again, leading to another year of chemo. What was originally supposed to consist of 16 chemotherapy treatments stretched to 49.

“I can’t stand … people who say, ‘This is for good,’” Nate says. “You can’t tell me there’s anything good about [what’s happening to my son]. I was not happy, not OK; it is not good ... Good can come from it because God is all-powerful and is loving, but [cancer] is not good. Not all things are good.”

The Solder family’s struggles are mirrored throughout the Bible, specifically in the book of Job, where an innocent man endures a string of tragedies. All the while, his wife and friends tell him God is punishing him for some sin. The book is, in other words, about the question, “Why do bad things happen to people who don’t deserve them?” w w w. f o o t b a l l s u n d a y. c o m

AP Photo/Seth Wenig

Son Husdon (left), daughter Charlie (middle) and Nate (right) on the field in August 2018.

FBS | N AT E S O L D E R

It’s a question Nate found himself asking a lot.

“All my life I’ve been the guy who makes right decisions,” Nate says. “‘Stay away from drinking and drugs, do your homework.’ And I was always the guy who did that. I would get A’s in all my classes because I would work so hard at it, and I would be on time to all my meetings in football and I was the good guy … And I was in charge of all my outcomes because I put out the right sort of outputs. You know what I mean?

“The world sells that … if you just have the right positive mindset, anything is possible. You know what? That’s a crock of crap because, trust me, when your son is diagnosed with cancer, you know that’s not because of any choices or decisions that you made. That’s God’s free will to do whatever He likes with whoever He wants to.”

Nate has also dealt with cancer himself.

Doctors found testicular cancer in 2014 after a routine physical, which led to a removal of the testicle. This past June, Nate was told he no longer needed to undergo scans.

Through the health scares, Nate and Lexi have learned to take life one day at a time. They also aspire to do as much good as possible for the world around them.

Currently they are investing a large portion of Nate’s salary toward funding Compassion International’s efforts to help children around the world who are trapped in poverty.

Meanwhile, after a recent MRI showed signs of a potential growth, Hudson is facing the possibility of resuming chemotherapy after a year-and-a-half break.

More surgeries might be in his future. In all of this, Lexi and Nate are continuing to trust that God is in control, and that He is bringing good out of Hudson’s sickness.

“I was on the phone with my chaplain [shortly after I first learned] about Hudson,” Nate remembers. “And I’m sitting in the hospital and … he said, ‘One day we’ll be sitting in the back of a church, and [Hudson will] be singing up on stage, and we’ll be crying and thinking it’s only because of God that he’s here.’ That was a great, hopeful message to me. That was awesome. That was something I could cling to and hold onto, that when this is all over this will be a great testimony [for Hudson] to share.”

Says Lexi, “I heard someone say once, ‘You pray for an oak tree, you pray these big, grand prayers … and then God gives you an acorn.’ It’s not what you expected, and it might not even seem like an answer to prayer, but over time that acorn grows, and you know you just have to be patient.

That’s what we’re trying to do right now.”

“GOOD CAN COME FROM IT BECAUSE GOD IS ALLPOWERFUL AND IS LOVING, BUT [CANCER] IS NOT GOOD. NOT ALL THINGS ARE GOOD.”

AP Photo/Winslow Townson

— NATE SOLDER

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F BS | PR I N C E AM U KA MARA

A PRINCE SERVIING HIS

KING

BY JO S HUA DOERING

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AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast, Jim Mone

Prince Amukamara experienced an encounter with Christ in college, and as his faith has grown during his time in the NFL, he’s developed a passion to share God’s love and serve others

FBS | PRINC E AMUKAM AR A

“WE’RE JUST AVENUES, WE’RE JUST VESSELS. GOD IS ALWAYS JUST TRYING TO DO THINGS THROUGH US TO EITHER REACH SOMEBODY OR PICK SOMEONE’S HEAD UP. OR SOMEONE MIGHT BE BLIND AND NOW YOU CAN HELP SPEAK TRUTH INTO THEIR LIFE AND HELP THEM SEE.” — PRINCE AMUKAMARA Prince Amukamara filming for Football Sunday 2020.

