Brian Welch: A Rock Star and Drug Addict Finds Answers in the Bible and Gives his Life to Christ (Gospel Light Minute #110)

He is an American musician best known as the former guitarist and co-founder of the nu metal band Korn. He is ranked at No. 26 of Guitar World’s 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Guitarists of All Time and his work has resulted in over 50 million albums sold. By 1995, his band was earning $25 million in royalties and performing in sold out arenas. By 2003, he had become addicted to drugs and would prepare for tours by stashing as much methamphetamine as he could in vitamin capsules, deodorant containers, and his clothes. His life began to spin out of control when his wife, who was also on drugs, left him taking their daughter with her.

One day, two Christian business partners sent him an e-mail with a single verse that said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and I will give you rest.” Eventually, he went to church with these partners and then started to read the Bible for himself while still doing drugs. He searched for answers and cried out to God. One day he woke up and had the feeling to go to his Bible. He opened it up and the first verse he read said, “the soul who sins is the soul who dies.” He said, “To me, right then, it was like God told me ‘I revealed myself to you. It’s time for you to stop the drugs. It’s time for you to be done.’ And I was consumed with fear and I went and grabbed all my drugs and threw them in the toilet and I said, ‘I’m done God. I’m yours now. I’m yours.’ That’s the last time I did drugs.”

Now, he says, “God put me on Earth to have fellowship and intimacy with Him. And I’m going to spend as much time as I can possibly spend getting to know Him everyday. I don’t want to waste any more time. I have to let Him fill me with His spirit so He can do the work by bringing people into the Kingdom….This band stuff, the stardom, I mean everything, it doesn’t matter anymore. It’s God. He’s so real.” His name is Brian Welch.

Veronica Roth: God Wants to Mend Our Broken World (Gospel Light Minute #109)

She is the New York Times bestselling author of “Divergent” and “Insurgent”. Over 4 million copies of the novels have been sold. The first book in the Divergent series spent over 50 weeks on the New York Times Bestsellers List and is currently being made into a film by Summit Entertainment. She is also the recipient of the Goodreads Favorite Book of 2011 award and the 2012 Goodreads winner for Best Young Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction. The “Divergent” trilogy will conclude with the third book, “Allegiant”, which will be released on October 22, 2013.

She is a Christian who seeks to provide a role model through her books to many young girls “who are growing up and trying to figure out what it means to be female/feminist in a post-feminist world.” Even though she writes for a broad audience, she has never hidden the fact that she is a follower of Jesus Christ. And she often includes questions about faith in her characters’ lives in her books.

In a post on her blog, she wrote: “You can summarize Christian teachings in two parts: crucifixion and resurrection. Brokenness and mending. My concern with many Christians is their refusal to acknowledge brokenness. It’s all fine and good to walk around thinking “I’ve been saved!”, but seriously: saved from what? Sometimes I wonder if they even know, or if it’s too uncomfortable to think about.

“I believe the resurrection has little significance unless you understand the crucifixion — and vice versa. We Christians need to understand both to the best of our abilities. And our belief is that the crucifixion happened because of sin — everyone’s. I try to think primarily of my own sin, because it reminds me not to get self-righteous. My sin. Mine. Just as much as anyone else’s.

“The world is broken. No matter how much time you spend covering your eyes, and covering your children’s eyes, the world will still be broken when you uncover them. And when I say the world is broken, I mean that bad crap is happening to people everywhere and people are doing terrible things everywhere. Do you want your kids to understand just how beautiful the grace of God is? Then they have to understand how crappy the world is. It’s not just ‘a good idea.’ It’s necessary.

“The world is broken, and we need to know that. We need to understand how damaging sin is or we’ll never understand why we need to turn away from it, and fight against it with everything we have… We can talk about how sometimes the world is broken but we believe in a God who wants to mend it, and we are His hands and feet; we get to help.”

Her name is Veronica Roth.

