Showing posts with label Philadelphia Eagles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Philadelphia Eagles. Show all posts

Monday, February 5, 2018

'All the Glory Belongs to God': The Faith of the Super Bowl-Winning Philadelphia Eagles - CBN News Mark Martin,Benjamin Gill


Philadelphia Eagles
Photo Credit: philadelphiaeagles via Instagram
'All the Glory Belongs to God': The Faith of the Super Bowl-Winning Philadelphia Eagles
02-04-2018
CBN News Mark Martin,
Do faith and football go together? For players on the Philadelphia Eagles, the answer is a resounding "yes."
The Eagles won their first Super Bowl 41-33 over the New England Patriots in a hard-fought game Sunday night in Minneapolis.  
“All glory to God,” MVP Quarterback Nick Foles said right after the win.
“I felt calm. We have such a great group of guys, such a great coaching staff... we’re very blessed," he said. 
Just nine years ago, Eagles head coach Doug Pederson was coaching high school. Now he's a Super Bowl champion.
“I can only give the praise to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for giving me this opportunity," Pederson said Sunday night.
And touchdown-scoring Wide Receiver Zach Ertz echoed the same sentiment. 
“Glory to God first and foremost,” Ertz said.
And despite being sidelined by a season-ending injury, Eagles QB Carson Wentz threw all his support to Foles, and all the glory to God.
NFC Conference Champions
On January 21st, the Eagles clinched the NFC Conference Championship, earning the right to face the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII.
"First and foremost, all glory belongs to God. I wouldn't be here without Him and this is just very humbling and unbelievable," QB Nick Foles said immediately after that Eagles' win over the Minnesota Vikings. "I'm blessed to have amazing teammates, amazing coaches."
Foles, who turned in an amazing performance to lead the Eagles to victory, is bold about professing his born-again faith, describing himself on Twitter as a: "Believer in Jesus Christ, husband, father, son, brother."
A number of his teammates share that faith in Christ, and you can bet many on the team were as "prayed up" for the Super Bowl as they were throughout the season.
At the start of the season, Foles and teammates Zach Ertz, Trey Burton, Carson Wentz, and Chris Maragos released a Bible study on humility and surrender through the YouVersion Bible app.
And back in November, the Eagles team released a video on its Facebook page entitled, "The Locker Room's Binding Force." It's a look at the Christian faith of three players and how Christianity is a big part of the team's unity.
Starting quarterback Carson Wentz, wide receiver Torrey Smith, and safety/special teams player Chris Maragos share their testimonies in the video.
"I was kind of on this downward spiral because the things I was trying to place in my life to give me satisfaction would last for a little bit and then they'd fade away," Maragos said in the video. "And that was my sophomore year in high school."  
"I was really at a crossroads at that point and had to make a decision on where I was going," he continued. "And that's when I gave my life to Christ, and really he supplied that satisfaction and that joy for me." 
Players have the opportunity to attend chapel among other things.
"On every Monday night, we have a couple's Bible study. We have a Thursday night team Bible study," Wentz explained in the video. "And then Saturday nights, we actually get together the night before the game and just kind of pray; talk through the Word; what guy's have been reading, what they're struggling with, and just kind of keep it real with each other."
"To have that here in an NFL facility like this, it's really special," he added.
"As men, you tend to be very sheltered. If I'm going through some things, I may not express that to the next man," Smith shared. "Only you can kind of expose your weaknesses and things you want to work on, whether it's in your relationship or your marriage or your family, whatever it may be."
"When you're able to talk about it amongst your brothers, amongst your family, it helps you grow," he continued. "And when you realize that you can apply Biblical principles to it, it helps us all grow."
"I think the biggest thing that we're always challenging each other with is just to not lose sight of the bigger picture," Wentz said. "I think wins, losses, highs, lows, everything that comes with this game, it's so easy to take your mind and your eyes off of the ultimate prize, and that's living for the Lord."
"And we want to be united," Maragos said. "We want to support each other; we want to support each other in our lives through the difficulties off the field as well as on the field."
"And so I think it's really kind of something to where we're all just kind of binding together to kind of keep each other sharpened and keep pushing forward," he continued.  
That unity helped propel them to the NFC Championship game and now a 41-33 win over the Patriots in the Super Bowl

