Lynn Jones: “A Season of Hope”
By Lynn Jones
The beginning of football season holds out the hope of fresh and exciting experiences. Pulitzer-Prize-winning journalist Rick Bragg began his journalistic career writing about football games for a small-town newspaper in Alabama. In reflecting on that time in his life, he wrote, “In that hurried season, on rectangles of ragged grass and wild onion, and on the unnatural welcome mat of Astroturf, I have seen some things.” In the times when they have witnessed battles on the gridiron, so have most fans.
It’s a time when referees will make calls and fans and players will voice their displeasure. As a referee threw a flag, one player muttered something under his breath. The referee demanded, “What did you call me?” The player said, “Guess. You’ve guessed at everything else today.”
It’s a time when coaches will yell and try to get their players to perform better. In a Garfield comic strip, Jim was looking at his old football album. He said to Garfield, “My coach was very critical of my playing. During one game he ran into the stands and slapped my parents.”
It’s a time when old football players look back on their careers with exaggerated memories of their accomplishments. One boy asked his mother if his dad really had been a great athlete. The boy’s mother said, “As an athlete, your father had no equals. Superiors, sure, but equals, no.”
Marv Levy, a former coach and general manager in the NFL, said, “If you’re looking for certainty, don’t choose football. One of the differences between going to a ball game and going to the theater is this—everybody knows that Hamlet’s going to die.”
It’s a time of excitement, hope, and high expectations. One coach, coming off a poor season, confidently predicted a better year. He said, “We are sure to improve. Last season we lost ten games. This season we have only scheduled nine games.”
Ralph Sockman once wrote, “Our trains of thought continue to run and carry our cargoes of hope.” Hope is one of the most precious things that we have. It helps us face each day with its difficulties. Without it, we spiral downward into depression. Paul said that hope, along with faith and love, is one of the greatest things in life.
We live in a world where people are hungry for hope. They will cling to anything that promises hope, but often they are overwhelmed by a sense of hopelessness.
Hope in the New Testament sense is not an uncertainty that we dare to believe will come true. It is an assurance that sustains life. The ultimate hope is the appearance of Jesus Christ. Paul wrote, “We wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13). Enjoy the football season but find your ultimate hope in the presence of Lord and the assurance of His return!
Lynn Jones is a retired pastor who lives in Oxford. He does supply preaching for churches in his area and often serves as an interim pastor. Jones is also an author, has written two books and writes a weekly newspaper column. He may be contacted at: kljones45@yahoo.com.