Tim Brown: ‘You Can Only Live a Good Life if You’re Submitted to God’ (Gospel Light Minute #102)

He is a former NFL wide receiver. He played college football at Notre Dame, where he became the first wide receiver to win the Heisman Trophy Award. Drafted as the 6th pick in the 1988 NFL Draft, he played for sixteen years with the Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders where he established himself as one of the NFL’s most prolific wide receivers. He also played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

He was selected to the Pro Bowl nine times and to the All-Conference six times. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2009 and the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame in 2013. He ranks number two in NFL history with nearly 15,000 yards receiving and third in catches with more than 1,000. His 240 games in a Raider’s uniform are the most in franchise history.

He became a Christian as a teenager and sang in the church choir. But after graduating from college, his life took a drastic turn. At 22 years old, he was in the NFL, had a pocketful of money, and was struggling to walk the straight and narrow. After seven years in the NFL, he wanted a change. He said, “I just got tired of living the way I was living. I mean, I’ve never been a drinker or drugs. I never did that kind of crazy stuff, but the things I was doing were bad enough that I couldn’t even look at myself. I even got to a point it was so bad that when I got up in the morning, I wouldn’t even turn the lights on in the bathroom because I didn’t want to look at myself in the mirror.”

It was at this point that he chose to commit his life to the Lord. As a teammate and now as a retired football player, he takes the opportunities God has given him to be a role model to others seriously. He often admonishes children and young people to, “Go to church. You know, because in my opinion there is nothing more important you can do with your life. Education is great, but I tell them I know a lot of educated fools out there. There’s a lot of educated fools out there, but it’s the Word of God, and the Spirit of God that can keep you from being crazy and doing the things that we shouldn’t be doing.”

He went on to say, “Only when you’re living subjected to God are you capable of leading a good, clean life — not a perfect life because nobody’s gonna be perfect, but you can lead a clean life. If there are people out there that know me and know me to be a good person, I’m here to tell you that without God, I wouldn’t be that person. Without God in my life, I wouldn’t be that person because the ideas and thoughts that run through my head are just like everybody else out there. But it’s because of God that I’m able to go, ‘hey, we don’t do that, that’s not who we are,’ and I’m able to move on. But its only because of God that I’m able to do that — not because I love my beautiful wife so much. I love my kids and God knows I do I love my kids and my wife tremendously, but as a man you know sometimes that just doesn’t matter. I tell my wife all the time love doesn’t have anything to do with what happens in our world in the NFL and sports world. I mean guys get caught up in it all and things happen, but its God that can keep you.”

His name is Tim Brown.

Kirsten Powers: How a Liberal Democrat and Former Atheist Came to Know Jesus Christ as her Savior (Gospel Light Minute #101)

She is a political analyst, blogger, columnist and commentator. She is a Democrat who regularly contributes to USA Today, Newsweek, The Daily Beast, Fox News and the Wall Street Journal among other publications. She formerly served under the Clinton administration from 1993-1998 and was appointed Deputy Assistant U.S Trade Representative for Public Affairs.

In an interview with Focus on the Family, she shares how she converted from atheism to Christianity. She said: “I was not looking to be a Christian. The last thing in the world I wanted to be was a Christian. I had grown up as an Episcopalian, but not evangelical, born again, or any of those kinds of things. It was very high church, kind of mainline, protestant, episcopalian. I did believe in God, but it wasn’t anywhere near what would come to happen to me later in life.

“When I went away to college, whatever little faith I had, I lost. I ended up graduating from college. I worked in the Clinton administration. All my friends were secular liberals. At this point, I really got even more deeply into an incredibly secular world because now, all my friends were basically atheists, or if they had any kind of spirituality, they were very hostile towards religion, Christianity in particular. So, I really didn’t have any interest in it.

