Athletes and Televangelists

A few days ago, I saw on ESPN.com an article from their TV program Outside the Lines, which is an investigative show (kind of like 60 Minuties). It was on the connection between televangelists and athletes. Of course when I saw that, I had to read it and watch the segment. In the segment (which aired on TV and is online), it had interviews with Evander Holyfield and Kurt Warner along with televangelists like Creflo Dollar and Randy White. It discussed how athletes in some ways have been "targeted" by these televangelists and the celebrity status that these televangelists have recieved from having athletes in their churches.

Here's my breakdown of the thing. I personally don't like televangelists, especially the "prosperity" kind like these are. They are the ones who say that God wants to bless you not only spiritually but financially as well. This is nowhere in Scripture of course. The one thing they do get right is the importance of tithing for believers, no matter whether they are a minimum wage worker or an athlete making millions of dollars. But it should be out of a heart to give and serve, not as a means of thinking I'm going to get something back financially because of it.

I would hope that if I was a pastor of a church and had athletes in my church that a) they would feel welcome and feel a part of the community of believers, b) they would be viewed like any other person who walks through the doors of the building. I wouldn't want them to feel like they had to put on a persona because in the church is where people are to be real. I would hope that they tithe, but I also hope that they would serve in the church, teaching or leading a bible study, helping out in a ministry when they can. More than anything, I would want them to be a part of the body like everyone else, contributing with the gifts that God has given them.

If you would like to read the article, here is the link, and on that site you'll find a link to the video from the segment on OTL