AP Photo/Brad Penner

cott Kerr convinced Chicago Bears cornerback Prince Amukamara — then a freshman at Apollo High School in Glendale, Ariz. — to come to a Fellowship of Christian Athletes meeting using one of the most effective tactics for convincing a high schooler to do anything: food. “[Kerr] probably said something about Jesus, but all I heard was ‘Krispy Kreme donuts and Tropicana orange juice for breakfast,’” Amukamara said in his interview for Football Sunday. “That was a great breakfast to me, and that was a motivating factor to get me to the gymnasium on Thursday [for FCA].”

The invitation from Kerr, who was one of Amukamara’s football coaches at Apollo, led to Amukamara regularly attending FCA meetings, and eventually going to an FCA camp at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff.

Going into that camp he had one goal in mind: Impress the college coaches that were there. “I’m thinking, ‘OK, I’m here to showcase my talent as a 15-year-old and hopefully get on the radar to get a football scholarship,’” Amukamara said.

Little did he know that something much more important would take place.

It was at that FCA camp in Flagstaff that Amukamara was introduced to the idea of the Gospel being good news rather

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than a set of rules.

Not everything clicked right away, though. Amukamara said one of the things they would say as they broke the huddle at the camp was “for His glory.”

At first, he didn’t understand what it meant and was confused about who the “His” referred to.

On one of the last nights of the camp, a speaker talked about the Gospel and the work God had already done. For Amukamara, the idea of Jesus carrying the burden on his behalf, rather than Amukamara having to carry it himself, was life-altering.

It all came together when a clip from “Passion of the Christ” was played, in which the scene showed Jesus being beaten and whipped leading up to his crucifixion. The speaker gave an altar call that night and Amukamara answered it.

dad, Romanus, is chief of the village, making Amukamara a literal prince.

“Both of my parents really loved God and served God,” Amukamara said. “But for some reason, one thing I pulled from that was rules and obedience, and so I kind of formed my own religion.”

mukamara grew up in the Catholic church with his five sisters: Princess, Precious, Promise, Peace and Passionate.

His great-grandfather on his dad’s side was the king of the Awo-Omamma village in Nigeria, the country where both of Amukamara’s parents were born. His mom, Christy, competed for Nigeria as a sprinter in the 1984 Olympics and his

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FBS | P R I N C E AM UKAMARA

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Unfortunately, that trip to the postseason did not last as long as Amukamara’s previous one with the Giants did; the Bears fell to the Eagles in the wildcard round. ince joining the Bears, Amukamara has partnered with Hillsong Church NYC pastor Darnell Barrett to form the Others Foundation, whose goal is to provide hope through serving those in need. That objective is accomplished in a variety of ways, from free youth football camps to community giveaways at Thanksgiving and Christmas.

For Amukamara, it’s a way for God’s love to spread through him to others.

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AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast

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during that span.

On March 11, 2016, Amukamara signed a one-year deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars as a free agent, then started 12 of the 14 games he played.

He agreed to a one-year contract with the Chicago Bears on the exact same day in 2017, and again started 12 of his 14 games. In March 2018, he signed a threeyear, $27 million contract to stay with the Bears through the 2020 season.

Amukamara returned to the playoffs for the second time in his career in 2019 as he helped the Bears win their first NFC North title since 2010 with a 12-4 record.

He played in all but one game for Chicago, finishing the year with three interceptions and two forced fumbles.

AP Photos/Bruce Kluckhohn

He took pride in being the “good kid” who always did the right thing. The emphasis Amukamara placed on following rules and being obedient created an added pressure on himself that sparked a desire to be rebellious at times.

“It kind of forced me to want to be bad in a sense because everyone thought I was so good — so good — and inside I knew I was just as broken and wrecked as anybody,” he said.

Amukamara also made a point of comparing himself to the people around him in high school, and evaluating himself based on that comparison.

Wanting to be the good kid meant avoiding things like drinking or smoking to maintain that reputation.