“I started dating someone who went to Tim Keller’s church, Redeemer Presbyterian in New York City. Out of curiosity, I went with him. But I told him upfront that I would never become a Christian; that it’s never going to happen. After about six or seven months, I began to think that the weight of history is more on the side of what [I was hearing at this church] than not. Tim Keller had made such a strong case, that I began to think it’s not even smart to reject this. It just doesn’t seem like a good intellectual decision.

“Really, it was like God sort of invaded my life. It was very unwelcome. I didn’t like it. Obviously, I started having a lot of different experiences where I felt God was doing a lot of things in my life. It’s kind of hard to describe, but I did have this moment where the scales just fell off of my eyes, where I was saying, ‘this is just totally true, I don’t even have any doubt.’ …I don’t really feel like I had any courage when I became a Christian, I just gave in. I wasn’t courageous; I didn’t have any choice. I kept trying to not believe but I just couldn’t avoid [accepting Christ]. If I could have avoided it, I would have. There is nothing convenient about it in my life or in the world I live in. It’s not like living in the South where everybody is a Christian. I live in a world where nobody is a believer. But God pursued me.”

Her name is Kirsten Powers.

James Harden: “In Jesus’ Name I Play” (Gospel Light Minute #100)

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He is an American basketball player who plays for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association. He was a first-time All-Star in 2013 in his first season with the Rockets. He was named the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year with the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2012. He played college basketball for the Arizona State Sun Devils, where he was named a consensus All-American and Pac-10 Player of the Year in 2009.

He was selected third overall by Oklahoma City in the 2009 NBA Draft and became a key part of a young core of players which led the team to the 2012 NBA Finals. He was also a part of the United States national team for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, where they won the gold medal.

Even though he spent much of his time with the Oklahoma City Thunder on the bench, he said that “God had a plan” for him in being traded to the Houston Rockets. And after a record-breaking debut performance with the Rockets, he gave God the glory for his success. He said, “I just want to thank God for everything he has done in my life. I really am a believer. All glory to God.” When he is on the court, he wears a wristband that says, “In Jesus’ name I play.” His name is James Harden.

Michelle Williams: ‘Jesus is Coming Back and I’m Doing My Part to Make Sure People Know About Him’ (Gospel Light Minute #98)

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She is a singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. She rose to fame in the early 2000s as a member of the R&B girl group Destiny’s Child with Beyonce and Kelly Rowland. Her work in the music industry has earned her a Grammy Award as well as nominations for a Stellar Award and an NAACP Theatre Award. Along with chart-topping music with Destiny’s Child, she released her debut solo album “Heart to Yours” which topped Gospel charts in 2002. In 2004, she released her second Gospel album “Do You Know”, and in 2008, she released her first solo pop album, “Unexpected.” Along with her music, she has found success as an actress. Her acting roles include: Aida, The Colour Purple, and What My Husband Doesn’t Know, among others.

Raised in a “loving, stable” household in Illinois, she made her musical debut at the age of seven, performing a rendition of the hymn “Blessed Assurance” at the St. Paul Church of God in Christ, of which she is still a member.

In an interview, she said of her faith in Jesus Christ, “[For some people it’s easy to get caught up in the fame], but to me, it’s easier not to because of my background and my foundation of where I grew up. I don’t forget the teachings that I’ve had, and I keep my Bible with me. I read my Bible every day, and I’m constantly in prayer. And I listen to gospel music, so that’s what’s keeping me focused and grounded.” She went on to say, “[Despite some criticism that I have received for doing both secular and Gospel music,] I believe that I am doing my part to be a witness for Jesus Christ. Some people will do gospel when their career fails, but I chose to do it at the height of the popularity of Destiny’s Child. And I didn’t want to do it because it was a fad. I wanted to do it because it’s in me. It’s in my heart. God places people in different parts (areas) for different reasons. We know Jesus is coming back soon and I am doing my part to make sure that people know about him as well.” Her name is Michelle Williams.

