From 2008 [And Today], C.J. Mahaney Gives Tips For Watching The Super Bowl
February 3, 2013 in Sovereign Grace Ministries
I thought it’d be interesting to revisit a golden oldie by C.J. Mahaney. In honor of the Super Bowl, here are the viewing tips he gave back in 2008…
(Again, remember – this was written in January 2008)
[EDITED TO ADD: Apparently, C.J. still thinks it’s good advice, as he and Chad republished this post today, on their Mahaney Sports blog. There is no acknowledgement in their post that it was recycled from 2008, either.]
C.J. says:
Because of my vast knowledge of sports, this blog has an obligation to publish a public service announcement to prepare blog readers for the impending Super Bowl.
O-V-E-R-R-A-T-E-D
First, let me make clear the Super Bowl is the most overrated sporting event in the history of all sports dating back to the very first Olympics. The NFL thinks so highly of itself, the Super Bowl is assigned Roman numerals.
Yet despite the hype, year after year this game rarely delivers. With few exceptions, most of these games are neither exciting nor memorable (unless your team is participating). And so tomorrow we must collectively endure yet another Super Bowl.
For me, the only good thing about the Super Bowl is that it means MARCH MADNESS is fast approaching! Don’t get me started on March Madness and college basketball, because year after year college basketball always delivers.
I’ll give you a Super Bowl game prediction later, but for now some things to keep in mind while watching the Super Bowl (or any televised sporting event).
Tips for watching the Super Bowl
Here are four tips for watching the Super Bowl to the glory of God.
1. Strategically assign the remote.
The remote control needs to be specifically assigned to someone. This cannot be just anybody. Viewers are assaulted with lame commercials, immoral commercials, commercials that assault and offend one’s intelligence, and commercials that parade immodestly-dressed women. These are as much a part of the Super Bowl as the game itself.Working the remote requires skill, coordination, and discernment. This person needs to be paying attention and anticipating commercial breaks. While everyone else enjoys the game, this person is working and always aware of what’s on the TV.
I recommend you establish on the remote an alternative channel that presents no temptation (C-SPAN for example). Turning to C-SPAN at appropriate moments also means conversation will take place.
For those assigned to this task I recommend further reading. I trained my sons-in-law in the art and craft of strategic clickery. One of them, Steve Whitacre (married to my daughter Nicole), has written up these notes and you can read his post here. [link is now broken]
2. Don’t watch passively.
I encourage fathers to watch actively and discerningly, never passively and superficially. There is no doubt that throughout the game you will hear one superlative after another attributed to the skill of the athletes. The accent throughout the game will be on skill, not character.In my book, Humility: True Greatness, I wrote,
Nowhere is the word great mentioned more often in our culture than in the context of professional sports. If you watch any game this weekend and listen to the announcer’s commentary, then like a mantra you’ll probably hear the word great repeated throughout—great, great, great. Yet it may well be that nowhere in our culture is the absence of true greatness more evident than in professional sports. So be careful about cultivating an excessive love for professional or collegiate athletics in your child. (pp. 161-162)
Without minimizing the skill as a gift from God, I want to direct my son’s attention to character as theologically defined and described. So as Chad and I watch the game, I will draw his attention to any evidence of humility or unselfishness I observe, as well as any expression of arrogance or selfishness. I will celebrate the former and ridicule the latter.
I don’t just watch the game with Chad; I seize it as a teaching moment to equip him with discernment about true greatness in the eyes of God. Watching sports actively is about imparting theologically informed discernment.
3. Foster fellowship.
We need to make sure a room full of people are not simply passively watching the Super Bowl. With the right leadership, and with a simple changing of the channel, commercial time can be time redeemed.Don’t misunderstand. It’s perfectly legitimate to watch and enjoy the game. I’m not advocating that you invite those who have no interest in the game and who want to distract your attention from the game. Actually, I don’t recommend you invite those folks over for the game. You can arrange to meet with those people at another time.
In strategically inviting people to watch the game with us we should make sure we don’t neglect interacting with others for the sake of simply watching the game. Watching the game should involve building relationships.
