Soccer Match Turns Ugly on the Field

By now, you have probably watched the video of the New Mexico women’s soccer player whose antics at the last Thursday’s game against BYU were shown throughout the internet and TV. Elizabeth Lambert's hair-pulling, punching, slapping, squeezing and anything else that would fall under the umbrella of dirty play have been discussed on most sports programs. Julie Foudy was even featured on “SportsCenter” as a soccer expert to tell us that this type of behavior is over the line. It’s a sad commentary on our culture when we need an expert to tell us that yanking someone down by their ponytail doesn’t qualify as good sportsmanship.

For the Christian athlete or coach, the chief end of every athletic practice or competition is "to glorify God and to enjoy him forever." This goal directs every aspect of our participation in sports. Although, as Christians, we should compete with intensity, we should never compete in a manner that brings dishonor to the name of Christ. We should use the opportunity of competition to draw the attention to the more important "crown that will last forever," the prize of competing in a manner that pleases our Heavenly Father. Sports activities are given by God as an opportunity to bring glory to him.

Check back later in the week for a downloadable lesson on sportsmanship.