Carlos Baerga: How Giving his Life to Christ Saved him from Losing his Family and Destroying his Life (Gospel Light Minute #97)

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He is a former Major League Baseball player who played from 1990 to 2005. He spent most of his career as a second baseman, before moving to various positions later in his life. He has played for the New York Mets, the Cleveland Indians, the Boston Red Sox, and Washington Nationals among others. He was selected to the All-Stars three times in 1992, 1993, and 1995 and won the Silver Slugger Award two times in 1993 and 1994.

From the time he started playing, he had rapid success in baseball. He said in a CBN interview, “My career was going way up, and that was the moment that I really forgot about God — the God who gave me the opportunity to play in the big leagues. I used to be a super star. Everything was so good for me that I wanted to keep living that life.” All of his wanting for more got him just that – more drinking, more partying, more women. Little did he know, however that getting more also would cost him his family. He said, “I almost lost my family. I didn’t know the damage I was doing to myself. When you walk without God, you can be hurt at anytime.”

After several heart-to-heart conversations with a close friend, he finally understood that there was no place else to turn and rededicated his life to Jesus Christ. He said, “We’re human. We go through those moments in life that we forget about God. We think that we are Superman, that we can do things without Him. We have to realize that we cannot do anything without Him. He’s the best feeling that you can have in life. When you put everything in God’s hands, there is nothing that you can not do. He gives you the life, He gives you everything. Thank God I still have my family with me.”

Now that he is retired, he seeks to help other baseball players get on the right path with God. He said, “[The guys playing now] are the ones that need to know the words of God. Right now what I’m trying to do is to talk to the guys more about God. You know, that’s the second chance God gave me. We are here for a reason: to spread the words of God.” His name is Carlos Baerga.

Peyton Siva: How God Lifted him from his Difficult Childhood to Being a Champion (Gospel Light Minute #96)

He is a point guard who finished his college basketball career with the Louisville Cardinals men’s basketball team in 2013. Recently, he helped lead his team to the NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball championship. He was the 2012 and 2013 Big East Tournament MVP as well as a 2013 Academic All-American.

Growing up in a rough, crime-ridden area of Seattle, his father was mostly absent from his life, struggling with drugs, alcohol addiction, and being in and out of jail. His mother worked three jobs to support his family, and his siblings also had brushes with the law. However, at a young age, he decided to take a different route. At 13, he taught himself to drive so he could find his father. He found him in a drug den with a gun, contemplating suicide and was able to successfully talk him out of doing so. He soon found a love for sports, and though he was told he was too light at first, managed to play both football and basketball.

Danny Cage, youth pastor at Mount Calvary Christian Center in Seattle said of him, “He had so many people pulling at him at such a young age. He wanted to be focused spiritually through that. It separated him from the pack. He would study scriptures, and fast, and would ask to be held accountable.”

When his team won the NCAA championship, he told reporters, “First off, I got to thank my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, for blessing us for this opportunity. I thank God, and without my teammates, without my parents, my girlfriend, my sisters, my brothers, none of this would be possible. I’m just thankful to God. Today, his father and siblings all have learned about Jesus through his life. He said in an interview, “God lifts us up so we can lift Him up. He’s definitely using me in basketball to give Him glory and to use me to show other kids that God is with you and God has a plan for you no matter whether it’s basketball, football or being a doctor.” His name is Peyton Siva.

Jesus Christ: The Son of God, the Savior of Man (Gospel Light Minute #92)

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He was born in Bethlehem in a manger in a stable surrounded by animals. Herod sought to kill Him before He was even born, but God had another plan. He grew into a young boy and “increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.”

By 12 years old, he was teaching the religious scholars about the kingdom of God. By age 30, He was working miracles across the then known world. He turned water into wine, commanded the sea to sit still and the wind to be quiet, walked on the water, fed five thousand people with a boy’s small lunch, healed ten lepers, cast out demons, made the blind see, the lame walk, and the dumb speak. He raised Lazarus from the dead, healed an official’s daughter, and caused the disciples to catch a boatload of fish after catching none all night. He did many other things as well but as John records in his Gospel, “if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written.”