4. Draw attention to the eternal.
Sometime after the game—that same evening or the next day—it’s helpful for a father to draw his child’s attention to the game in light of eternity. It’s also helpful for us as fathers to be reminded of an eternal perspective.Apart from those few who listen excessively to sports talk radio, this game will be quickly forgotten. Let me ask you this—who won the Super Bowl even five years ago?
The day before the 1972 Super Bowl, Dallas Cowboy running back Duane Thomas said, “If it’s the ultimate game, how come they’re playing it again next year?” Some players seem to get it. Sadly, many fans don’t.
More recently Tom Brady—quarterback of three Super Bowl championships—is quoted in a 60 Minutes interview saying,
Why do I have three Super Bowl rings and still think there’s something greater out there for me? I mean, maybe a lot of people would say, ‘Hey man, this is what is.’ I reached my goal, my dream, my life. I think, ‘God, it’s got to be more than this.’ I mean this isn’t, this can’t be, what it’s all cracked up to be.
I would anticipate that a week or two from now, even if the Patriots win and complete a perfect season, Brady will still experience the same dissatisfaction in his soul. As Augustine said, “You [God] made us for yourself, and our hearts find no peace till they rest in you.”
We must impart this eternal perspective to our children.
© 2013, Kris. All rights reserved.
It feels to me like everything in SGMville was always such a big heavy sin-laden deal…and always had to be overtly spiritualized, which was always so much work.
Who can live like this for very long without getting depressed? It’s the exact opposite of how Jesus portrayed the Christian life:
Your post almost makes me cry. It is hard to describe the degree of oppression. The constant focus on sin. It was bad news indeed. So much of these Tips on the Super Bowl – make me want to barf. I can’t begin to tell you how badly SGM affected me. When a church is harder to get over than years of severe physical abuse & sexual abuse – I promise you something is deadly wrong. SGM was the hardest thing I ever had to get over. And, much of it sadly still affects me. What they did – goes deep. And, for people to still continue to think we are the problem. If we are the problem why have 15 churches left SGM? Wake up people and fight to get your church as far away from SGM as you can! These tips make me want to puke.
Kris – Good word from the Word.
Kris 1
“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
This is one of the first scriptures God impressed upon me as he opened my eyes to the deceit of SGM. The picture he gave me was of the pastors at CLC heaping heavy burdens on the backs of members and that he was NOT at all pleased with them.
That was the beginning of me breaking free and fleeing to the open arms of my heavenly Father.
Why I allowed them to strap all those burdens to my back, I can’t say. I can’t really explain why I was attracted to follow CJ and the others in the first place. It may have been at least in part, a vain idealistic attempt to ‘do church right’.
Unfortunately simply having your “Church” depart SGM or relieving an SGM “Senior pastor “unwilling to relinquish control” and calling his departure to a building down the road, a “Church Plant” does not guarantee a departure from questionable, deceptive, or even misleading practices (unapologetic acknowledged sin) while strategically distancing themselves from the negative google searchable internet pariah that could otherwise undermine much needed “Church growth” (possibly translated- funds). And yet the “Facebook” notoriety and public accolades of such a move by such men continue to pour in possibly unaware of the true stories behind it all. After many years of this heartache I would urge any and many in any of these similar descriptives to just leave it all behind for the sake of your children (and your health and stomach) seek a good “normal” Bible believing Jesus loving church that doesn’t hold to a mindset that in an entire region almost the size of Texas they would or could only recommend 2 other churches to consider attending. It’s a sad, troubling and yet potentially liberating time for many caught in this, who are willing to take the initially lonely road of seeking new and far healthier pastures that Jesus promised for His “friends” and followers.
May these passages bring encouragement to many of you/ us struggling to rise above this all. He is and will be faithful even when others and our own hearts fail us.
2 Cor 4:1, 2
Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. 2 But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God
Galatians 5:1
For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.
The key word “again” stands out to me as a possible gracious understanding into matters like ours, though likely only refering to our former bondage to sin we once were shackled to.
Blessings
On the previous thread long gone asked, “A new plant in Franklin? Isn’t Larry’s church there????”
According to several news reports, Larry Tomczak lives in Franklin, TN. The church where he is an associate pastor is about 15 minutes away in Brentwood, TN.
