The Anatomy of the Football Field
Anatomy is the study of the structure or internal workings of something.
The rectangular field of play used for American football games measures 100 yards long between the goal lines, and 160 feet wide. The field may be made of grass or artificial turf. In addition, there are end zones extending another 10 yards past the goal lines to the “end lines”, for a total length of 120 yards. When the “football field” is used as unit of measurement, it is usually understood to mean 100 yards, although technically the full length of the official field, including the end zones, is 120 yards. The total area of the field is 57,600 sq ft. There is a goal centered on each end line, with a crossbar 10 feet above the ground and goalposts 18 feet 6 inches apart extending at least 35 feet above the crossbar. Between the goal lines, additional lines span the width of the field at 5-yard intervals. This appearance led to the use of the term gridiron in the 1880s.
The football field can be empty, with nothing happening on it. All is calm and it is silent. During a game, the field can be an arena bringing excitement or drunken hysteria and chaos.
Still, at other times, a team may bring a rowdy crowd to the football field. The crowd can yell abuse or get angry, but they leave, and their comments disappear. The football field remains the same. It and the people present have experienced the rowdiness yet the field does not change.
At the end of the season, a playoff game is played on the field. More people attend. The crowd is loud and chaotic. The atmosphere and experience changes as different crowds yell different comments and expletives when supporting their teams.
The SuperBowl occurs and the arenas fill with more people, rockstars and celebrities and there is storm of excitement. The football field doesn’t care who is winning or losing, or what teams are playing. The field does not care who attends, or who does not attend. It doesn’t care that Taylor Swift is there or that Partick Mahomes is playing. The field is a platform upon which the game is played. The players and crowds change while the football field remains the same.
The most important aspect of the football field is that the football field does not change even when the atmosphere and experience surrounding it change constantly. Difficult crowds can come and go, leaving no reminder of their presence on the field.
That’s the anatomy of a football field. Today, I am not going to preach about Patrick Mahomes or the other guy. I am not going to talk to you about football moves or keeping the endzone in mind. I really do not even care about this football game. May the red team win. I want to tell you how the Christian needs to be more like a football field then the players in the game.
The physical anatomy of all of us is different. But the spiritual anatomy of every Christian is the same.
We all have the same Holy Spirit, and access to the power and strength of the Lord.
His laws are written on our hearts and we have access to His written Word.
We are all called to obey His commands.
We all have access to the mind of Christ and are told to put it on.
We are all told to take captive every thought and to put on the whole armor of God.
We are all more than conquerors.
No one is too broken to be made whole, and no one’s sin is too deep, no one is too far gone. Our pasts are all under the blood and we are all new creations.
We are not victims, so none of us have any excuse to not be victorious in this life.
We are all required to produce the same kind of fruit.
Like the football field, we should remain unchanged by any outside influences.
Psalm 62:6 He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be moved.
#1 The field doesn’t care who is playing the game, neither does it care who is watching the game.
Fans come and go. Haters come and go. Players come and go. The field remains the same. Those who started with you won’t always finish with you.
Grace- my spiritual mom. She taught me the ways of the Lord, how to pray, how to worship, how to fast, how to study the word of God, how to be obedient to the Lord and to submit to the authority the Lord placed over me. She has been at the same church for over 40 years. The location has moved twice. The same pastor she started out with, she is not ending with. Most of the people that walked with her have deserted her. Yet she remains unchanged by these things.
Your haters will not always be around. You cannot allow what others will do interfere with your race. I just finished reading, “Letta in China” and Sis Margaret (Ps Connie’s mother) was a child and some other little girl told her she had a demon. This little girl heard it from two adult women who attended their same church. She told her mom she was never going back to church because of those ladies. Letta took her aside and gently asked her a few questions, “did Jesus say that about you? Was it Jesus who did this? Or caused this to happen?” Margaret answered, “NO”. we do not stop being a part of the church fellowship because someone talked about us. Margaret is today 92 and she remains unchanged by those things she has gone through.
The devil would love for you to stop coming to church. It is always the first step in a person life as he removes himself from the Lord. The next step, you stop hanging around people who hold you accountable. Then you surround yourself with others who will allow you to believe your own lies. Then you cut them off permanently. You eventually stop reading the Bible and praying. You make up your own god who allows you to live life separated from the church.
Your fans will not always be around. People come and go. It is a fact of life. One minute they will be cheering your name in the streets and the next crying out “crucify him”! Are you going to allow yourself to be swayed? Either by your fans or your haters. The field remains the same.
