My friend Billy has a good summary and some wise thoughts here:
If you are vaguely familiar with the NBA then you know that one of the league’s biggest superstars announced which team he’s signing with last night. For anyone not familiar with what’s going on let me catch you up. LeBron James, the league’s reigning MVP, declared his decision on live TV last night. And let me tell you that LeBron James,aka King James, has definitely enjoyed the attention. He could have basically picked whatever team he wanted, signed a maximum $100 million + contract, and soaked in the praise from millions of adoring fans. It’s not uncommon for a player who’s contract has ended to go through the process of weighing the pros and cons of where to go. It happens every year. But for the rest of the league the way it plays out is far different. Most basketball players do most of it privately, behind the scenes. But not King James. Rather than pursue the route other players take, LeBron has opted to make his choice known on his own live TV special named, “The Decision.” So for a guy who is already widely known around the world apparently he craved just a little more attention. The appeal to garner more interest was too hard to pass up.
The things LeBron is pursuing are pretty obvious. Money, fame, championships, recognition, etc. But before we get too hard on LeBron it’s always good to do a little self-examination first. It’s easy to look at the life of a famous athlete and determine what drives them, but whether you are known by a few or by a million all of us have driving passions. Things that make us tick. Pursuits we endeavor. And sadly enough, the chase of money, career, recognition, and respect doesn’t just apply to the famous. Every day people make decisions to reach these goals. Shaking hands with the right people. Doing whatever it takes to land the big contract. When something becomes prized we do whatever it takes to obtain it. But as appealing as those things are, God’s Word rightly directs us to the true pursuits. In Proverbs 3 we are told that the one who finds wisdom and understanding is blessed. Fearing God and knowing Him are pursuits that bring more joy, peace, and life than anything life has to offer. So our call today is to abandon any worldly pursuits and do whatever it takes to faithfully follow Jesus.
I would also mention that in his own mind Lebron is pursuing happiness. This was the advice he got from his mother that he should do what is going to make him happy. For him this meant less money and less of the spotlight, being that it will be shared by two others now. The sad thing is that we don’t know what will really make us happy.
I wonder how he felt about the reaction the Cleveland fans gave him…..
It was heartening to see that part of his decision included “sharing the limelight:!
Ricky,
When you mentioned sharing the spotlight in Miami, it reminded me of what Lebron said in his “decision” interview. The interviewer asked him whether he was going to be okay with sharing the spotlight with D. Wade and C. Bosh.
He said, “For me, it’s not about sharing. It’s about everybody getting their *own* spotlight.”
Now that’s team spirit.
We see this in the ministry sometimes too. I was at a breakfast with a bunch of ministers from the local Baptist Association and it was kind of a surprise to see the pastors segregate themselves by order of perceived importance. The Pastors of the big First Baptist churches sat next to each other and gave short answers to anyone who said anything to them. The bi-vocartional pastors and pastors of the smaller churches were kind of looked down on. You’d wouldn’t think that earthly ambition and pride in accomplishments would be as blatant in a group of ministers as in professional athletes or anywhere else but it is.