I remember about 1984/85 I was struggling bad in every area of my life and my mom gave me this tape by CJ whom I never heard of on a series he did on “Holiness” and it effected me greatly. I would like to think there was a time CJ walked under the anointing of God. As good as that series was I would be hard pressed to listen to it again. What in the world happened to this dude? There’s a lot of high drama crime shows on TV showing all the new techniques and forensics and how law enforcement uses these to solve cases…and yet criminals continue doing the same crimes over and over again knowing about all this new technology and that there chance of getting away with it are slim to none. The same way with CJ/SGM in that for the last 30 years they have witnessed the rise and fall of so many pastors and ministries but insist on doing the very things that caused these other pastors/ministries to fall. I guess there’s more truth about a dog returning to it’s vomit than I realized.
The only thing I agree with CJ on is that March Madness is infinitely more interesting than the Super Bowl.
Yes, Kris, in SGMland, everything was hyper-spiritualized and it was discouraging, if not downright depressing. God forbid that you just have fun doing the things that “normal” people do. When CJ and the other pastors would pontificate on things like how to watch the Super Bowl in a “biblical” way, it only served to plant seeds of doubt in my mind about the degree of godliness in my husband. My husband didn’t “draw out” our kids during and after every sporting event or tv show or movie they watched, pointing out the displays of pride versus humility like CJ did. He didn’t turn off the tv during all the commercials in order to engage in meaningful conversation like CJ did. He wasn’t exactly a failure, but he sure could’ve done a whole lot better. That’s what I thought back then when I used to pay attention to what CJ Mahaney said. It makes me sick to think how much damage was done to people’s relationships because of this kind of attempt by the SGM leaders and pastors to micromanage everybody’s lives and tell them them how they should think about everything, even something as trivial as the Super Bowl.
I am so glad I missed this one in 2008. I would probably not be enjoying the game today. I think it is funny in the middle of this crap CJ said:
Phew, I thought the superbowl was about my sin. Okay, CJ, that is good. But wait, he continues…
Oh no! In invited the wrong people over.
This reminds me when we learned that there was another word we had to get rid of in our everyday vocabulary. “Awesome. “
Nothing could be awesome except God. So, a word very prevalent in our culture was made to be a bad word IF we used it the wrong way.
You could no longer say “That’s awesome, Son!” You would catch your self starting to saw “Awe..” er, GREAT! (Thank GOD we could still use “great”)
This makes me more sick. I am still trying to unlearn all this. Please, anyone just getting into SGM and thinking it isn’t this bad, It really is. If you stay, you will learn new meanings to a lot of words, and have to take on new understandings of things that were once everyday occurrences. After a while, you will find you have no joy in your life.
Tom Brady, Do you still have dissatisfaction in your soul after all these years?
Or do you know the Lord according to cj’s standard?
I like the super bowl as much as can be expected when my team isn’t in it. I love the commercials best of all. I don’t like the half time shows that consist of has-beens.(hear that mick jagger-you old guys need to get out of the way and stick to oldie shows–nothing worse than 60 somethings prancing around on stage)
And I like the food that is special to a big game and the excitement that occurs. It’s just a special time…because then football is over until August.
Thank God.
(Off topic…sorry, Kris…I meant to post this earlier on the other thread.)
I was disappointed when I saw Piper with Doug Wilson. Trust me, Doug Wilson has his share of “survivors.” I personally know some of them. Anyone who thinks Wilson is “benign” had better think again. He’s a master at Rhetoric and is using it to “persuade” God’s people.
Have any of you read Doug Wilson’s books? I have. The guy is just as wacked, only smarter.
This post from Karen Campbell is just one of MANY posts/quotes you can find on the internet about Doug Wilson. Unfortunately her links no longer work. The “Wilsons” were smart enough to “apologize” and took down what they posted.
Whereas SGM combed the internet looking for negative PR to “erase,” Doug Wilson actively seeks his critics out to debate them. He takes GREAT PRIDE in his debate skills. It’s his trademark. He reminds me of a “crafty serpent” in a garden who once said, “Did God really say…”
And PLEASE, after reading this post, do not veer off into a discussion debating complimentarianism and egalitarianism.
You will enjoy reading this blog:
http://wearethefamilymorris.blogspot.com/2012/12/quiet-times-bacon-post-16.html?m=1
In it, a young woman who grew up in CLC takes Stephen Altrogge to task for a blog post of his. The resulting comments and discussion, including responses from Altrogge, shed light on the current topic,
I will be handing over 20.00 to help with the purchase of wings and having s glass of wine. Go Ravens.
