There's no denying that the 2024 NCAA Women’s Tournament has been a huge success for the sport as a whole. With the surplus of talented teams and star players participating in March Madness, many fans have decided to follow the women’s tournament with greater interest this year. In fact, Monday night’s Elite Eight contest between Iowa and LSU was the most-watched college basketball game in the history of ESPN. Contributing greatly to the recent rise of popularity in the women’s game has been the influx of elite talents such as Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, LSU’s Angel Reese, USC’s JuJu Watkins, Stanford’s Cameron Brink, and UConn’s Paige Bueckers. Heading into her team’s Final Four showdown against Iowa, Bueckers was asked about possibly replacing Caitlin Clark as the “face” of women’s basketball next season. She responded, “I think it's more important for the game to share the spotlight, to grow the game and show all the stars of college basketball, not just focus on one particular player.” Buecker's answer is a breath of fresh air in light of the ego-centric attitude pervasive in elite athletics. Rather than wanting the spotlight to be focused on her, she prefers the focus and attention be placed elsewhere. As followers of Jesus, we know the Bible calls us to have a similar attitude as we live our lives. In Matthew 5:16 (ESV), Jesus told His disciples, “'In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.'” Our motivation in doing good works should never be that we receive accolades and attention to draw the spotlight on ourselves. Rather, we must recognize our good works should be done in a way that points the attention to our good and glorious God, who alone is worthy of all praise, glory, and honor. When possible, we're even called to go out of our way to ensure that people won’t be able to point the spotlight on us when we're doing our good deeds. Continuing in His “Sermon on the Mount,” Jesus said in Matthew 6:3-4 (NLT), “'But when you give to someone in need, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Give your gifts in private, and your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.'” Though our flesh often craves recognition for the good things we've done, we must realize that doing our good deeds “in secret” is best for the person who receives them. When they can't direct their praise to an individual because they're uncertain who to thank, their attention can be directed toward heaven...giving glory to the God who has generously provided for them. To successfully fight against the desires of our flesh, we must be reminded that whatever good we accomplish is only possible because God graciously saved us and equipped us to produce fruit for His glory. Today, let’s remember that our ultimate purpose is to bring glory to God, not ourselves. Let's practice our good deeds in a way that points all of the spotlight on Him. I’m Matt Osborne, and you can UNPACK that! PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for enabling me to do good works that bring You glory. Please forgive me when I selfishly desire attention, and help me always give You the glory in everything I do. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.
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