The Twitter hash tag is #Linsanity.  Short for the phenomenon that is Jeremy Lin. 

Taking the NBA by Storm

Pro basketball player Jeremy Lin was unrecruited out of high school and undrafted out of college. Three weeks ago he was sent to the developmental league (the minor league) of the NBA. 

Three days later he returned as a benchwarmer for the New York Knicks. 

On February 4, he burst upon the national scene when he scored 25 points, with 5 rebounds and 7 assists. In the week since then, he’s taken the NBA by storm. The next game he had 28 points and 8 assists. Saturday night he scored 38 points, outplaying future hall of famer, Kobe Bryant. 

The Influence of Tim Tebow

In one week and four games Jeremy Lin has become the Tim Tebow of the NBA. For both are Christians first and athletes second. 

In an interview with 95.7 The Game in San Francisco, Lin had this to say about the influence of Tim Tebow on his life. 

“Actually a lot of inspiration just because [Tebow’s] such a polarizing figure but I think the things he says in interviews, his approach to the game is just unbelievable and I respect him so much. I want to be able to do some of the things that he does in terms of the amount of charity work and the non-profit work, and the way he impacts people off the field. I think that is what is most inspiring to me about him.” 

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God’s Valentine gift of love to us
Was not a bunch of flowers;
It wasn’t candy, or a book
To while away the hours.

His gift was to become a man,
So He could freely give
His sacrificial love for us,
So you and I could live.

He gave us sweet salvation, and
Instruction, good and true--
To love our friends and enemies
And love our Savior, too.

So as we give our Valentines,
Let’s thank our Lord and King;
The reason we have love to give
Is that He gave everything.

By Joanna Fuchs

By Pastor Jim

This evening there are over 70,000 fanatics sitting in the seats of the arena where a contest is underway to determine the annual Super Bowl Champion. As of this morning, the only tickets that could be found were in the end zone and most were in the upper level where you almost need binoculars to see the players. The cost was from $2425 up to $3,675 per ticket on the mid-level end zone. Some hotels in the area where the game is being played are charging about $1200 a night with a minimum 5 night stay for a single room while others are charging as much as $9000 per night for a suite with the same minimum stay. It is estimated that this single sports event will generate a minimum of $400 million income to the local counties where the crowds will gather.

But the impact isn’t only in the area where the game is played. There has been a High Definition TV buying frenzy over the past several weeks so fans at home can watch the game with friends in living, clear and vibrant color as though they were sitting on the 50-yard line. These TV’s are ranging from $2700 up to as much as $150,000 per set and the stores can’t keep them in stock.

No other sports event in America draws a crowd of onlookers like this game. It is estimated that as many as 200 million will be watching it this year. That’s 2 out of every 3 citizens according to the 2000 census that estimated the U. S. population at just over 301 million.

The amazing thing though, is that the Super Bowl isn’t the biggest drawing card for us. It seems that the final episode of MASH drew a bigger audience, as well as the Miss America Beauty Pageant. We are a nation of fanatics. We are fanatical about sports, about movies, about TV, about making money, or just about anything that looks like fun. If you want to make a lot of money get involved in something that gives people a chance to have a few moments of fun and then charge a fee.

The desire of people to be entertained, to forget their troubles for a moment, or to feel the euphoria of victory on the playing field, is insatiable and we will set everything aside and surrender ourselves wholly to the pursuit of it.

But tonight I want to talk to you about another Super Bowl. I call it Super Bowl Zero because it started long before the NFL and the AFC ever existed and started their Super Bowl contests.

Super Bowl Zero is a contest between the two greatest teams in the universe. It’s the Heavenly Hosts versus the Demonic Hordes. It’s a battle between the two great forces of “Good” and “Evil” and it began in ages past, at the very creation of the earth, even before the time of Adam and Eve in Garden of Eden. The contest had been raging long before God formed Adam from the dust of the earth. It began with a war in Heaven.

In the beginning there was only one team. It was the Heavenly Hosts, created by God. God exists outside of time and space. The scriptures describe God in terms that are hard for us to grasp like; Omniscient, Omnipresent and Omnipotent. There is none like Him. He is holy, righteous and good in all his ways.

But then came the challenge. Among men it is always a struggle to be the top dog on the hill; to be King of the Hill. Everyone is always gunning for the man at the top, the one who will stick his head above the crowd and dare to be the best. It was the same way in the Heavenly Realms.

Satan was filled pride and began to challenge God’s authority and power. He wanted to be the King of the Hill.

That’s when the first “kick-off” came. The day that Satan decided to try to dethrone God was the day that Super Bowl Zero began.

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