Not only did He work miracles, but He is the Son of the living God, the only begotten Son of the Father, the Son of the Highest, and the Son of the Blessed. He is the Mighty God, the Everlasting God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of the whole earth, God manifest in the flesh, the True God, and My Lord and my God. He is the Great I Am, the Strong and Mighty Jehovah, the Lord of Glory, the same yesterday, today, and forever. He is the Almighty, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Creator of all things, the Everlasting Father, the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the Ending, the First and the Last. He is life eternal, the Way, the Truth, and the Life, the Rock of my Salvation, the Light of the world, the Chosen of God, the Redeemer, the Bright and Morning Star, the Day-spring from on High, the Hope of His people, and the Hope of the world.

Henry Ward Beecher said, “He painted no pictures. Yet some of the greatest paintings of Raphael, Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci received their inspiration from Him. He wrote no poetry; but Dante, Milton, and scores of the world’s greatest poets were inspired by Him. He composed no music; but Haydn, Handel, Beethoven, Bach, and Mendelssohn reached their highest perfection in the symphonies and oratorios they composed in His praise. Every sphere of human greatness has been influenced by this humble carpenter of Nazareth!

He was crucified on a cross between two thieves; mocked and ridiculed as He hung on the cross. One Friday over 2000 years ago, He stretched out His arms and died for the sins of the whole world. He didn’t stop there, however, He was buried, and on Sunday morning, with all power, strength, and victory over sin and death, He got up out of the grave and now sits on the right hand of God the Father in Heaven. His name is Jesus Christ.

For Former “Three 6 Mafia” Rapper, Delmar “Mr. Del” Lawrence, a Stop in Church Unexpectedly Changed his Life Forever (Gospel Light Minute #89)

He is a hip hop artist and music producer. He is president of the independent record label Dedicated Music Group. Before becoming a Christian, he was a member of the Oscar winning, platinum-selling rap group Three 6 Mafia, which became famous for their hit song, “It’s Hard Out Here for a Pimp.” He received a Grammy award nomination for Best Rock Gospel Album of the year and a 2010 GMA Dove Award nomination for Rap/Hip Hop Album of the year. His first Christian solo album, “The Future” was released in 2005 and debuted at No. 15 on Billboard’s Gospel Chart. “Hope Dealer” was released in 2007 and “Thrilla” was released in 2009.

As a member of Three 6 Mafia, which was known for its profane lyrics, he was a rising rap star with money, fame and a gold record — all before the age of 21. After being on tour for nearly a year, he made a return trip to his hometown of Memphis to surprise his family. Arriving on a Sunday morning, he made a stop at his home church, not knowing that he would leave that service a changed man. He said of that time, “I heard God speak to me during service, and He gave me a vision of what He wanted me to do. Based on that experience, I decided to give my life to God right then and there.” After giving his life to Christ, he now leads his own record label and a hip-hop influenced church, City of Refuge in Memphis. He is on a mission to win youth to Christ. He said, “I want youth to see they can have fun and still represent Christ. It does not matter what you did the night before; I am giving this word and I want these people to feel the love of Christ in their lives.” His name is Delmar “Mr. Del” Lawrence.

Meagan Good Keeps her Eyes on God and Uses her Acting Gift to Glorify Him (Gospel Light Minute #87)

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She is a star television and movie actress who began her career at four years old. She has appeared in numerous commercials, television shows, music videos, and major movies. She was cast in her first film, the 1995 hit “Friday”, at age thirteen. At age fifteen, her performance in the critically acclaimed 1997 film “Eve’s Bayou”, earned her her first NAACP Image Award nomination.

Since then, her film appearances include: Roll Bounce, Waist Deep, Stomp the Yard, Jumping the Broom, and Think Like a Man among many others. She currently stars in the lead role of the new NBC TV drama series “Deception.” One of the things that stands out in the show is that in the midst of all that “deception”, her character wears a cross around her neck. I believe that she does this to be a witness for Jesus Christ. And may I say with all due respect to her husband and without fear of successful contradiction, she is one of the most beautiful women in the world.

