I JUST DON'T GET IT

 

     An NBA (National Basketball Association) player is caught breaking the league's substance abuse policy by selling and using cocaine. He is suspended 30 games and is able to play after his suspension is completed. Another NBA player is involved in a domestic dispute with his wife. He is arrested, serves time in jail and is also given a 30-game suspension. He is also reinstated and even though he was arrested he basically only gets a slap on the wrist. Just in the last 10 days or so, an NBA player named Jaden Ivey expresses his opinion on Pride month stating he is strongly opposed to the NBA's promotion of Pride Month saying that we are celebrating "unrighteousness." He made the point that God did not intend a man to be with another man and a woman is not intended to be with another woman and neither together have the ability to bear a child. He also stated that we should all have the freedom to "speak righteousness" and went on to say that championship rings would not matter on judgement day. He expressed his opinion. That is all he did. The team he played for, the Chicago Bulls immediately released him from the team saying, "his conduct was detrimental to the team." He didn't break the law. He didn't sell drugs or beat his wife. He expressed his opinion and now he is no longer on the team. His teammates and others have spoken out saying, "He is mentally ill and needs help." Others have said, "He is anti-gay and hates all involved in the LGBTQ community." Sorry, I just don't get it.   

     As a kid I was a huge NBA fan, in fact my bedroom was decorated with NBA curtains and a bedspread with logos of every team. I even had an NBA bank that was a plastic basketball that I put loose change into. I have great memories of watching my favorite team, the New York Knicks on WOR channel 9 on Friday or Saturday nights. They were always away games. I loved players like Walt Frazier, Earl "The Pearl" Monroe, Bill Bradley and Dave DeBusschere. I remember in 1973, one month before I moved from NJ to NY watching with my sister Paula the Knicks winning the NBA Championship. Unfortunately, that was the last time the Knicks won the championship. I was nine years old! Although I loved the NBA, I always wanted to be a great basketball player, but I truthfully was awful at it. Growing up I continued to watch the Knicks, listen to games on the radio and pray that with Patrick Ewing on their team they would win another championship. Unfortunately, they ran into some guy who played for the Chicago Bulls, Michael Jordan who dominated the game in the 1990's. My interest in the NBA has been decreasing each year. To be honest, after this incident with Jaden Ivey, my interest is now zero. I am boycotting watching games and don't care if the Harlem Globetrotters or the Alaska Snowbirds win the championship.

     So why is it that in this crazy world we live in. we cannot express our opinions. It's almost as if Rule #1 is: YOU MUST AGREE WITH OUR OPINIONS. Rule #2 is: IF YOU DON'T AGREE WITH OUR OPINIONS, SEE RULE #1! Jaden Ivey never said, "I hate gays and the LGBTQ community." He simply stated his beliefs and now he is no longer playing basketball for the Chicago Bulls. Like I said before, other players have been drug addicts, they have beat their wives and put in jail and guess what, they were given a slap on the wrist and are allowed back in the league. I just don't get it!

     If a player was Muslim and expressed his displeasure of Pride Month, would he be released from his team? If he was a Buddhist and said what Jaden Ivey said in their own words, would he be asked to leave the team? How come the NBA is celebrating Pride Month and not Easter? They made it a point in 2020 to recognize the BLM movement as that was printed on NBA courts all across the league. How come a "cross symbol" wasn't on NBA courts on Easter? Or a picture of baby Jesus on Christmas? Why was that ignored? Why do we now have politics in sports? When I was a kid, I never heard Wilt Chamberlain share his political views or Julius Erving telling us who we should vote for during the Presidential election. They played basketball. Basketball teams had promotion nights with giveaways like hats, pennants and wristbands. We didn't celebrate lifestyles and how people live their lives, we watched basketball and rooted for our team. 

     Please understand I am not writing this blog because I hate the gay community. I don't. I might not agree with their lifestyle, but I don't hate anyone. I am just upset that we no longer have freedom of speech in America and we can no longer express how we feel about something. We need to agree or we pay a price. Jaden Ivey is no longer playing basketball. Not because he is an awful player or he got arrested or was addicted to cocaine, he is not playing because he shared his Christian beliefs and his opinion on Pride Month.  Does that sound fair? 

     In my own personal life, I wonder if the company I work for, Trader Joe's, would ever force their employees to wear rainbow colored Trader Joe's shirts to promote Pride Month? Imagine if they told me "If you don't wear this shirt, you will get fired. I would certainly stand up for what I believe in and tell them, "Sorry, I can't promote this. I guess you will need to dismiss me." That seems so unfair for Trader Joe's to do that, but I believe we are coming into an age where we are going to be forced to agree on topics...OR ELSE! I think about the story in the Bible in the book of Daniel chapter 3 about three young men, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who were told, "If you don't bow down to this idol, you will be thrown into the fiery furnace!" They refused to bow to this idol and were thrown into the fiery furnace. King Nebuchadnezzar ordered the furnace temperature be turned up seven times hotter. These three young men survived the furnace and those who threw them into the furnace discovered there was a fourth man in the furnace with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. They described this fourth man as "a son of God," Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego survived and this caused the people to turn to God and turn away from any idol. 

     So, what about us? Would we stand up for what we believe in? Would we feel comfortable expressing our opinion without fear of being reprimanded? Do we do what everyone else is doing? Would we take a stand like Jaden Ivey did? I might never understand a lot of things that go on in this world, but I do know Jesus warned us of one thing, He said in Matthew 5:10 - "Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." 

It also says in 2 Timothy 3:12 - Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. We will face persecution when we take a stand, but our reward for this is in heaven. When we live a godly lifestyle, persecution will come our way. It's expected. No one wants to hear the truth about Jesus. I know persecution is not fun, but in reality, whose side are you on? The worlds? God's? This is "food for thought" for all of us. There are things happening in our world today that I will never understand. I just want to continue living my life putting God first no matter what. How about you?

THANKS FOR READING AND I HOPE YOU "GET THIS!"