Coming out of high school, Amukamara had offers from multiple Power Five conference schools, but he ultimately chose to be a Nebraska Cornhusker. He appeared in eight games as a freshman, recording four tackles.

Bo Pelini replaced Bill Callahan as the Cornhuskers’ head coach after Amukamara’s freshman season in 2007 and led Nebraska to three straight bowl games.

Amukamara recorded five interceptions as a junior and didn’t miss a game his last three seasons in Lincoln. He earned Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year honors as a senior, and was also a consensus first-team All-American.

While in college, Amukamara took another major step in his faith journey.

With the help of the Nebraska team chaplain, he began to fully understand the difference between believing in Jesus and actively following Him. “He created us for relationships and He just wants one with you,” Amukamara said.

“Yes, you have sinned against Him, but He’s not some guy who’s angry. He’s a God who wants to reconcile and love.”

The New York Giants took Amukamara with the 19th overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft. He posted one interception in seven games his rookie season, which culminated with the Giants defeating Tom Brady and the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl for the second time in five years.

Over the next four seasons, Amukamara played in 48 of a possible 64 games for the Giants. He recorded 246 tackles, six interceptions and forced three fumbles

FBS | PRINCE AMUKAM AR A

“WITH TRIALS, IT’S A CHANCE TO SEE GOD WORK BECAUSE YOU KNOW HE’S GOING TO. IT MIGHT NOT BE WHEN YOU WANTED, IT MIGHT NOT BE THE WAY YOU WANTED, BUT YOU KNOW HE’S GOING TO.”

AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast

— PRINCE AMUKAMARA

“We’re just avenues, we’re just vessels,” he said.

“God is always just trying to do things through us to either reach somebody or pick someone’s head up. Or someone might be blind and now you can help speak truth into their life and help them see.”

The foundation hosted its first Others Conference in March, featuring pastors Carl Lentz, Bryan Loritts, Dr. Noe Garcia and former NFL player Don Davis along with his wife, Yannette. Remembering the impact Christ had on him in college, Amukamara developed a passion to provide a conference for students to experience that same encounter with Jesus.

Part of Amukamara’s goal is to take the joy that comes with being saved by God through faith and display it in the way he lives and interacts with other people. Salvation is the beginning of his relationship with Christ, not the end result.

“That’s the mission, is just ‘go,’” he said. “If you www.sportsspectrum.com

stay at the salvation stage, you stay, which is the opposite of go.”

This season, Amukamara read through the book of James with a focus on embracing trials and finding joy in them.

“With trials, it’s a chance to see God work because you know He’s going to,” Amukamara said. “It might not be when you wanted, it might not be the way you wanted, but you know He’s going to.”

Now a nine-year NFL veteran and married to his wife, Pilar, since 2014, Amukamara’s perspective on Christianity is quite different. What started as a desire to follow the rules during his childhood has evolved into a passion to share God’s love with others and live a Christlike life.

“For me, if I just stayed at the stage of salvation and didn’t do anything after that,” Amukamara said, “I feel like I would be missing out on so much.”

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IJM | H UN T E R HE N R Y

FOR

BY JO N ACK ERMAN

unter Henry remembers the assembly in high school. Someone came and talked to Pulaski Academy in Little Rock, Ark., about human trafficking, and how there are still slaves being trafficked all over the world, even in the U.S. He couldn’t believe sex slavery was such a widespread epidemic in this day and age.

The talk had a profound effect on him. So he kept tabs on the issue as he finished high school and went on to become an All-American tight end at the University of Arkansas. When he entered the NFL in 2016 as a second-round draft pick to the San Diego Chargers, he knew it was a cause he wanted to support and “put my heart towards.”

Joining the Chargers introduced Henry to wide receiver Geremy Davis. As the teammates got to know each other, Henry learned about some of Davis’ work with International Justice Mission, the world’s largest international anti-slavery and trafficking organization. As he learned more about IJM, and remembered the issue that had been put on his heart in high school, Henry yearned to get involved. So he joined Team Freedom, the division of IJM consisting of pro athlete families committed to using their platforms to shine a light on the reality of slavery, and send rescue to those enslaved around the world.