Although she was not raised in the church, she says that she is a Christian and that she will not do roles that she feels might disappoint God. She said in an interview, over the years, “I have learned that I need to really keep my eyes on the prize which is God and not worry so much about what other people think of me. And if I keep my eyes on the prize, people will think what they need to think of me, good or bad.”

Regarding the roles she plays, she said, “I think that, for me, it’s about portraying a character creatively and artistically as an actress. I believe that God has gifted me as an actress and intends for me to use that gift, but He also intends for me to use it to glorify him. So, if I’m playing the most perfect, religious girl, then nobody gets anything out of it. It’s like being a Christian and only hanging out in church. When I play a character, I try not to judge her because ultimately it’s about where she ends up and what she learns from the journey, no matter what happens along the journey. Does she become a better person?”

She reads her Bible “every day without fail” and is determined to continue growing in her faith. Married to a Hollywood movie executive who is also a preacher, she said that she is happy to have “a partner who shares the same heart for God that I have, who walks down the same road as I, and who wants the same things in life that I do. I’m also happy that I found someone who understands what I do for a living, and wants to use that as a tool to help glorify God….It’s just a blessing now that people are listening as I try to share the love of God and empower young women.” Her name is Meagan Good.

Colin Kaepernick: Glorifying God on the Gridiron (Gospel Light Minute #84)

He is the starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers. He played college football for the University of Nevada Wolf Pack where he was twice named the Western Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year and the Most Valuable Player of the 2008 Humanitarian Bowl. In the 2011 NFL Draft the San Francisco 49ers selected him in the second round with the 36th overall pick.

He began his pro career as the 49ers’ backup quarterback to starter Alex Smith. In the middle of the 2012 season he filled in for an injured Smith and became the starter as the 49ers advanced to the NFL playoffs for the second straight season. He set an NFL record for most rushing yards by a quarterback in his first playoff game. After beating the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Championship, he led the 49ers to their first Super Bowl since the 1994 NFL season.

Playing football is a way for him to glorify the Lord. In an interview at Summit Christian Church in Sparks, Nevada, he said, “I don’t think most people look at football as a way to glorify the Lord. I think a lot of people think of it as ‘oh it’s a game, let’s go win.’ Ultimately, that’s your goal, but you also want to glorify the Lord on your way to doing that…My faith is the basis from where my game comes from. I’ve been very blessed to have the talent to play the game and be successful at it. I think God guides me through every day and helps me take the right steps and has helped me to get to where I’m at. When I step on the field, I always say a prayer, say I’m thankful to be able to wake up that morning and go out there and try to glorify the Lord with what I do on the field. I think if you go out and try to do that, no matter what happens, you can be happy about what you did.”

He has also drawn attention for the tattoos on his body. “Against All Odds,” is emblazoned across his chest. A version of Psalm 27:3 which reads, “Though an army besiege me, my heart will not be afraid”, can be read on his left shoulder. Those words are surrounded by: “God Will Guide Me.” On his right bicep is the word “Faith” and on his left bicep is “To God be the glory.”

Even though he has been criticized for his tattoos, he says, “I got them for me and to show people this is what I believe in. And God has brought me this far. He’s laid out a phenomenal path for me and I can do nothing but thank him.” His name is Colin Kaepernick.

Russell Wilson: ‘I Chose the Number Three for My Jersey to Honor the Holy Trinity’ (Gospel Light Minute #83)

He is the starting quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League. He was selected by the Seahawks in the third round of the 2012 NFL Draft. He played college football for the University of Wisconsin during the 2011 season, in which he set the single season FBS record for passing efficiency and led the team to a Big Ten title and the 2012 Rose Bowl. He received the Big Ten Quarterback of the Year award and was named a consensus first-team All-Big Ten and third-team All-American by Yahoo! Sports. Before transferring to Wisconsin, he played football and baseball for North Carolina State University and was named the ACC Rookie of the Year in football and became the first freshman quarterback to receive first team All-ACC honors.

