Ohio State football players selling memorabilia and autographs for cash. Auburn potentially paying Cam Newton hundreds of thousands of dollars. Photographs of Alabama players signing autographs and wearing suits from a local business owner. University of North Carolina coaches funneling players to an agent. With each new week, a new scandal involving major college football programs comes to the surface. And now, the scandal of scandals. Yahoo Sports reports that a major booster of the Miami Hurricanes was paying potentially hundreds of players, funding lavish sex parties, automobiles, wedding rings, and even abortions to the tune of millions of dollars for almost a decade!
There’s one problem in all of this. College Football is a multi-million dollar business. Hundreds of millions of dollars are being made annually on the backs of young men who are compensated with tuition! Arguments can be made on both sides of spectrum. On the one hand, you have people rightly saying that college athletics is amateur sports and money should not be paid to players. Paying players would make college sports professional and would complicate the system. On the other hand, people are saying that if college football is a million dollar business then players should be compensated. It’s called capitalism!
While debates can we waged on both sides of the issue, one thing that is crystal clear is that this illustrates how money complicates things. We like to think that if we won the lottery life would be easier, and yet we hear story after story of million dollar lottery winners who end up broke and worse off than before. Money complicates marriages, friendships, lives, and especially churches. Make no mistake, money is a necessary part of life and should be stewarded well. However, money can easily become an idol as we look to it for security, comfort, and self-worth.
Unlike money, Christ is the one who brings ultimate satisfaction to our deepest longings. Money may provide temporary financial security but in Christ we have eternal salvation security. Money may fund the purchase of a nice home, comfortable leather seats in a car, or an extravagant vacation but Christ is the only one who offers true peace and joy through the gospel. And, for a season, the increase of wealth can increase our sense of worth as we compare what we have to the poverty of others. We like to think that our home appreciation equals our individual appreciation. This is a pure lie as we see many of the most wealthy and powerful struggle with depression as they realize money doesn’t satisfy. In Christ we have tremendous self-worth! We see that we were created in the image of God and that God longed for a relationship with us to the extent that he sacrificed his son on our behalf. My self-worth is not determined by the car I drive or amount in my investment portfolio, but by the Creator of the universe who spoke me into existence and desires a relationship with me.
It can be easy to point the finger at players and men involved in the latest college football scandals. I hope that we ask ourselves the hard question, “Is my hope in money?” Money only complicates things, and Christ can only satisfy.
The primary failings of many Christian marriages is not due to a lack of a financial plan, understanding of marital roles, or not reading the Bible enough. I believe a huge miss in many supposed Christ-centered marriages is a lack of companionship, joy, and intimacy. To put it plainly, many spouses just aren’t friends. They don’t have fun, party, or enjoy life together. It’s as if marriage was a business transaction necessary to procreate.
This Sunday at Scarlet City Church we’re going to dive right into this crucial discussion in hopes that God will do a work in and through our marriages.
The vision of Scarlet City Church is to be a people joining God’s story of transformation and renewal. God is writing his story for the world, Columbus, and our lives. Our hope is to see our story intersect with his story of transforming and renewing our city and the world.
We have worship gatherings because it’s crucial for the local church to gather corporately to worship Christ and be reminded of the mission God is calling us to. Over the past four months we’ve been gathering three times a month but now we’re moving to weekly worship gatherings. This is another step forward as the vision of Scarlet City Church becomes a reality!
Join us 10:30 a.m. Sunday @ Ecole Kenwood (3770 Shattuck Ave., Columbus, OH 43220).
Jesus calls his people to be a “city on a hill.” Being a “city on a hill” doesn’t mean we separate ourselves and simply shout gospel truths to those outside the gates. Rather, Jesus is saying we should be a community that communicates and reflects God’s love found in the gospel. That’s why at Scarlet City Church we believe we are called to proclaim and embody the gospel.
We embody the gospel by living gospel saturated lives marked by love, sacrifice, generosity, humility, honesty, and service to name a few traits. We value serving others and our community because it’s a tangible way to demonstrate the heart of God. We want to be seen as part of the solution to Columbus’ problems so that we can ultimately point to Christ as the ultimate solution to true spiritual poverty and brokenness.
There is an opportunity to serve this Saturday. We’ll be helping the Wesley Glen Retirement Center August 13th from 9 a.m. to noon. Email megan.s.obrien@gmail.com if you want more information or would like to join us.
I’ve been feeling like Don Downer (the male version of Debbie) over the past few days. I was away from Megan, so I was missing her. I was annoyed by everything happening in D.C. with the debt crisis. I was beginning to feel anxious about church stuff since I’ve been away from Columbus for four out of the last six weeks. I’m coming to terms with the poor leadership of the Cincinnati Bengals management, and even my beloved Reds are losing. On a serious note, I was grieving the loss of my mom and the sadness I feel knowing she’s gone.
This morning I found myself glued to Ecclesiastes pouring over the text. It reminded me of the feelings I experienced just a few weeks ago, when I was looking at old photographs of my mom after she had passed away. I knew it wasn’t the first time I had seen the pictures of my mom but there was a deeper meaning and a new significance.
Why was I so gripped by Ecclesiastes? I had studied the book five years ago. The message from the author Solomon was simple: “All is vanity.” Wisdom, self-indulgence, and work is meaningless. They are all meaningless apart from the fear of the Lord. I often find myself worried, anxious, and bitter when I’m not viewing life through the proper lens. I feel the emptiness of loss and the vanity of my labor. Things that should bring me joy feel shallow and the glass is half-empty rather than full. However, when I understand life as a gift from God suddenly my heart begins to change. When I see the blessings of life granted by God to enjoy. And when I am reminded that my labor in the gospel by the Spirit has the power to bring healing and hope, I venture down life’s path with joy and peace.
Life is hard. God gives and takes away. There is much that I cannot control. Thankfully, there is a good God in control so I don’t have to be. My joy is in Him and the blessings he provides. Time to enjoy life!