SUPER BOWL THREATENS FAMILY RELATIONS

Posted on February 12, 2009
I'm told I came close to cheezing off a family member during last month's Super Bowl.
I had no favorite team going into the game, but as it progressed, I started warming up to underdog Arizona.  The Cardinals just couldn't help making mistakes, but they were playing their hearts out, and I was just knocked out by QB Kurt Warner's performance.
At half time, I announced to my wife I was rooting for Arizona for the rest of the game. I said I could even feel the swell of a little bit of fan passion within me (something professional sports normally doesn't do to me).  I told her I was rooting for the Cardinals to make a comeback in the second half.  

But my wife told me to keep my new-found passions to myself, as I would "offend" a certain family member who was visiting us.  This family member just happens to be a fanatical St. Louis fan.  He's also a believer.  He wasn't in the room when I expressed my pro-Arizona sentiments to my wife.  I responded, "You're joking, right?"  "No, I'm serious," she said.

I wonder what does it say about our faith when we as American Christians can actually become offended by our allegiance to another team in a hotly contested game (Would 1John 5:21 apply here)? 

By the way, I took my wife's advice and kept my mouth shut.  And I didn't let our family member see that little tear which appeared on my cheek when St. Louis scored the winning TD in the final 30 seconds of the game.  (Oh well, I exaggerate a little.)

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