With sports starting up again, there’s going to be plenty of adjustments for us to make as we watch from home. Even though it’s already been weird turning on baseball and basketball without real fans in attendance, we just have to embrace it and enjoy the fact that sports are back.
With that said, stadiums and TV networks are implementing creative ways to create the appearance of fans. On Saturday during FOX’s MLB broadcasts, thousands of virtual fans will be filling the stands. Some people who turn on the games might even be fooled into thinking there are actual fans in the stands. Unfortunately, they will be fake and computer-generated.
In addition to pretending that fans are in the seats with virtual technology, some stadiums are using cardboard cutouts with pictures of actual fans! I even heard a radio host talking about how he bought a seat that will have his cutout sitting there in a prime section during San Francisco Giants games this season.
I’m laughing out loud writing this devotional because it seems so silly to have fake fans, but I recognize they’re trying to give the impression that fans are still there.
As outrageous and innovative as this is to trick our eyes into thinking real fans are watching live, I find there’s a convicting parallel to unpack when it comes to our own lives.
All of us in some way or another attempt to create the appearance that we have our life together and trick people into thinking how they see us is real. In trying to hide our struggles, flaws, and sinful behavior, we implement creative ways to fool people with our fake selves.
But if we aren’t careful, we become a “cardboard cutout” or a “virtual avatar” that isn’t genuine and true.
As followers of Jesus, we want to pursue a life of obedience and holiness, yet fall short at times because of our sinful nature getting in the way. However, the key for us is to be honest and transparent, instead of pretending and living in constant hypocrisy.
If we are truly seeking the Lord and desiring to live according to His way, then our hearts will be genuinely aligned with God. We won’t just put on the appearance of real faith, but consistently live it out with integrity.
In Matthew 23, Jesus speaks to the crowds and His disciples, exposing the hypocrisy of the scribes and Pharisees. What He says in verses 27-28 (AMP) can be a warning to us as well:
“Woe to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which look beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. So you, also, outwardly seem to be just and upright to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.”
The book of James provides this challenge in chapter 1:21-22 (TLB): “So get rid of all that is wrong in your life, both inside and outside, and humbly be glad for the wonderful message we have received, for it is able to save our souls as it takes hold of our hearts. And remember, it is a message to obey, not just to listen to. So don’t fool yourselves.”
Today as we acknowledge we won’t live a perfect life, let’s stop fooling ourselves or anyone else by pretending or being fake with hypocrisy. Instead, let’s admit our faults, be real, and not turn into a “cardboard cutout.”
By asking God to transform our hearts and minds through His grace, we can rely on His strength to uprightly live with a genuine faith as true followers of Jesus.
I’m Bryce Johnson and you can UNPACK that!
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, I pray You’d point out the hypocrisy in my life and help me not just be a hearer of Your Word, but a doer. Please remove anything wrong and fake in my life and give me the strength to live as an authentic follower of Jesus who points people to the one true God. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.
Discussion Questions for PACKS:
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What areas of your life have you been a hypocrite or pretended to be a certain way?
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In what ways do you find it harder to be real than fake?
