Passion and Love Returning

I’ve been playing Fantasy Football for over 20 years, and I truly enjoy it. I hope many of you feel the same way, but I also realize that some of you have either never played before or have stopped playing and no longer participate. Either way, I hope you’ll be encouraged by today’s parallel. 

As someone who truly loves Fantasy Football and desires to leverage it for ministry through our resource, Fantasy Football Fellowship, I'm always bummed when I hear someone has walked away from it altogether.

They will tell me something such as:

“I used to love it, but I’m just too busy.”

“I used to be passionate about the draft, but then my teams kept losing.”

“Other things in life became more important to me.”

“I got tired of dealing with the injuries to my players.”

“I wasn’t in a good Fantasy league.”

“I would commit for the first six weeks, but then would lose interest.”

It disappoints me when Fantasy managers walk away from this awesome activity, and I love trying to bring them back!

It’s also unfortunate to hear that someone keeps playing Fantasy but doesn’t have the same love for it as they did when they first started. 

Most people, when they first experience the thrill of an in-person draft or winning a Fantasy matchup because of a Monday Night miracle, are all in. They tell everyone how great Fantasy Football is, spend a lot of time on it, and cherish being part of their Fantasy league.

Sure, it can be tough to stay as passionate about Fantasy Football when you’re in the middle of a bad season or when some negative issues pop up in your league, but it doesn’t mean you have to give up!

You have to remember why you started playing in the first place and get back to focusing on how exciting it is. I think the longer you play Fantasy, the more you will love it when you have the right focus.

Our perspective at UNPACKIN’ it and Fantasy Football Fellowship is to play with purpose and meaning. We like the competition, but it’s more about growing in our faith and building friendships throughout the season.

That's why we truly love Fantasy Football: it's a fun way for the more important things to happen.

Sometimes people walk away from Fantasy Football or lose their love for it because it becomes about the wrong things, too much emphasis on winning and losing, or the cares of life get in the way. 

Now, don’t get me wrong: if a dad needs to stop playing Fantasy Football because he’s obsessed with winning and has been neglecting his family, that’s a good reason to quit. I would of course encourage him to join Fantasy Football Fellowship to change his perspective and give him a new approach to playing.

The point is, I want people to grasp how amazing Fantasy Football is (especially Fantasy Football Fellowship), and if they’ve never given it a chance, walked away, or lost their love for it, to return.

The parallel for us to consider today: Have we, or someone we know, walked away from following Jesus, or no longer have the same passion for the things of God, or is the love for Him not as evident as it once was?

Let’s face it, sometimes we, or people we know, allow the busyness of life and the cares of this world to squelch love and passion for God. We might hear or say things like:

“I used to love going to church, but I’m just too busy.”

“I used to be passionate about growing in my faith, but then I just kept ‘losing’ to sin.

“Other things in life became more important to me.”

“I got tired of dealing with the ‘injuries’ of life.”

“I wasn’t in a good small group.”

“I would commit to serving for the first six weeks, but then would lose interest.”

Sometimes we drift when we focus on the wrong things or dwell on the negative aspects of life or of a specific church. Or we find ourselves in a bad season, and our joy for following Jesus wanes. 

Oftentimes we allow other things to become a priority, and we lose the excitement and interest we once had for pursuing God and experiencing vibrant fellowship with Him and other believers. We no longer tell everyone how great God is, dedicate our lives to becoming more like Jesus, or cherish being a part of a local church.

A Fantasy manager has to be reminded of how much they once enjoyed Fantasy Football and reflect on how much they used to love it. They then decide whether to return to the activity, intentionally focus on getting to know the current players better, and seek the same joy they once felt when they first jumped into Fantasy Football.

Likewise, when we realize we no longer have the same interest in pursuing Jesus and we don't go out of our way to spend time with Him, go to church, memorize Scripture, and have meaningful conversations about Him with our friends, we have to remember the time we first believed and remind ourselves why we fell in love with Jesus, to begin with.

We must decide to repent and turn back to Him, intentionally focusing on knowing Him and returning to following Him as we once did. The more we know Him and experience Him every day, the more our love for Him will grow.

The joy, passion, excitement, and interest return when we realize just how wonderful He is and how gracious He was to save us from our sin. Sometimes the distractions and pursuits of this world, as well as life's struggles, cause us to forget that, and we get off track. We don’t have to stay that way!

In the second chapter of Revelation, God reveals this message to the church in Ephesus and can also be an important challenge to us:

“But I have this [charge] against you, that you have left your first love [you have lost the depth of love that you first had for Me]. So remember the heights from which you have fallen, and repent [change your inner self—your old way of thinking, your sinful behavior—seek God’s will] and do the works you did at first [when you first knew Me]; otherwise, I will visit you and remove your lampstand (the church, its impact) from its place—unless you repent” (verses 4-5; AMP).

God can transform our thinking, rekindle our love, and remind us of His goodness and grace. We need repentance combined with a strong desire to know Him deeply and follow Him closely.

Today, let’s continue to have the same joy and passion we first had when we surrendered our lives to Jesus and ask Him to “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right and steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and sustain me with a willing spirit" (Psalm 51:10-12; AMP).

I’m Bryce Johnson, and you can UNPACK that!

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, I pray You’d ignite a fire within me that provides excitement, passion, and energy for You. Help me not to take my salvation for granted or allow the challenges of life to distract me from loving You deeply. Thank you for Your grace and Your love. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.