I just finished a 6-mile run on the streets of Columbus, Ohio. Buckeye fever is evident in almost every shop window, on every car bumper and on every piece of clothing. The NCAA Final Four is a bit convicting for me…
After moving from Arkansas, I attended high school in west Kentucky and adopted the Wildcats as my favorite basketball team. Later, spending three years in Louisville – like many young Baptist seminarians in the good old days – turned me into a University of Louisville fan. Recently, my oldest daughter completed a graduate degree at THE Ohio State University…soooo….I’m visiting her in Columbus and rooting for the Buckeyes today. I’m fickle! I admit it! I’ve always been this way…
Growing up in the ArkLaMiss (the tri-state delta of Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi), it was required I support the New Orleans Saints when watching professional football. (I was also told Archie Manning was my third cousin twice removed by an aunt-in-law…well…you get the picture.) But I became enamored with Joe Namath and quickly claimed independence from the Saints – defecting to be a New York Jets fan. As a college student, I moved to Atlanta and began following the faltering Falcons. And when it comes to college football…well….I’ve lived in Mississippi, Arkansas, Kentucky and Georgia! I’ve made my way through the SEC like a football floozy! Currently living in Georgia, barking annoys me, buzzing barely sounds menacing and I’m a Georgia State University alum. Again, I’m fickle! I admit it. I really enjoy sports, but I’m not a diehard fan of any team. And that’s okay. I don’t want to die hard. I want to live freely and die gently…
In the last couple of weeks, I’ve worshipped with a Presbyterian congregation and a Baptist congregation. Tomorrow morning I’ll be at a Saturday Mass. Sunday, I’m celebrating April Fool’s Day with my Unitarian Universalist Friends. Next week it’s Passover with ‘my people’ and then Easter with my other people. I’ll admit it. I’m fickle. I really enjoy spending time with God and God’s people. But I’m not a diehard fan of any one team. In fact, I’m not interested in dying hard. I want to live freely and die gently…in the arms of a God who loves us all…
I like the God I worship…a God who is rooting for all of us….
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