If someone can walk away from you, let them go. They are not tied to your future. Paul was often alone and abandoned by many that he loved and cared for; but he was not going to allow anyone to keep him from running the race set before him.
2 Timothy 4:9-18 Be diligent to come to me quickly; 10 for Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world, and has departed for Thessalonica—Crescens for Galatia, Titus for Dalmatia. 11 Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for ministry. 12 And Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus. 13 Bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas when you come—and the books, especially the parchments. 14 Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm. May the Lord repay him according to his works. 15 You also must beware of him, for he has greatly resisted our words. 16 At my first defense no one stood with me, but all forsook me. May it not be charged against them. 17 But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that the message might be preached fully through me, and that all the Gentiles might hear. Also I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion. 18 And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen!
Paul calls out people by name, apparently that is not gossip. Let that be a lesson to some.
#2 The field can take a beating.
Man does the field get beat up. Those cleats are no joke. They leave puncture wounds all over the grass field, yet incur no damage to the artificial turf. Hard tackles are made. Rain pelts hard on the fresh grass and mucks it up until it is a muddy swamp. Lines get marred. But the field doesn’t seem to care. It was built to take a beating.
I hate to break to you, but in this life you will get beat up.
John 16:33 These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you [a]will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
1 Peter 4:12-13 Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; 13 but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.
YOU will have tribulation. You will be beat up. You will suffer. Not maybe, you will.
We have a real and common enemy that beats us up. You think you are in a boxing match, but he’s a street fighter. DO not give him any place in your life.
Your flesh is your enemy, as it is always warring with the Spirit in us. DO not let your flesh beat you. Take authority over your flesh and stop making excuses for sinful behavior. We have been given authority to conquer our mind, our will and our emotions, not by might nor by power but by HIS SPIRIT. Exercise self-control and discipline.
The world is your enemy. The world hates us. They hate our message. They hate the way we do things. The world will beat you up, but HE has overcome the world and so can you.
Sometimes life just beats you up- for no rhyme or reason.
1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to [a]bear it.
You need not be hopeless or despairing. God permits the temptation by allowing the circumstances which create temptation to arise, but He takes care that nothing bars the path of retreat. With each temptation he makes a way to escape from it. God is faithful
God makes an open road, but then man himself must walk in it. WE have to take the way out.
That means we may need to wrestle, but we do so by God’s power. We may need to see a temptation to its end, but God is faithful. God will empower us to endure by His Spirit—for our good, the good of the church, and for his glory. Let your motto be: I will not be moved.
I had a dream a few years ago and I was climbing I a narrow path and I looked behind me and saw men walking this same dangerous path along a cliff. They were war torn, clothes tattered, tired and weary; but they kept climbing.
Matthew 7:13-14 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 [a]Because narrow is the gate and [b]difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
The path of salvation is narrow- it means it is afflicted. You will be squeezed. You will get beat up. You will get weary. The path of the righteous is the high road, and along this road the air gets thin and it can become difficult to breath. But it I the only path the saint can take. EX: running in Estes Park
Acts 20:22-24 And see, now I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there, 23 except that the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me. 24 [a]But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my [b]race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.
#3 The field can handle the cheers and can also take an insult without injury.
The field doesn’t care who cheers. It is not driven by man’s applause. The field doesn’t care who spits on it, or who calls it names, “Hey, field! You are stupid! You suck.” The field could care less. It is just there to be the field.
When you realize and have an understanding of who you are in Christ and your life in Him, nothing else matters. You will be able to not be puffed up by the cheers neither be taken down by the insults of others.
You will get both in life. The same crowd that one day was cheering out “Hosanna!” was the next day calling out, “Crucify Him”
We cannot allow the applause of men to sway us
Galatians 1:10 For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ.
1 Thessalonians 2:4 ESV But just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts.
John 12:43 ESV For they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.
Isaiah 2:22 ESV Stop regarding man in whose nostrils is breath, for of what account is he?
Living for man’s applause will get you nothing but heartache and trouble. It will be a snare to your soul. You will end up denying the Lord and His Words. You can never please men. They are finicky. Seeking man’s approval is a snare. We’re so concerned about what other people think of us that we fall into a trap of constant doubt and fear, mixed with a few self-esteem issues, because we’re so busy looking around at others and their opinions instead of watching where we’re going.