KMD (#11), thanks for sharing that link. I agree so much with her. I didn’t read all the comments, but I did read the last one, from “Anonymous” on January 6th. What an arrogant, hateful person! Sheesh! I’d leave a comment, but that kind of person usually won’t listen to reason. Also, I have to say that I have been increasingly disturbed by many of the blog posts at The Blazing Center. So much legalism, misrepresenting the Father, and lack of understanding of grace. It makes me sad.
“@#407. . . A new plant in Franklin? Isn’t Larry’s church there????”
Holy Crap! How did we miss that?
Sheep-stealing galore and they are already mostly brainwashed!
I wonder how CJ’s instructions affected people’s behavior at Super Bowl parties? Did any of the care groups have parties? Did they all attempt to shut off the TV during commercials?
(This particularly boggles my mind, as I think the commercials are often the best part of the whole show.)
Concerned – Yeah, I posted a link in a comment on the last post about that – an interview with the “planter” on the SGM Plant & Build blog. I also noted that Forbes lists the county that Franklin is in as #17 of the 25 wealthiest counties in the US. No surprise there, eh?
I don’t know which is more maddening:
1) the things he says, or
2) that there exists a substantial and apparently growing market demand for the things he says…
Moniker said,
Awhile back, when I was listening to CJ’s Soul of Modesty sermon, I was thinking of how the way he exhorted the men in his audience to do what he did – engage in the same kind of wardrobe inspections he (supposedly) performed on each and every one of his wife’s and daughters’ clothing selections – would have affected the women in his audience. It seems to me, the way CJ held himself up as the example for a higher standard of behavior, constantly explaining how he himself lived out this or that principle, would make it really difficult for the other men in his congregation.
KMD @12 — I went to the link posted, did not read all of it, but I noticed that 2 quotes, one at the beginning and the other near the end, were from D.Shorey. Is that Don Shorey, former pc grad and pastor at CovFel?
Concerned @15 — A church-plant in Franklin sounds like a church-plant threat in G’burg. It seems like a vengeful thing, a way of getting back at those who dared to disagree with the ‘wizard’. They’ll just ‘show them’ how church is REALLY done.
“That Bad Dog” said,
No kidding.
Of course, CJ’s defenders would say that this post is 5 years old, and it doesn’t reflect what he thinks these days.
But if that’s the case, where are the retractions? Where’s the new grace-filled Super Bowl instructions? Or the apology for trying to turn every stinkin’ experience into a spiritual gymnastics exhibition?
I bet there are still those within SGM who took this post to heart and approach their Super Bowl viewing today with the burden of making it a sin-sniffing event.
But as to why (until very recently, when the lawsuit hit) CJ’s star has continued to rise, and why his type of overwrought legalism continues to appeal to a certain segment of Christianity, I think it comes down to a reaction to our loosey-goosey “anything goes” culture. For Christians who are earnest and serious about their faith, it can feel good to feel hyper-spiritual. CJ’s over-the-top directives about prosaic matters like how to watch a football game on TV can help us feel hyper-spiritual.
It really comes back to human nature. Why were the Pharisees a big deal in Jesus’ time? I think it’s because a part of our fallen selves long for the letter of the law. It makes us feel like our faith is somehow more real, more active, when we aren’t just “ordinary” Christians but are working hard to go above and beyond the ordinary.
Kris,
I can confirm that yes, there were caregroup parties and yes, there was a designated remote control nazi. No commercials or halftime allowed. I was made to feel very sinful for wanting to watch the commercials and halftime. I was selfish and would be causing children and my brothers to stumble. I stopped going to them in recent years. Especially after someone commandeered the remote at my own house. So weird for the guests I had that weren’t in the church. Basically you took a major outreach possibility and turned it so weird that unless you were “like minded” there is no way you wanted any part of it.
I know this is off topic, but I wanted to talk about this because it has been on my mind:
As a dad, I have volunteered in Children’s ministry over the years. After learning about all the sex abuse cases that have occurred in SGM churches, I believe that churches are lulled into thinking that children are safe from pedophiles while at church, because there is a “safety policy” in place. But those policies as worked out in the day-to-day real world of children’s ministry are not safe for children – they are in place to protect mostly the church organization or the children’s ministry worker from lawsuits.