He is a devout Christian who frequently speaks of his faith in press conferences and interviews and posts daily encouragement from the Bible on his Twitter feed. He said that he chose the number three for his Seahawks jersey as a way of honoring the Holy Trinity.

He grew up in a family where faith in God was the foundation of their lives. His family members and former athletic director at North Carolina State University all say that he is strong and sincere in his faith. This strong faith was molded and strengthened during a time when his father was suffering from complications from diabetes and had suffered several strokes. He said that during this time, “I think of the Lord being there and that there is a time and place for everything.”

The day after he was drafted by the Colorado Rockies in June 2010, he, his mother, and his grandmother were called to the hospital for the final time. The doctors said his father was unresponsive. But after praying in the hallway, he says that they felt the Holy Spirit telling them to go in the hospital room. He went into the room and greeted his father for the last time. He said, “I walked in and I could see the EKG monitor. I said: ‘Hey, Dad, I’m here.’ As soon as I said that, the line went flat. That’s how I knew the Lord is real. I knew my dad heard me and he could hear everything I was telling him about how I got drafted. He was waiting for something great to happen. That’s how I knew he went in peace. He is here watching me right now.” His name is Russell Wilson.

Ray Lewis: ‘Loving God Completes You as a Man’ (Gospel Light Minute #82)

He is an linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League. He is considered to be one of the best linebackers of his era. He played college football for the University of Miami. He has played his entire professional career with the Ravens after they selected him as a first round draft pick in 1996, and he is the last player remaining from the Ravens’ inaugural season. He has been selected to 13 Pro Bowls and has been named an Associated Press All-Pro Player 10 times. He won the NFL Defensive Player of the Year Award in 2000 and 2003. He was also the second linebacker to win the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award and the first linebacker to win the award on the winning Super Bowl team.

He is a follower of Jesus Christ, and his commitment to his faith was featured in a Sports Illustrated cover story in 2006. During an interview with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, he said, “God is always God. It is only us that waver and go down wrong roads and do foolish things. And there are somethings in life that you have to deal with, and you have to go through some things to get to God.” He believes that Christians should be about sharing faith, hope and love in every arena of life, and says that his faith inspires him to pray, read the Bible with, and give advice and encouragement to younger players so that they won’t make the same mistakes he made.

During a recent game, he reminded his teammates that “No weapon formed against them shall prosper and that no man can stop what God can already destined.” His favorite scripture is Psalm 91 because it reminds him that “God is everything you need.” His love for God is evidenced in his charitable work providing personal and economic assistance to disadvantaged youth. He says, “to love God completes you as a man.”

His name is Ray Lewis.

Johnny “Football” Manziel ‘Trusts the Lord With All his Heart’ (Gospel Light Minute #81)

He is the quarterback for the Texas A&M Aggies. He became the first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy, and the first freshman to win the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award. He played high school football in Kerrville, Texas. Recruited out of high school as a dual-threat quarterback with an impressive ability to extend plays, he plays in Kevin Sumlin’s Air Raid offense in Texas A&M’s first season in the SEC. Here he was given the name “Johnny Football” by fans and students for his unique improvisation and ability to make winning plays. He recently led his team to beat Oklahoma in the 2013 Cotton Bowl Classic.

In his Heisman acceptance speech, he said, “I thank God for allowing me to be here and for His grace and love throughout my life.” He thanked his parents for bringing him up in the church and for the faith that he holds dearly. He often quotes Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” He said, “I tell myself everyday that God has a plan for me. I’m here for a reason and whatever happens in the future is meant to happen for a reason. I always make sure to trust the Lord with all my heart.” His name is Johnny Manziel.