Josh Steed says if you read the playbook, listen to the coach and endure the penalties, everything will turn out well.
However, he wasn’t just talking about football.
Steed, a small businessman in Camden, Ark., says in the new book “Faith Football: A Look At Life Through a Facemask” that life and the sport have numerous parallels.
“Football filled a void in my life,” he said. “It filled the void temporarily until I found Christ. People use sports as an escape from the situation they have to live in. But sports are not going to cut it in the long run. There will be a hole in your heart until you find Christ.”
That’s not to say there’s anything wrong with football, said Steed, a husband and father of four.
Indeed, he said, “when you find Christ, that’s when sports come alive.”
Steed said football became an asset to him after his parents divorced when he was 6 years old, his mother died when he was 9 and his sister died when he was 12. Yet, he said, he squandered his opportunity for college football when he was kicked off his high school football team.
Today, he talks about the importance of trusting the coach in football and “the one true coach” (God) in life.
“When there’s a decision in a game situation, and you may think it’s not the right call,” Steed said, “do you trust and respect the coach enough to do what he says?”
Too often, he said, people want to listen to the fans and the critics instead of taking the time to know the coach.
“If you get to know your coach, you’ve got to trust,” Steed said. “Then you have to run it with all you’ve got. Don’t hold back.”
Mark Mariakis, head football coach at Ridgeland High School, and Grant Reynolds, head football coach at Boyd-Buchanan School, said there is no doubt football and living a Christian life go hand in hand.
“It’s hard to separate the two,” said Mariakis, who said his team’s theme of the pain of sacrifice or the pain of regret has parallels in life.
“If you don’t sacrifice in a season, you have regrets,” he said. “If you don’t accept Christ, there’s going to be a huge regret at the end of life.”
“You have to sacrifice things to follow God,” said Reynolds. “It’s the same with football. To be part of a team, a program, you have to be committed to a group of guys.”
He said members of last year’s Class A state championship finalist Boyd-Buchanan team had a genuine love for each other and didn’t want to be apart.
“When you love people, you do anything in the world for them,” Reynolds said. “Jesus was all about teaching love for another, treating our neighbors as ourselves.”
Steed says his favorite chapter in the book, which is divided into individual sections comparing one aspect of football to the Christian life, is one on penalties.
If one member of a football team jumps offside, he said, the entire team is penalized 5 yards. The same, he said, is often true in life. When someone associated with an organization makes a mistake, the organization is often seen at fault.
“Mistakes are more than just ourselves,” said the author, a former player at Harmony Grove High School in Camden. “We should rely on on another before we go on to make a selfish decision.”
The Rev. Curt McKee, pastor of Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church, said those who follow God, as noted in 1 Corinthians 15:57 – “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ,” are already winners.
The critical part, he said, “is keeping that winning attitude. You have to incorporate the whole idea that we’re in this together. When you work together as a team, you see things happen.”
Christ depended on a team of 12, McKee said.
“I think that turned out pretty good,” he said.
The book “Faith Football: A Look At Life Through a Facemask” also includes stories of how faith has played a part in the game of college and professional athletes, and tips for parents who want to help their children integrate faith and athletics.
The book is available through online retailers such as amazon.com and at Steed’s website, www.read4god.com.