I’ll explain. I would have a children’s ministry class of 3, 4 or 5 year old kids. Taking approximately 10 or more active kids of these ages to the bathroom, at a time, is hard to control even with two other men and/or a teenager with me. Here you are – and this scenario happens in churches all over the country — one guy is in the bathroom stall having to help a little boy pull his zipper and/or pants up or down, while the other guy is making sure no kids run out the bathroom door. If there is another guy there too, he’s busy helping some other little kid wash his hands or wipe his nose, etc. Because of all of the commotion and distraction, the potential for a pedophile to attack a child is very possible, particularly because most innocent and well-meaning church members are not aware that sex abuse can and has happened in children’s ministries. In fact, I think that men tend to be in denial or not want to believe that something like that could even happen in their church, even if it were happening in the stall next to them!
I don’t know why but many men want to deny, ignore or just don’t want to get involved when there is any hint of sex abuse when it crosses their path. When I have talked with other current SGM members about the sex abuse cases on the lawsuit, they seem to have a tendency to not want to believe that these things really did happen! They don’t seem to respond with much emotion at all, even though some of the sex abuse cases on the SGM lawsuit have already been convicted in a court of law.
One of the things that could help stop sex abuse from happening in churches and between church members is that pastors need to educate their church members that sex abuse can and has happened in churches, not just at the church building but at other church functions or at church members homes. Pastors need to use the sex abuse stories of the past and the present alleged stories to educate their people. I write this because of the proven fact that Nate Morales has been arrested on 8 or 9 molestation charges. I don’t know when or where he attacked his victims, but he was a very involved member of CLC and a teacher at a nearby Christian high school where many CLC members attended. Somehow in a close knit community like CLC, a sex abuser was able to get away with sexually abusing multiple teens like that and most members had no idea! Church members and pastors need to wake up and be willing to really deal with these issues and not avoid them because they are sickening and difficult to think about.
I’ve been to that superbowl party! I still remember, back when it was still PDI going over to our caregroup leader’s house and the men took turns wearing a stupid hat and puposefully attending to the commercials. And there were cheesy plans for ‘fun’ suring the commerceal breaks. My husband and I thought it was ridiculous, but didn’t think much of it just assuming these nice yuppies were a bit over-zealous. Ahhhh, you bring back memories. This of course was well before 2008 so those ideas have been around awhile. C.J. never was one for lots of new and creative teaching, more like a broken record.
About the remote, this is true. I think we thought that we would do this in deference to what we were being told because of how much they cared for our souls. We wanted to obey because they loved us so much.
See, that’s just snotty.
That’s not church planting. That’s C.J. Mahaney spitting in Larry Tomzcak’s face (or some even more disgusting analogy). That is C.J. Mahaney needing to win, to prove his dominance, to punish Tomzcak for speaking ill of the Glorious Leader, to stand triumphant with his boot on Tomzcak’s neck.
C.J. Mahaney is a jackbooted bully in pastoral robes.
I wonder if this is actually how C.J. acted with his son during the superbowl that year or at best was an embellisment of how he acted. If C.J. didn’t act this way it wouldn’t be the first time he preached something that he expected others to do but didn’t do himself. The documents with all those released emails showed C.J. did some of that.
As someone joked about before, no wonder Chad was caught smoking pot in high school. If you had a dad like C.J. you just might need to smoke pot (joking or somewhat joking).
Argus @27 — Agreed. Just as I said in #21.
I should add to my conment that now we know the truth. It’s not use they loved so much as there own agenda.
To compare SGM to the Super Bowl, allow me.
O-V-E-R-R-A-T-E-D (nuff said0
1. Assign the remote – Always have someone monitor what is said about SGM by others so that they may begin a ‘spin fest’ lest any begin to believe what was said.
2. Don’t watch passively – Don’t just read blog, etc and get angry, or agree. Be on the lookout for what could be called gossip and slander and make preemptive moves. Keep control of everything.
3. Foster fellowship – Have a strategy for making friends with respected, authoritative men who have influence in the Christian realm. Persuade them that they need and want our influence.
