As Tom Brady and Bill Belichick head to their eighth Super Bowl together, plenty of people hate the fact they’re in it again. These same people are rooting for the Eagles just so they can cheer against the Patriots.
Fans not only dislike the Patriots' longstanding success but are also bitter and frustrated that it’s been at the expense of their own team winning.
Panthers fans, like myself, still struggle with being so close to experiencing a Super Bowl victory but falling short after Adam Vinatieri hit the game-winning field goal.
Jaguars fans are angry and devastated after last Sunday’s loss (knowing they had a chance)...and we can all guess how Falcons fans must still feel after last year’s Super Bowl meltdown.
Deflategate and Spygate remain on the minds of many fans who can't help but question how those situations factored into the outcome of games.
Obviously, everything seems to eventually go the Patriots way. Year after year they figure out how to win (except against the Giants), and land in the Super Bowl with Brady and Belichick prevailing.
Non-Patriots fans most likely respect their greatness, but an underlying sense of bitterness is hard to deny. When the rest of us are waiting for our team to win just one Super Bowl, feelings of frustration, envy, and disappointment can't help but creep in.
Sports bitterness is one thing, but bitterness that affects everyday life is harmful - especially when rooted deeply in our hearts as it festers over time.
We can come up with excuses to justify our angry feelings, but when we take the time to address the results of these emotions, we realize how detrimental they can be.
The truth is, when we allow bitterness to build up to the point of holding an on-going grudge, the person who hurt us and the situation that disappointed us keep on winning.
After a while, the bitterness ends up weighing us down, extending our pain and blocking out love from our lives. We continue to cling to our bitterness because we buy the lie that if we let it go, we’re saying the bad thing that happened is okay.
But Jesus invites us into a life of freedom and meets us in our bitterness. By acknowledging that bitterness is void of value and blessings (and actually makes things worse), we can trust God to give us the strength to forgive and move forward.
Ephesians 4:31-32 (AMP) says, "Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with every kind of malice .
"Be kind and helpful to one another, tender-hearted , forgiving one another , just as God in Christ also forgave you."
Hebrews 12:14-15 (NLT) challenges us to "Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord. Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many."
Our bitterness toward Tom Brady and Bill Belichick hasn’t slowed them down at all but has probably prevented us from the enjoyment of watching a team's greatness.
Today, as we consider how bitterness hurts us more than someone else, let's decide to take steps to stop this poisonous root from growing any further.
As we freely move forward with forgiveness, we can start enjoying a peaceful and joy-filled life. I’m Bryce Johnson and you can unpack that!
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, I pray that You would take away any bitterness I have toward people and situations, and even You. I pray I’d remember how You forgive me, so I can show grace toward others. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.
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