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“JUST TO BE ABLE TO PUT A SMILE ON THEIR FACE, TO HELP THEM OUT AND JUST TO SHOW GOD’S LOVE TOWARDS THEM IN A TIME OF REAL HURT AND CRISIS, THERE’S NOTHING LIKE IT.”

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AP Photos/Kelvin Kuo

L.A. CHARGERS TIGHT END HUNTER HENRY HAS LONG HAD A HEART FOR THOSE SUBJECT TO SLAVERY, SO HE JOINED INTERNATIONAL JUSTICE MISSION’S TEAM FREEDOM TO HELP END IT IN OUR LIFETIME

IJM | HUN T E R HE N R Y

AP Photo/Denis Poroy

“Obviously they want the awareness and getting that out,” Henry says of IJM, “but they’re out there, feet on the ground, partnering with people all over the world and country to help put an end to [slavery].”

Based in Washington, D.C., IJM’s mission is to create long-term, sustainable change by rescuing individuals from slavery, and partnering with governments to strengthen local justice systems to end violence against people living in poverty. It’s not well known, but modern-day slavery, like sex trafficking, still exists. To date, IJM and their partners have rescued more than 50,000 people from slavery and other forms of violent oppression.

Most people think slavery is a thing of the past, but IJM says there are more than 40 million slaves globally, and one in four victims of modern slavery is a child. Thus, much of its mission is to bring awareness, which is where pro athletes like Henry can significantly contribute.

During the NFL’s “My Cause My Cleats” week this season, Henry sported custom cleats featuring IJM.

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He also started an online “pledge it” campaign and shared it on social media, calling on people to donate and support the organization. His teammates took notice.

“They’re like, ‘Slavery? I thought that ended way back when Abe Lincoln ended it, right?’ But I’m like, ‘There’s more to it, man. There are people all over the world that are trapped and can’t get out of things, when you really look into it.’ So I’d just talk to guys in the locker room about it, it was pretty cool,” Henry says.

IJM also organizes trips on which these athletes can visit locations around the world — like Africa, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic — to physically work with IJM and meet some of the people who have been rescued. Henry has yet to go on one of these trips, but hopes to in the near future — especially after hearing about the impact they’ve had on Davis.

“He said just talking to those people that have been saved and rescued is life changing,” Henry says, adding, “Just to be able to put a

smile on their face, to help them out and just to show God’s love towards them in a time of real hurt and crisis, there’s nothing like it.”

IJM being a Christian organization, “inspired by God’s call to love all people and seek justice,” was also a big factor in Henry opting to team up. Raised in Little Rock as the son of a pastor, he grew up in the church, became a believer when he was 9 or 10, and really made his faith his own in college at Arkansas.

“Their values behind when they’re able to save these people, and what’s behind them going to do all this, is Christ. And just sharing that, sharing the Gospel with people at the same time, but also using that for all their work and that’s what’s behind everything … that’s what drew me to them more than any other organization,” Henry says.

Joining Team Freedom became a no-brainer once he learned NFL tight ends such as Benjamin Watson and Trey Burton — guys he looked up to as he developed into an NFL tight end — were involved. Knowing

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(L-R) NFL players Geremy Davis, Benjamin Watson, Sean Weatherspoon, Trey Burton and Max Garcia, and former NFL player Don Davis.

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“IF I CAN BE A PROFESSIONAL ATHLETE FOR A KID TO LOOK UP TO AND SOMEHOW I CAN IMPACT THEIR LIFE, CHANGE THEIR LIFE FOR NOT JUST WORLDLY THINGS BUT AN ETERNAL ASPECT, THAT’S PRETTY SPECIAL.”

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in 2019 and recorded career highs in catches (55) and receiving yards (652).

At 25, Henry is established in the NFL, and in so doing he’s established a public platform (for example: more than 181,000 followers on Twitter and 79,000 on Instagram). He knows he can use that for good and make an impact.

