Have y’all heard about our Broncos quarterback?  Seen teenagers “Tebowing” it in random places around town?  Wondered what the heck all the hoopla was about this rookie football player in Denver?

I’m no football expert.  The hubs could tell you far more about it than I could.  What has me smiling this morning, however, is something much more than our local football team and its decision to start a new quarterback in the middle of this season.

Tim Tebow.  His name is reaching new levels of celebrity than any of us had imagined.  My friends and family from the east coast are even talking about him!  At first when he was signed on to play for the Broncos last year it was all I heard about in Christian circles.  Here’s this young, homeschooled, Christian football player (who is quite attractive, I must add) who doesn’t look a thing like most quarterbacks.  He’s built more like a fullback and loves running plays.  The first game he played for our Broncos (preseason) I watched as he ran the ball into the end zone himself for a touchdown, getting a few bruised ribs in the process from the sandwiching tackles he received.

Here’s an interesting read from the Denver Post’s First-and-Orange Blog about Tebow’s reaction to the “Tebowing” fad.

What is it about Tebow that has everyone talking?  Could it be that he paints Bible verses on his cheeks for games?  Is it his kneeling prayer on the field that now has everyone “Tebowing” to copy him?  Is it that he’s a professed Christian, former homeschooler, missionaries’ kid who is saving himself for marriage?  Or is it the “Mile High Magic” that against all odds, this kid thrives under pressure and has time and again squeezed out a Broncos victory in the last possible minutes (or overtime!) of the past seven of eight games he’s started?

Many people are talking about Tebow and do you know what he does?  He talks about God.  So that means sports fans, the media, folks around the nation are talking about God.  It’s uncomfortable sometimes.  We’re not used to overly publicized sports figures talking about their faith in the Lord above all things.  People are uncomfortable watching him kneel on the football field.  Folks have verbally attacked him time and again and I fear are just waiting for his foot to stumble, for him to make some moral mistake off the field, so they can pounce on it and showcase his imperfection.

Is Tebow perfect?  Of course not!  But you know something?  God works through imperfect people… all the time.

I’ll admit that I resisted jumping on the Tebow bandwagon.  Yes, my husband was homeschooled and we are Christians.  But that doesn’t mean I’m just going to run out and tattoo the number 15 to my arm.  Personally, my faith in the Lord is much deeper than that.  God is my salvation, my hope for tomorrow, my strength in today.  I shy away from selling out to all things promoted “Christian” for fear of degrading His glory.  I think God deserves more than a healthy dose of reverence and awe that is often lost in today’s watered down, feel-good religious messages.  And yet, I am starting to realize that perhaps I err too far in avoiding His name on my lips in everyday conversation.  The profound presence and force He has on my life is all too worthy of my praise!

I woke up this morning missing my dad so much it hurts.  He was a football player, you see.  A Virginia native, he loved his Redskins!  He also loved the West and I have a feeling he would absolutely LOVE it that I lived in Colorado so he could come visit often.  I’d like to think he’d have some profound thoughts on the Tebow phenomenon.  He was a Baptist minister with a robust laugh and a really good man.  I think he’d say something about how the importance of what Tim Tebow is doing is not in the football games he’s playing, but in the message he’s sending to glorify God in all things.  Tebow seems like a good man, worthy of respect and admiration that he is confident enough to share his beliefs and remain humble of his performance amidst some pretty intense media coverage and slander.  He repeatedly turns his (and our) attention back to the Lord.

No, I definitely do not think Tim Tebow is Jesus as some have claimed with their personalized jerseys.  Nor do I think Tebow is God’s quarterback as the media has deemed him.  But I do think he could be a messenger used by God to further His kingdom.  He’s surely reminding me to step up my game.  To God be the glory! as Dad would say.