4. Draw attention to the eternal – Remind onlookers that our goal is to further the gospel, even when it looks and seems to be self-glorifying.
although a bit before all of this…i sat with cj for the first half of a maryland basketball game back in cole field house (so had to be in the late 1980s)…and all he talked about was basketball…
I well remember our first (and last!) Super Bowl party connected with an SGM church. It was a new ‘plant’ but prepopulated by transplants from older SGM churches. It was hosted by a member, but somehow one pastor attended and controlled the remote. He made a big deal out of who else could be trusted with it. Honestly, it looked like it was sort of a game to him as he talked about who would get it for the next commercials. It had the self-important air of handing over the ceremonial scepter. His own son got it first after him or nearly so. I’m sure the host did, too, and a few other old-timers practically lined up for their turns.
At one point, the pastor said they would give this other man (who’d come late to the party) a try, and it was almost a challenge, like a taunt or a test. Well, this brother was a long-time devoted Christian, but I guess in his decades of Bible reading he somehow missed the verse about Super Bowl commercials. He had to ask what the pastor even meant and was told he was being trusted to protect the younger brothers from temptation by switching immediately from anything that might be sinful or worldly.
I guess his standards weren’t as high and holy as theirs, because he let some commercials play — all of which would have been pretty darn normal in any other context. They practically fell over themselves to take the remote control from his hand and end his turn.
It was an initiation rite. They set him up with a test of whether he was one of those who ‘pressed in’ and ‘sought correction’ and who read and believed and followed absolutely every word that proceeds from the mouth of C.J. It was all smiling and friendly, of course, and he didn’t quite even realize what was happening, but they humiliated him. He had failed the test. He would never be one of those who were courted and treated preferentially. He was now to be tolerated and treated in a surface-friendly way.
But here is the stupidest part. If those young men were so in danger of destroying their souls over a TV commercial, why didn’t THEY just leave the room? It would have been easy enough for them to get up and grab some snacks in the kitchen or take a bathroom break. Why make a weird litmus test of loyalty out of knowing the secret rules? Why mob up to see if the man with the remote would do it just right?
What a crazy CULTure!
I should say that at our former church NOW the whole teaching is to use things like Super Bowl parties as neighborhood outreach. They made a thing out of it, wrote up a guide on how to host an outreach Super Bowl bash, had host home sign-ups and church members signed up as guests at each one so the ratio of ‘us’ vs. ‘them’ was quite high. Did the same thing for Halloween. Very orchestrated and deliberate effort to bring people into the church.
I think part of it is because one of the pastors has a true heart of evangelism. I think he’s getting more support for it from the other pastors since the blogs blew the whistle on the lack of real evangelism in SGM. But still, it’s just weird, this sense that the flock must be controlled and organized into a church program (without the neighbors realizing that is what is going on) vs. trusted to love their neighbors and share Jesus.
Argus 34
The focus on outreach and evangelism has been more of a marketing strategy to fill the seats of those who have left. Ok if one leaves as long as you fill the seat with a new (transplanted) christian. Outreach never for the lost, as they bring the world in with them and contaminate the whitewashed walls.
I think the whole ‘guard your eyes and heart’ mantra in regards to football is just one way CJ enables himself to indulge in his lust for sports. By taking care to remove some of the negative accoutrements of the game, he also makes a way to engage in a gigantic waste of time. But, I do wonder how he guards his eyes from watching the cheerleaders.
Diego, I agree. Mostly. I do think some are called to evangelize and have a heart for it. It’s just sad that in SGM, most of this gets directed toward bringing people into ‘the local church’instead of truly bringing people to know Christ.
People aren’t so much taught to witness as they are taught to bring people to church so they can hear the teaching and see the ‘love'(bombing) that goes on there.
They talk about people getting “plugged in” more than about people being converted. Far more.
@Persona – #36
—
Regarding the cheerleaders…his eyes grew large and his eyebrows went up.
All this talk of SGM Super Bowl Ethics reminds me of the Valentine’s Banquets we would have in both of my PDI churches. Every year, we women would buy a new dress, fix ourselves up, looking forward to a romantic night out with our husbands. And every year, I was disappointed after the banquet. What should have been a time of fun and relaxation would become a sermon or a church meeting. Ugh. One year, we were asked to “rate” our marriages. The ones with the highest scores got recognized. Of course, that meant that the rest of us lowered our heads in shame and embarrasment. Some romance, huh?