“That’s what our ultimate goal on this earth is, right?” Henry says. “That’s what God calls us to — to be fishers of men. And to literally be out there and live your life for a purpose, and live your life for Him. “We’re like sponges ... eventually you’ll be squeezed, and what you fill yourself up with is going to come out. So I think showing that to everybody and just putting that in the centerfold of your life and putting that on your platform is an awesome opportunity.”

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Photo courtesy of IJM

the impact older NFL players as well as current teammates can have on him, Henry desires to be that for others.

“If I can be a professional athlete for a kid to look up to and somehow I can impact their life, change their life for not just worldly things but an eternal aspect, that’s pretty special,” Henry says.

He’s battled injuries since a standout rookie season in 2016 when he started 10 of 15 games, led all rookie tight ends with 478 receiving yards, and tied for a league-leading eight touchdowns among tight ends. Then Henry missed the last two games of 2017 due to a kidney injury, was sidelined for all of 2018 after suffering a knee injury in an offseason practice, and missed four games this year with a tibial plateau fracture in his knee. Still, he started all 12 games he played

“On the field, I play tight end for the Chargers. Off the field, my wife Parker and I play for Team Freedom, with International Justice Mission (IJM). Growing up, we didn’t know that slavery still existed. But it hurts my heart that right now, there are children and families around the world born into this violence and pain. That’s why we want everyone to know that together, we have the power to make a difference. By supporting IJM, we can send rescue to those that desperately need it, and support them in their healing and restoration.”

Join the team with Hunter and Parker to end slavery in our lifetime: IJM.org/TF www.sportsspectrum.com

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THE GENESIS OF FOOTBALL SUNDAY

OF

A QUARTERBACK’S IDEA IS NOW A WORLDWIDE MOVEMENT CENTERED AROUND THE SUPER BOWL

By Jon Ackerman

two friends just catching up, quarterback and pastor Craig Gross sitting around late one night in an Orlando hotel, taking in a Christian sports conference. Before long, the creative thinkers were tossing out creative ideas. Before they called it a night, one idea in particular stood out.

“We were kind of kicking around some things and [had] this thought that, ‘We’re at this conference where we have a bunch of athletes and guys that are passionate about their faith and willing to speak out about it, what that would look like if we captured some of that content and just shared it with churches,’” McCown told Sports Spectrum. “Super Bowl Sunday has become so important to our culture. If we leverage the importance that it draws in our culture, [we] said, ‘What would that look like if we leverage that moment to tell people about Jesus and to really have an impact?’”

The Increase, a community of Christian pro athletes, had recently begun releasing videos of such pros sharing their stories of the decrease of self and the increase of Christ (John 3:30). McCown was among the athletes who’d been filmed. Pondering ways to get the videos in front of more people, he thought, “Why don’t we put two or three of them together, the best ones, get a host that tees them all up, and present it to the Church? Hey Church, show this instead of preaching on Super Bowl Sunday.”

The morning after that late-night brainstorm, McCown presented the idea to Steve Stenstrom, the president of Pro Athletes Outreach, the ministry behind The Increase.

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SUPER BOWL SUNDAY HAS BECOME SO IMPORTANT TO OUR CULTURE. WHAT WOULD THAT LOOK LIKE IF WE LEVERAGE THAT MOMENT TO TELL PEOPLE ABOUT JESUS AND TO REALLY HAVE AN IMPACT? — JOSH MCCOWN

“It took me about a half a second to smile and embrace the idea and say, ‘That’s brilliant, Josh. I love it. Let me go to work on what we could do and get back to you,’” Stenstrom says.

While still at this same conference, Stenstrom floated the idea to Gary Molander, the co-owner of Floodgate Productions, the company hired to produce The Increase videos.

“My initial thoughts were, ‘Oh my gosh, yes. … If we do this right, I think in 10 years, churches who don’t use Football Sunday on Super Bowl weekend are going to be the minority.’ And I still believe that,” Molander says.

