SUPER BOWL

"Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain." (I Corinthians 9:24)

My sermon this coming Sunday is "A Winning Perspective" and in its introduction, I'll be talking about the Super Bowl. In doing a little research about the Super Bowl I learned a few things. Do you know how the Super Bowl got its name? It came from Kansas City Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt. He was trying to come up with a name for this big contest between the AFL Champion Kansas City Chiefs and the NFL Champion Green Bay Packers. He happened to notice his daughter's SuperBall and thought, "That's IT...Super BOWL!"

The first Super Bowl was held on January 15, 1967 in Los Angeles. Yes, it was earlier in the year in those days. It seems to me it was earlier in the day, as well. I seem to remember that game starting around 4 p.m. Eastern Time. (When I was in Bible College, I can remember Super Bowls starting around 3 p.m. Central.) Through the years, as the playoff seasons got longer the date for the Super Bowl got later. I think it's been around seven years now that the Super Bowl has been on the first Sunday of February rather than in January. It's probably been around twenty-five years that the Super Bowl has started around 6:25 p.m. Eastern.

The Assemblies of God is very anti-gambling so maybe I shouldn't tell this part, but I remember that in 1967 my father was in some sort of a Super Bowl pool at work. He had the point spread at 25. Green Bay beat Kansas City 35-10, so he won. I don't know how much money he won, but that was an exciting day for our family. (Just as a disclaimer- I don't gamble!!)

I kind of hope New Orleans wins. Maybe it's because they're the "Saints" but I think it's also because New Orleans has been through SO much with Hurricane Katrina, etc. that it would be nice for them to have this victory. The Saints are the underdogs but maybe they'll pull it off!

I hope nobody thinks my sermon is primarily about the Super Bowl or about football. Over 90% of it is NOT about that at all...it just makes a good jumping off point for my sermon on "A WINNING PERSPECTIVE" from Ecclesiastes 11 and 12. My theme is "The ONLY way to truly be a winner is to know, love, and serve the Lord!".

I hope you'll be at church somewhere on Sunday morning, and I hope you'll enjoy the game later on. My son's also looking forward to watching "The Who" do the halftime show.

Oh, one more thing: the average television ad for the 1967 Super Bowl cost $75,000 a minute. That's a tiny fraction of what Sunday's commercial spots will cost advertisers.