Tim Tebow and the power of faith
Broncos won again today. Though quarterback Tim Tebow’s brand of public Christian piety is not my thing, I find people who get worked up over it to be whiny, cynical pains in the rear. What a pleasant surprise to find the NYT’s Frank Bruni not to be one of them. From Bruni’s column:
He reminds us that strength comes in many forms and some people have what can be described only as a gift for winning, which isn’t synonymous with any spreadsheet inventory of what it supposedly takes to win.
This gift usually involves hope, confidence and a special composure, all of which keep a person in the game long enough, with enough energy and stability, so that a fickle entity known as luck might break his or her way. For Tebow that state of mind comes from his particular relationship with his chosen God and is a matter of religion. For someone else it might be understood and experienced as the power of positive thinking, and is a matter of psychology. Either way it boils down to stubborn optimism and bequeaths a spark. A swagger. An edge.
It’s easy to be pessimistic about optimism. When peddled generically by unctuous politicians, it can seem the ultimate opiate, a cop-out and fallback when there’s nothing more substantive to sustain you. But optimism can have an impact. It’s what radiates from Tebow and fires up the Broncos. And therein lies a lesson about leadership with a resonance beyond football.
Besides, as Bruni says, when so many athletes make headlines for criminal or otherwise immoral behavior, it’s ridiculous to complain about Tebow taking a knee and saying a prayer.
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