That was February 2013. Within the next year, the idea had been branded Football Sunday. Seven years later, it’s on that steep trajectory. The seed planted by McCown has sprouted into a movement that’s estimated to have now reached 5 million people.

“Not all ideas are created equal,” AP Photo/Jeff Roberson

Stenstrom says. “So in this case it was very clear to me, having walked with the Lord for a long time and having been in ministry for many years, there’s just a language of faith and there’s an understanding that something is rich with God’s wisdom, and God’s divine direction. There’s just a difference, like when you hear an idea, that something in the spirit of God within your heart, as a ministry leader, knows that God is orchestrating something.

And that was obvious in that moment.

“Sometimes you’ve got to really mine for the gold, but this one was on the surface. It got my attention and it kept my attention, and that attention quickly led us to an action plan that we began to pursue and consider.”

he next Super Bowl was 11 months away, but Stenstrom didn’t feel the door was open to debut this short film in 2014.

“Producing the product was an easy thing for us to do,” Stenstrom says.

“We already had the stories. We had a great guy in [former NFL quarterback] Trent Dilfer who was willing to host it for us in the first year. The creative side, the production side, the product side, we had.”

It was the marketing and distribution side that lacked. But within that year, The Increase got connected to Life Church and Bobby Gruenewald, creators of the YouVersion Bible app. Gruenewald helped get The Increase videos put into Life Church’s Open Network, which is full of free resources (largely created by Life Church) for pastors and church leaders. He w w w. f o o t b a l l s u n d a y. c o m

AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack

he conversation began as

AP Photos/John Raoux, Willie J. Allen Jr., Tony Dejak,

Gary Molander & Trent Dilfer in 2015. also facilitated getting the videos distributed through the app — one of the first times YouVersion accepted thirdparty content.

“That partnership with them unlocked a church network that we didn’t have before,” Stenstrom says.

And so Floodgate was given the green light to forge ahead and produce the first Football Sunday. With stories from athletes shot in early 2014, Molander arranged to film Dilfer, who got the crew access to Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. They shot him in a day.

“And then Steve had the idea, ‘What if we sent you guys to the Super Bowl cities the week before?’” Molander says.

“We’re like, ‘Are you kidding? How do we turn that around?

We’re not the news; we’re editors and storytellers, we’re not the news. How do we turn that around so fast?’ Steve was like, ‘I don’t know, just do it.’

“So I’ll never forget that first championship weekend, where there’s four teams left and they’re all playing on Sunday. We knew that Monday morning we were flying somewhere, and we had no idea where.”

New England and Seattle became the destinations.

Tickets purchased, bags and gear packed, the crew set out for Boston first. They attempted to get access to players through the team’s media relations staff — no luck. They tried going through Don Davis, a former Patriot who worked for both PAO and the NFLPA — no luck.

“It was one of the scariest feelings for me, just as a human, flying into a city, knowing nobody, knowing that the expectations were that somehow we’re going to interview the Patriots players, who by the way are playing in the Super Bowl in a week or two,” Molander says. “It was insane.”

Matthew Slater, New England’s special teams captain, became their ally. A well-known believer, he helped corral offensive lineman Nate Solder and defensive tackle Chris Jones to also sit down for interviews.

Then it was across the country to Seattle, where, thankfully, quarterback Russell Wilson and offensive lineman Russell Okung were connected with The Increase and more than willing to help. “Just set up out there on our practice field,” they told Molander’s crew. “We’re going to start sending all the believers out to you.”

“So here’s the thing: God always intervenes, every single time,” Molander says, adding, “It’s, ‘God, if You don’t do something, we can’t make this happen on our own. There’s no way. Like, if You don’t prod a player’s heart to come over to us where we’re set up, we can’t do it.’”

Despite venturing into the unknown, the Floodgate guys returned home fired up, thrilled at the possibility of doing this annually. They landed in Fresno, Calif., that year on a Friday, then went right to work editing down everything they captured into a 30-minute video. Already away from their families for a week, they didn’t emerge with a polished product until the following Wednesday.

With Dilfer as host, Football Sunday 2015 featured wide receiver Brandon Marshall and quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, along with the New England and Seattle players filmed just days before its release.

