During media availability this week ahead of Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy shared how he has leaned on Psalm 23 this season by reading the passage daily to “start off with some solitude.”

“The Lord is my shepherd. I have what I need. He lets me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside quiet waters,” Purdy said, paraphrasing Psalm 23:1 during a Sports Spectrum interview posted to YouTube on Wednesday.

“For me, playing this game, playing this sport, there is a lot that goes into it. It’s easy to get wrapped up in wanting and feeling, wanting to be loved — obviously by your teammates and everybody, but like the world. For me, in that passage, its talking about I already have what I need from the Good shepherd in Jesus.”

The 24-year-old NFL athlete, who played college football for the Iowa State Cyclones and was selected by the 49ers with the final pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, said that he refers back to the psalm in moments when he needs it most.

“It’s what I start off with, actually, every single day. I just read off Psalm 23 to myself before I start, start off with some solitude, and then, I go about my day.”

In addition to reading the Bible, Purdy said he also prays before and while he plays.

“It’s not ‘God, can we win here? Can we do something great here?’ It’s more just to have that peace, that steadfastness in all the chaos. That’s really what it is,” he said.

“And sink it back into like, ‘Holy Spirit, you know, take over and, and lead me here in this moment and allow me to think clearly, allow me to obviously go through my reads and like I said, have a even keel state of mind that I get from Holy Spirit.”

In his second season in the NFL, Purdy has stayed true to his faith and doesn’t seem afraid to share how it impacts his daily life both on and off the field.

In late January, Purdy made a post-game comment praising God after the Sunday victory that allowed his team to advance to Super Bowl LVIII.

“First of all, Glory to God. He’s given us this opportunity … and for us, it’s a team sport,” Purdy said. “You know, we knew we had [a] half left. Defense did their job. Boys on offense took care of business. Coach called a great game, and we had the faithful behind us the whole way. We love you guys.”

Last January, Purdy suffered a UCL tear in the elbow of his right throwing arm in the last game of his rookie season.

In a press conference last year, head coach Kyle Shanahan called his starting quarterback “pretty steady” and admired Purdy’s faith, saying his beliefs are what seems to drive him to great success.

“He’s a very faith-based person. I think that gives him his foundation as much as anyone I’ve been around,” Shanahan said. “He’s taken this whole off-season as good as you can. … He handles the pressure well and really doesn’t change.”

“I think that’s why the guys love him, and I think that’s why he’ll continue to get better.”
Sources:Christian Post

http://theendtimeradio.com

University of Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh revealed a stunning stat last week while joining the 51st annual March for Life Rally in Washington DC. The coach of this year’s college football championship team said 70 of his players had been baptized over the past season.

In an interview with faith and sports commentator Jon Root, on the sidelines of the pro-life rally, Harbaugh shared the surprising news.

“There’s a spiritual mission to our team,” Harbaugh said. “I’m inspired by them…[it’s] inspirational. The young players on our team are incredible examples.”

There are more than 100 players on the roster for the 2024 College Football Champs. Root said that indicates “a mini revival” has been underway this past season with more than half of the Michigan Wolverines declaring their faith in Jesus by getting baptized in 2023.

Several of the players are outspoken Born-Again Christians who aren’t afraid to talk about their faith in Christ.

As CBN News reported, Wolverines running back, Donovan Edwards, continually gives glory to God.

At the end of winning their first national championship since 1997, Edwards told WXYZ-TV, “I’m blessed. I’m able to do that because I can revert back to the situation that I did today and not worry myself and just let everything flow. But God played through me and that’s what I did today, you know, for the success that I had, it was nothing but God, you know. Trust in the process, the process with Him.”

Later, he publicly expressed more about his faith during the game’s post-press conference.

“I just thank God that He’s allowed me to [play football]… He showed me the ups, the downs, and it’s about what I do with it. It’s about if I’m going to fall from it or continue to rise from adversity and trials and tribulation,” the Michigan junior said.

Edwards told the WolverinesWire that God really changed his life before he committed to Michigan.

“I was living with my grandma when I was like 17 or 18 years old, and just me and her were talking about the Bible, and would read the Bible together all the time,” he told the outlet. “That kind of kicked off everything for me. And before I committed to Michigan, I heard a voice saying, ‘Do not worry, everything will be all right.’ And I figured out it was God talking to me.”

“After I heard that voice, I’ve always believed,” Edwards explained. “I had a spiritual vision, just God giving me the ability to see what He has planned has always allowed me to stay grounded.”

“My ultimate goal in life is not about the riches or the possessions,” he noted. “My ultimate goal in life is to get the ‘Well done, My loyal servant’ from the Most High.”

And he’s not the only player who was vocal about his faith in Jesus this season.

Running back Blake Corum says he is a firm Believer in Christ and expresses that he was put on this earth to bless others.

“God has blessed me not only with athletic abilities but the ability to give. The ability to put smiles on people’s faces. The ability to make people laugh. That’s what it’s all about. Life is about the small things—the smiles, the laughs, the get-togethers. That’s what I believe,” Corum said during his acceptance speech for the Collegiate Social Service Award he received.

He added, “Serving is what I believe God put me on this earth to do. I will continue to serve and bring communities together as long as I’m on this earth.”

Coach Harbaugh has said that God and His Holy Spirit are responsible for the team’s success.