I would rather you slap my face and be real with me than just pump me up, lie to my face and backstab me. Men will love you when you say things they want to hear- but speak the truth, tell them God’s will and law, hold them accountable and you will be hated. You are in good company. Jesus was hated. So will we be.
Just as you cannot live off applause, you also cannot live off insults. WE have to learn how to be a duck and let the insults roll off our back. Words hurt. If you allow those words to penetrate your heart, you will be beaten down.
For years I let insults rule me. I wanted to prove everyone was wrong about me. Manipulators will use insults to keep control over you. Nothing should have control over us but the Holy Spirit.
Psalm 119:165 Great peace have those who love Your law, And [a]nothing causes them to stumble.
Nothing causes them to be offended. Here’s what I do- examine the insult. Is it true or not true? If it is true, then maybe I have some readjusting to do. If it is not true, then why am I giving it my attention? Your friends would never believe the lies about you and your haters will never believe the truth. Let it go.
Your feelings are real, but not always founded in reality.
Proverbs 20:22 ESV Do not say, “I will repay evil”; wait for the Lord, and he will deliver you.
Proverbs 12:16 ESV The vexation of a fool is known at once, but the prudent ignores an insult.
Proverbs 12:18 ESV There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.
Luke 6:28 ESV Bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.
You have to find your identity in Christ alone. The field’s identity is just to be the field. It doesn’t care if someone call’s it anything else. It knows what it is and what its purpose is. I am a child of God. I belong to Him alone. I am a new creation. My past is under the blood. My future is in His hands. My years belong to Him. I am safe and secure under His wings. When you are fully assured of these truths, no insults can or will affect you. Remind yourself of who you are in Christ.
#4 The field doesn’t care who wins.
The field doesn’t care who wins a game. It doesn’t even care who wins today’s game. It has no preference and is not biased. It is not going to sulk when your team loses and its not going to cheer when your team wins. It doesn’t care who gets the victory because it is not concerned with the game. It’s only concern is to do the job it was created to do.
If we had this mindset, what couldn’t we do for His kingdom? If we didn’t care who gets the credit or who has what gifts and anointings, or if we didn’t compete with anyone, or seek to lift someone up above another servant in the kingdom.
We are all equal in His eyes. The ground at the foot of the cross is level. That being said, we are equal in salvation, but not equal in our role/jobs and positions in the body. If you are the foot, your job is to walk and hold up the weight of the body. If you are the eye, your job is to see clearly. The mouth speaks, the ear hears. The pastor shepherds, the prophet warns. We have different jobs. Just do what He has asked you to do and do not worry about the rest.
The problem is most churches is that the evangelist wants the pastor to only talk about evangelism. That’s not the pastor’s job. The pastor is to shepherd the sheep. The teacher wants the pastor to only teach the word. The pastor’s job is to shepherd the sheep- feed them, take care of them, give them their shots and sheer them when their coat gets too heavy. If the senior leader is not a shepherd, the congregation will suffer.
Mind your own business, stay in your lane and do the job you are called to. If you do not get credit, who cares? God should get all the glory anyway. It is not about us, it is about Him and His gospel and His kingdom. We are all just servants working in His vineyard.
Colossians 3:17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
When you don’t care who gets the credit, and only care that God is glorified, the church runs smoothly, we operate in unity and God trusts us to bring in the lost.
#5 The field remains unchanged.
Obviously, we are to be changed by the Lord, and we grow from glory to glory. We have to change our thinking and actions to line up with His Word. WE change our thought processes and make everything come into obedience to His precepts. BUT what I am advocating for is that our mindset be firmly fixed, unchanged in our commitment and endeavor to follow the Lord all the days of our lives.
No storm can move me
No circumstance can thwart me
No valley can defeat me
No man can stop me
No devil can hinder me
I am not quitting. I will finish the race set before me and I will receive the victor’s crown awaiting me. SO that one day we may say like Paul,
2 Timothy 4:7-8 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.
Set your mind to finish like a flint. This is the very definition of immovable and steadfast. Have you counted the cost? Many start out well but are unable to finish. Are you able to finish? I have been in ministry for 20 years and watched as many started off well, but stopped when the first offense arose. They did not count the cost.
The field if the field 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It does not care if there’s a game, a practice or if it is silent. The field stays the same. This is the Chirstian walk. No days off. Through the cheering and the jeering and the silence, though none go with me and all have forsaken me, still I will follow. Make this scripture a permanent in your life, “I will not be moved”
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