"Football is not a matter of life and death, it is more important than that."
Where is your identity?
In the performance-driven world of sport it is easy to be influenced by the prevailing philosophy that says your value is in what you can do as a player, coach, administrator etc. If the level of your performance drops, then so does your value.
Ashley Null in his book Real Joy says that the devil tries to plant 5 lies in your head:
Giving you a negative attitude
Making you doubt that God loves you
Undermining your self-esteem for who you are now
Convincing you to work for your self-worth
Telling you that success brings lasting satisfaction
In Psalm 27 David finds his meaning and identity in God. No matter what happens in his life, he knows, "The Lord will receive me" Psalm 27:10. If your identity is based on our sporting successes, your experience will be a roller-coaster - up one moment, down the next.
If you are convinced that Jesus Christ really is the same, yesterday, today and forever and that he will receive you, then you are equipped to take your successes without being carried away and your failures and disappointments without being crushed by them.
Stuart