The next probable Catholic is growing in the public eye He’s already been plastered over the TV. He’s been on YouTube. They’ve even made a new word for his field ‘pose’ on 1/17/12. It’s called “Tebowing”. In fact, YouTube showed a Couple’s Ultrasound Picture Shows Unborn Baby “Tebowing …. This ultrasound was done on Elizabeth Vigil in Colorado. Her and her husband live in Denver, are ardent Bronco fans, and did a 4D ultrasound to check on the baby’s sex. But the baby’s “prayer stance” looked exactly like Tim Tebow’s-in the womb.
Tim, as you may recall, survived a recommended abortion in-utero, due to his mother’s medication for amoebic dysentery. He was one of 5 kids, lived to become the Florida Gators QB, won the Heisman as a college-level sophomore, came in second as a senior, went on to play QB for Denver Broncos, and led them to the playoffs before finally losing to New England in a race to the Super Bowl in 2012.
Photo Credit: WikiMedia Commons
With all the surrounding hype on Tebow, one would think he’s totally ‘full’ of himself, and confronted by professional players and pundits only concerned with the secular. But learning what he has already done, one has to conclude he’s an exception to the rule. After all, the Catholic bible scripture [John 3:16] was written under his darkened eyes since his college days at Florida. Now in games, he publicly prays to God for all the blessings he receives.
He has stated he will not have pre-marital sex. He’s privately charitable, truly pro-life (controversial anti-abortion ad), incredibly humble, constantly gives credit to others for their accomplishments, and inspires others to do the impossible. He calls reporters “mister,” which is rarely done by a pro athlete.
Unbelievably, he’s never been arrested for sexual assault, drug possession, DUI, manslaughter, aggravated battery, domestic violence-or any other crime to which fellow athletes succumb.
Detractors came out of the woodwork to condemn Tebow for his blurring religion and sports. Even though Tebow’s popularity became exponential, venom from the popular media elite was worse. They even made fun of the “Tebowing” pose taken on the Vigil infant. Then the impact of [John 15:18] slams into our face: “If the world hates you, realize that it hated Me first.”
Tebow has a winning record in all started games because he restricts most mental errors. Over 236 lbs, he sometimes runs the ball-not as quarterback, but as a fullback. In his game against the Cincinnati Bengals, he played tight end. After the game, Broncos coach John Fox joked that Tebow “actually graded 100 percent” with his performance. But many have stated it’s all done by “divine intervention.”
Gary Bauer, (President/American Values), described the “Tebow Derangement Syndrome” as similar to the “Bush Derangement Syndrome.” Most remember how Bush’s Christian faith became offensive to many. Ridiculed for praying before big decisions made him a special target. Calling the Bible inspiration showed weakness to many.
It turns out Tebow actually divides his critics, and those that hope athletic standouts are truly heroes on, and off, the field. The ‘critic’ psychology is rooted in self-inferiority. There’s only one interpretation: ‘we don’t want anybody to be better than we are, so let’s not deal with how bad we are’. With a secular critic, if everyone’s disreputable, then everybody can be disreputable.
For 2011, Tebow had the longest touchdown pass of all players (80 yd), threw “0” interceptions, and averaged 9.62 yd/completion for all quarterbacks. Those numbers alone got peoples’ attention. Daresay, one of those was likely the Vigils’ baby. Of the millions of ultrasounds performed on preborn infants, this was the first recorded “prayer stance”.
After Tebow beat the Steelers in overtime, columnist Matt Barber (TownHall) repeated 3 statistics by Tebow: 1) 316 passing yards in game, 2) averaged 31.6 yd/ pass, and 3) TV viewing audience for last 15 minutes of game was 31.6%. CNN ran the text of [John 3:16] that has the same 3 numbers in the same order: “For God so loved the world that he his only Son, that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.”
The odds on having the same numbers as that quote from John are too astronomically small to comprehend: 3 different stats, in the same game, that size audience, the same person, a very tight game, overtime, beating a ‘goliath’ of a competitor, and using the combined talents of every player, coach, and manager of the Broncos to do it? The immeasurably low chances of that happening are inconceivable.
God obviously does not decide football game winners, including the Super Bowl. But He does care about how one leads his life, including honesty and righteousness in their profession, their outside endeavors, and their impact on fellow humans. Tebow says that it really doesn’t matter whether he’s the hero, or the goat of a game’s outcome.
He will be thanking God no matter what.
And staying true to the Faith, the forces of evil will more than beat his door down. It’s likely he will win this battle-and battle, it will be.