“We set a very modest goal,” Stenstrom says. “We said, ‘What if five churches from every state on average did Football Sunday? So what if we have 250 churches sign up?’”

More than 1,400 churches participated in Football Sunday that first year. www.sportsspectrum.com

THE GENESIS OF FOOTBALL SUNDAY

“IF WE DO THIS RIGHT, I THINK CHURCHES WHO DON’T USE FOOTBALL SUNDAY ON SUPER BOWL WEEKEND ARE GOING TO BE THE MINORITY.”— GARY MOLANDER

Nate Solder filming for Football Sunday 2020.

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THE GENESIS OF FOOTBALL SUNDAY

Trent Dilfer filming the first Football Sunday.

uper Bowl XLIX featuring the Patriots and Seahawks took place in Phoenix on Feb. 1, 2015. Stenstrom, a former NFL quarterback, was watching the game with his son, Blake, in an NFLPA suite when Marshall walked in.

“I remember him tapping me on the shoulder and he said something to the effect of, ‘Hey, you told me about Football Sunday, but I didn’t realize what a big deal it was. I’ve had people texting me and DM’ing me all day saying they saw me in their church.’”

Stenstrom knew they were onto something when “we blew past our human goal of 250 churches,” and the notion was only reinforced upon returning home to Denver to the feedback coming in from churches that showed Football Sunday. The vast majority said they would participate again in 2016.

So the process was repeated. Year 2 saw more than 2,600 churches take part, the third installment had more than 2,750 churches participate, the movement grew to more than 3,100 churches in 2018, and last year there were more than 3,400 churches involved. The best news: More than 17,000 people have made decisions for Christ through watching Football Sunday in its first five years.

“The beautiful thing about Football 24 24

SSPPOORRTTSS SSPPEECCTTRRUUMM

Sunday from my seat, and when you get a chance to talk to any pastor or a church leader, is we’re hosting an outreach event in partnership with local churches … and [millions of people are] watching it in the church buildings,” Stenstrom says. “So they’re already in the place where they need to be once they make a decision to follow Christ.

It’s beautiful because again, those pastors and leaders, they know what to do. God’s wired them to be part of the Great Commission.

And so we feel like we’re getting to partner with those pastors and leaders in the fulfillment of the Great Commission.

“That makes it fun to think about who we’re going to meet in Heaven some day and hear the stories of how they gave their life to Christ because they heard D’Brickashaw and Kirsten Ferguson’s story, or whatever it might be.”

For 2020, the model shifted a bit. The media resources largely stayed the same, but in an effort to help transform the lives of children living in abject poverty around the world, the Football Sunday producers arranged to donate more than half the price of every FBS package sold to the ministry of Compassion International. This trusted ministry partner employs a love-driven strategy that is Christ-centered, childfocused, and church-based. w w w. f o o t b a l l s u n d a y. c o m

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THE GENESIS OF FOOTBALL SUNDAY

n the next three to five years, Stenstrom would love for every church leader in America to know about Football Sunday, that it’s a resource there for them whether they use it or not. The pastors who do take part often experience their thirdhighest attendance day of the year, behind only Easter and Christmas.

“There’s a segment, a large segment of the American population that loves football so much that if they knew they could hear from the pros playing in the games that day, or Trent Dilfer or Benjamin Watson or James Brown as host, then they would come,” Stenstrom says. “They would come on that day but maybe never come again. But it might be the one chance when they can hear the Gospel.”

There’s no telling what God will do in the future.

Stenstrom says this ministry will “remain faithful and obedient to do what God tells [us] to do without knowing the outcomes or the hows.” Says Molander, “We don’t ever want to plan the Holy Spirit out of this thing.”

And it all began when an idea, sparked by a late-night conversation between a quarterback and a pastor, ignited a movement among millions. To convey the reach Football Sunday boasts, Stenstrom tells the athletes that they’ll speak to more people that day than any pastor in the world.

