LIN-SANITY!

Dear Crosswalkers, The latest rage in pro sports and really in popular culture is Jeremy Shu-How Lin. Lin plays pro basketball with the New York Knicks. Unlike many of the pros, he received no athletic scholarship offers out of high school. Unlike many of the pros, he played basketball for Harvard University! Again, unlike many pros, he was not drafted by any teams in the NBA.  However, he received a partially guaranteed contract deal with the Golden State Warriors.On December 9, 2011, the Warriors waived Lin on the first day of training camp. Three days later, Lin was claimed off waivers by the Houston Rockets. He played seven minutes in two preseason games and then on December 24, before the start of the season, the Rockets also waived him. Three days after that the Knicks claimed him off waivers with the thought that he may be a third string back-up. There have been only a few Asian Americans in NBA history, and Jeremy Lin is first American player in the league to be of Chinese or Taiwanese descent.   He has been tearing up the court in a now starring role with the Knicks. He has been a headliner practically every day, and the rest of the league is impressed by his gritty play and excellent basketball skills. Since getting his first significant playing time on Feb. 4 and being inserted into the starting lineup on Feb. 6, he has led the Knicks to six-straight wins averaging 26.8 points, 8.5 assists and 3.2 rebounds. For his amazing efforts after his first five games with significant playing time, Lin was named the ABC News World News Tonight Person of the Week and the NBA's Eastern Conference Player of the Week. He also made the cover of Sports Illustrated. All the attention has been called “Lin-sanity” because it is such a “Lin-credible” story! Unlike many pros, he sleeps on his brother’s sofa when in New York! It’s a real “Lin-defella” story! They say he’s “Lin it to Lin it!” By the way, David Letterman’s show featured the Top Ten Worst Puns about Jeremy Lin! Do you know there is a local connection with Jeremy Lin? He grew up in Mt. View and attended Monarch Christian School, where our own Mrs. Sharon Welty was his teacher for two years. Sharon says he was a great student and gifted athlete even back then. She still stays in touch with him through Facebook! Here is a portion of his testimony: My faith and my basketball began separately, then slowly converged, and now they influence each other.  But when I first started playing basketball, I was five years old, and my dad put a ball in my hands.  Ever since I was a little kid, I just loved to play this game.  I was always in the gym.  I loved playing.  That's what I did for fun, all the time.  My parents also took me to church ever since I was a little kid.  I grew up in the church, but I didn't really become a Christian until I was a freshman in high school.  That's when the gospel really started to make sense to me and I was ready to give my life to God.  Then, Christianity didn't become a significant part of my approach to basketball until the end of my high school career and into college.  That's when I began to learn what it means to play for the glory of God.  My parents had often talked about it and told me that I should play for God's glory, but I never understood quite what that meant.  That was something that really boggled my mind… I thought, "I want to do well for myself and for my team.  How can I possibly give that up and play selflessly for God?" Slowly, God revealed more to me.  I started learning how to trust in Him, not to focus so much on whether I win or lose but to have faith that God has a perfect plan… I learned more about a godly work ethic and a godly attitude, in terms of being humble, putting others above yourself, being respectful to refs and opponents.  There are really so many ways you can apply your faith to basketball! When asked, “Are you a different basketball player because you are a Christian?” Lin responded: Not just in basketball, but I think in life, when you're called to be a Christian, you're automatically called to be different from everyone else.  In today's world of basketball, it makes you really different, because the things that society values aren't necessarily in line with what God values… I've learned so many things through basketball, and God has really molded me and tested and affirmed my faith through basketball.  Given my experiences, if I look back at everything that's happened, it's hard for me not to trust God and know that he has a perfect plan for me. A couple days ago the Mercury News had an article on Lin entitled, Exclusive: Jeremy Lin says faith in God triggered 'Lin-sanity’ You can read the article HERE. It is always a blessing to hear “local boy does good” stories, and especially when that local lad is living out his faith in Jesus in the rough and tumble world of professional basketball! If he can follow Jesus and live for his glory in the NBA there’s hope for the rest of us. As followers of the Lord, we are all on a “Linning Team.” Be encouraged! Love in Jesus, Pastor John Christie