“Thanks to God, first. He’s had His hand on this team the entire year. Been a spiritual journey for us, so all thanks to God and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I want to say this, you talk about some of the—it’s a galvanized team,” Harbaugh told ESPN before heading into the playoffs. “Some may think it’s galvanized by adversity, it’s not. It’s galvanized by choice. Choice to play for each other.”

Harbaugh Speaks Out for Life

Meanwhile, Harbaugh has never shied away from the pro-life cause and on Friday he championed the right to life at the annual March for Life in Washington.

He explained to Root his message is this: “Have the courage to let the unborn be born.”

Harbaugh also told the crowd of tens of thousands that their commitment on that cold day was a “testimony for the sanctity of life.”

He made the comment while addressing pro-lifers gathered at the National Mall before introducing retired NFL tight end and pro-life advocate Benjamin Watson.

He described Watson as “talented, courageous, fearless leader.”

“He is making a difference in the lives of so many,” Harbaugh added. “It’s my pleasure to introduce somebody who speaks truth, clarity, and grace. Who combines bold conviction with kindness. [He is] fearless, humble and courageous. Proud father of the Watson seven, and a helpful warrior for the sanctity of life.”
Sources:BREAKING CHRISTIAN NEWS

http://theendtimeradio.com

An NFL coach and several players chose to glorify God by putting their faith on display over the weekend in the divisional playoffs.

After guiding the Baltimore Ravens to their first AFC Championship game appearance in 11 years by beating the Houston Texans 34-10 on Saturday, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh chose to open his postgame press conference by reading a verse from the Bible’s Old Testament. He chose to read 1 Chronicles 29:11 to give all of the glory to God.

“I just want to start off with this. It was something that was said to me before the game and is just meaningful to me, so I’m going to share it with you,” Harbaugh told the assembled reporters. “Because I think it’s the right thing to do.”

“It’s a verse. ‘Greatness, power, glory, victory, and honor belong to You. Because everything in Heaven and Earth belongs to You. The Kingdom belongs to You, Lord. You are the head and the ruler over everything,'” he read.

“There’s an amazing spirit on this team and I just want to kind of give honor and glory where it’s due,” Harbaugh said.

Harbaugh, 61, has been outspoken about his Christian faith. The Daily Caller called him: “A fellow soldier of Jesus Christ.”

Lamar Jackson and the Ravens

Some other prominent NFL stars from the playoffs also choose to put their faith on display in front of millions.

Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson was captured on camera praying with a teammate before the game with the Texans on Saturday.

Jackson praised God following the Ravens win over the Miami Dolphins on Jan. 4, according to movieguide.com.

“I just thank God for {giving me the health to play},” he said after the game. “I should have started the presser off by thanking God…The last two seasons I wasn’t able to fight with my team. I had to do it from the sidelines and just cheer guys on. But I’m grateful for the opportunity.”

Jackson, a devout Christian, offered some advice to young people in an exclusive interview on The Wunderkind Show podcast last spring.

“You’ve got to keep God first,” he said. “Pray to God, and you’ve got to be consistent with God. It’s not like making a wish, like seeing a shooting star and just making a wish. You’ve got to be consistent when you’re praying to God…He’s gonna hear our prayers.”

The Ravens quarterback told Sports Spectrum in 2019 that his secret to staying humble is praising the Lord.

“I give Him all His praise, the glory, the honor, because of what I am,” he told the outlet. “I could have been doing anything. It’s crazy. I’ll be thinking about it, talking to Him throughout the day, like, ‘Man, I appreciate You, I thank You.’ Because if you feel like you’re bigger than the Lord, that’s when all that success dies. It goes away.”

Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs

Kansas City Chiefs Quarterback Patrick Mahomes was also seen praying before the game with the Buffalo Bills Sunday in a nationally televised moment on CBS.

The image of Mahomes kneeling in prayer was shared across social media.

Mahomes has spoken about his Christian faith during several interviews and postgame press conferences.

When asked about his Christian faith last year before the Super Bowl, the Kansas City quarterback said his faith impacts his whole life, not just football, according to KMBC-TV.

“My Christian faith plays a role in everything that I do,” Mahomes said. “I mean I always ask God to lead me in the right direction and to let me be who I am for His name. He has a role in everything that I do, and obviously, it will be on the huge stage at the Super Bowl that He’s given me and I want to make sure I’m glorifying Him while I do it.”

He later told Sports Spectrum about his ongoing spiritual growth.

“I feel like I’ve grown in my faith these last few years and I think that’s given me more sense of who I am and why I play the game,” Mahomes said. “It just kind of relieves the pressure of playing a football game because I know that I’m on that football field to glorify Him before everything. So it’s not about winning or losing, it’s about going out there and being the best that I can in His name.”

Brock Purdy and the 49ers

Before Saturday’s playoff game with the Green Bay Packers, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy was interviewed by former 49ers Hall of Fame quarterback Steve Young.

Purdy told Young, “My identity isn’t in football,” during the interview posted to the 49ers’ YouTube channel.

“I know who I am, and ‘God, if You want me to do great with (football), great. If not, all right, let’s go do something else, wherever you need me,'” he said. “That’s allowed me to not put all this pressure on myself. It’s allowed me to play free. It’s allowed me to live my life and keep things simple.”

“That’s all God. He’s got a plan more bigger and more beautiful than I could ever imagine.”
Sources:BREAKING CHRISTIAN NEWS

http://theendtimeradio.com