“That’s the power of it when you think about it,” he says. “There’s nobody on planet Earth that speaks to that many people in churches on Super Bowl weekend. Some of the large churches in our country reach 50,000 people. But this is now reaching millions.

“And I think we’re just scratching the surface.”

“THAT MAKES IT FUN TO THINK ABOUT WHO WE’RE GOING TO MEET IN HEAVEN SOME DAY AND HEAR THE STORIES OF HOW THEY GAVE THEIR LIFE TO CHRIST BECAUSE THEY SAW FOOTBALL SUNDAY” — STEVE STENSTROM

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YOU CAN KNOW CHRIST PERSONALLY

OUR PROBLEM, GOD’S SOLUTION

God created mankind in His own image … God saw all that He had made, and it was very good.” Genesis 1:27, 31 God made human beings with personal and relational qualities like His own (Genesis 1:26) and desired to have a delightful relationship with them. But something went terribly wrong. When Adam and Eve chose to follow Satan’s advice in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3), sin poisoned the world and now we are all born with the desire to do things our own way, not God’s.

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For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23 Our sins against a good and holy God have distanced us from Him (Isaiah 59:2). God “cannot tolerate wrongdoing” (Habakkuk 1:12). Through sin we forfeit a relationship with God, and along with it our happiness. The result of all this is death. Spiritual death is separation from God in a very real place called hell. Physical death marks the end of our opportunity to enter into a relationship with God and avoid eternal condemnation (Hebrews 9:27).

If these words reflect your heart and you would like to receive salvation through Jesus Christ, say this prayer to God. It's as simple as A-B-C: Admit, Believe, Confess.

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By ByRandy Randy Alcorn

The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 6:23

There is absolutely nothing we can do to restore ourselves to God. He is holy, we are not. In fact, He says even our good deeds are like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). But God loved us so much He sent us His Son Jesus, fully God and fully man, to deliver us from death and give us life (John 3:16). "God demonstrates His own love toward us … while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8).

Jesus went to the cross to pay the price for our sins. He did for us what we couldn’t do for ourselves. When Jesus died for us, He said, “It is finished” (John 19:30). The Greek word translated “it is finished” was written across certificates of debt when they were canceled. It meant “paid in full.”

Jesus then rose from the grave, conquering sin and death (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).

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Benjamin Watson, New England Patriots tight end

remember how draining wastotoanswer: live a performance-based lifestyle “Three questions“Ievery single human on earthit has How did I get before I accepted Christ as Lord of my life.

The peace of being unconhere? Why am I here? Is there anything after this? Jesus is the only One who ditionally loved by a Savior who paid the price for my salvation is here? Why am I here? Is there anything after this? Jesus is the only One who andglory uplifting at the time.forever!

There’s no greater joy than

by God, we’re herehumbling to give God and we can same enjoy Him knowing that I can abide in love instead of having to work for it.”

I challenge anyone to search for the truth — determine if Jesus really did live, die and rise three days later from the grave. It’ll be the best choice you make.”

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9 God’s greatest gift is a restored relationship with Himself, delivering us from hell and granting us entry into Heaven (John 3:36). This gift depends not on our merit but solely on Christ’s work of grace for us on the cross (Titus 3:5). He is the one and only way to God. He said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).

[ 3

If you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.” John 5:24

To be right with God, we must admit our sinful hearts and actions, and ask God’s forgiveness. If we do, He graciously promises full forgiveness: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness”(1 John 1:9). Then we are to affirm to others that the resurrected Jesus is our Lord.

The life we long for is freely offered to us in Christ. We can believe His promise and call on Him to save us, humbly accepting His gift of eternal life: “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans 10:13). God’s Holy Spirit indwells us and helps us obey Him (2 Timothy 1:14).

Romans 10:9

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“Dear God, I ADMIT that I’m a sinner and the penalty of my sin is death. I BELIEVE that Jesus Christ is Lord, and that He died and rose from the dead for my sin. And I CONFESS Jesus as my Savior. Please forgive me. I repent of my sin and surrender my life to You. I pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen." — Miles McPherson, senior pastor & former NFL player

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