Finally, during our last few years at PDI, my husband and I and another couple ditched the church Valentines gathering to spend our hard earned money on much better food and a lighthearted aptmosphere in a local restaurant.
I guess nothing could be done in these churches without it being uber-controlled and sin centered. One year, I was very sick but went to the Valentine’s church dinner because I was silly enough to believe that THIS could be the time when we’d have fun. Wrong! I should have stayed home.
Now back to Super Bowl Ediquette…(and if I spelled that last word correctly, I’d be surprised).
@Oswald – yes :) That’s Don Shorey who attended Pastor’s College, and then went on to pastor at Cov Fel. He’s been running his church and ministry (enjoyinggrace.org/) for a number of years now (and hasn’t been involved with SGM or CovFel for just as long.) There are other Shorey’s who still pastor in SGM, but Don doesn’t :)
I am Canadian so I was never invited to any of the Superbowl parties …… which did happen becuase there were alot of Americans at my SGM church.
The funny part is I was once told I was “withdrawing” because I was not at any of the Superbowl parties. Not being invited apperantly was not an excuse for missing out on this prime man fellowship time …. Kinda funny but made me sad at the time.
From the stories here and what I have heard these SGM superbowl parties where just another giant waste of time.
Kinda funny that the Mahaney Sports Blog has the same post up today…I guess some things never change.
Guy said,
Wow.
So I guess the CJ defenders might as well put away their argument that he no longer feels this way and has moved away from such petty legalism.
Thanks to everyone for sharing about their own SGM Super Bowl party experiences.
Honestly, hearing about how CJ’s advice works when it’s put into action – well, it all sounds about as bizarre as I’d imagine it’d be.
Argus said,
I highlighted what struck me the most – that Argo’s SGM church wrote up a guide on how to host an outreach Super Bowl bash.
Think about it. If pastors feel like their members need to be taught how to have non-churchfolk over to watch a sporting event, isn’t that a sign that maybe being part of SGM causes people to become a little odd when they relate to non-SGMers? Or at the very least, that non-SGMers might find the SGMers’ behavior off-putting?
Either that, or it’s a sign that SGM pastors still feel the need to try to control everything.
I read the link KMD posted, and one of Stephen Altrogge’s comments irked me enough to reply back to him, though I sort of doubt that he is participating in the discussion any longer.
The relevant part of his comment:
My reply:
I am not sure if this ever happened – but, do any of the churches have Super Bowl parties at the actual church? I mean with the sound system at CFC and the big screens…. it would be great. I think once or twice that may have happened, and does anyone know if it was a VIP crowd? Does this happen at any of the churches?
@ Michael – as my “poster child” fundamental Baptist pastor used to say (waaaaay back in the day)when confronted about their legalism (we’re talking serious legalism here folls)…”It’s better to be legal than illegal Bless God!”…lol
From the post:
“So as Chad and I watch the game, I will draw his attention to any evidence of humility or unselfishness I observe, as well as any expression of arrogance or selfishness. I will celebrate the former and ridicule the latter.”
How someone can write a book on humility while simultaneously teaching how to “ridicule” a sports figure celebrating a victory is inexplicable.
Ridiculing others has always been a key tactic in controlling behavior in SGM.
The fact he is teaching his sons and son-in-laws to do same is very telling.
Michael –
EXCELLENT response to Stephen Altrogge.
You know, in thinking about SGM’s legalism in so many areas – like in needing to switch the channel so some guys don’t get “stumbled” by sexy Super Bowl commercials, to making one’s quiet time the measure of one’s relationship with Jesus – it occurs to me that possibly, just possibly, God would be more pleased by people who lived in freedom in Christ, even if they occasionally did take things too far and stumble into licentiousness.
I mean, which approach exhibits more faith in what Jesus has accomplished for us? The fear-filled person clinging to CJ’s rules and guidelines and obsessing over what a dirty rotten sinner he still is? Or the person who truly believes that he is now a new creature in Christ with the Holy Spirit now living inside him to guide him into righteousness?