Sunday, February 4, 2018

'My Faith in the Lord Means Everything': How These Eagles and Patriots Are Using Super Bowl LII to Glorify God - CBN News Shawn Brown


'My Faith in the Lord Means Everything': How These Eagles and Patriots Are Using Super Bowl LII to Glorify God
02-01-2018
CBN News Shawn Brown
The underdog Philadelphia Eagles are taking on the legendary Tom Brady and the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII this Sunday, a rematch 13 years in the making.
The Eagles are seeking their first Super Bowl championship in history while the Patriots are gunning for title number six for their irrepressible dynasty.
As you can imagine, there's a lot of pressure on the players. While winning is important, some of them are playing for much more than a Super Bowl Championship.
The Eagles have arguably been the best team in the NFL this season. Safety Malcolm Jenkins says it has a lot to do with the brotherhood of faith he and a lot of his teammates formed in the offseason through Bible studies, praying together, and even baptism.
"I've seen like three guys get baptized at the team facility. I don't think that's happened anywhere. It's just one of those things that faith is a really important part of this team. And we commune with one another often times. We talk about it, and it's been unique and special to watch that unfold in an NFL locker room," said Jenkins.
Tight End Zach Ertz agrees with Jenkins. He says he is personally reaping the benefits of a faith-filled locker room.
"I dedicated my life to Christ back in March. I was baptized in March, got married the next day. Our marriage has been built on that foundation from the word and Jesus and it's changed my life. And just to have these guys hold me accountable on a daily bases has been phenomenal for me. I hope I do the same for them," said Ertz.
"My faith in the Lord has been my foundation. It's been as they say your rock, your strong point. He's what I stand on. As a team, we're strong in the faith. People say underdogs, and we're like, we consider ourselves blessed," said Eagles Tackle Will Beatty.
Eagles Quarterback Nick Foles has been on quite a journey to get to this point. He was traded by the Eagles 2015. Two seasons later, the team signed him again as a back-up to Carson Wentz.
Then Wentz tore his ACL in week 14, and many questioned whether Foles had the goods to lead them all the way to a championship. Now they're playing their first Super Bowl in 13 years.
Foles says it's all because of God's faithfulness.
"My faith in the Lord means everything. I'm a believer in Jesus Christ and that's first and foremost. That's everything. I wouldn't be able to do this game without Him because I don't have the strength to go out and do this. This is supernatural," Foles said.
"It's also an opportunity to go out there and share what's He's done in my life. And it's not about prospering at all. It's about how He's humbled me. In my weaknesses, He made me strong, 2 Corinthians 12:9. You know, whenever I was at my lowest, that's where my relationship with Christ grew," Foles continued.
And there's plenty of faith on the New England side too.
The Patriots have won two championships in the last three seasons. Now they're back to try for another. For a lot of the players, it's another opportunity for them to glorify the name of the Lord on the biggest stage in football.  
"I feel like my purpose here in the National Football League and on this earth is bigger than the game of football. I firmly believe I've been given the platform of football to build relationships, build bridges, and connect with people, and show them the love of Christ. And that's something that I've enjoyed doing since I got here to New England and something that I continue to enjoy doing," said Patriots Wide Receiver Matthew Slater.
"I go through my ups and downs. I'm a broken human being and I have flaws and my struggles and God's the one that's consistent. God's the one that carries me through. And I'm so thankful for Jesus Christ and the things He's done in my life," said Patriots Tackle Nate Solder.
The Patriots' veteran defensive backs Duran Harmon and Devin McCourty say it's when things get tough that they lean on their faith the most to help them stay focused and poised.
"This whole journey has ups, downs, but the one thing that has been consistent is God – His love for me, His grace, His mercy continually shows His favor. I know that He has something bigger in store for me than football but I just have to stay the course, continue to keep serving Him and everything else will fall in place," Harmon said.
"I think one of the cool things that we talked about this year is just joy. You know I think football brings a lot of ups and downs and you can easily just ride with that roller coaster. Even today in our chapel before we came here, we talked about embracing everything, being here tonight and enjoying this process. And just being authentic, being ourselves and not being scared to be different and talk about being blessed and the opportunity to be here," McCourty said.
Tight End Dwayne Allen signed with the team in the offseason, so this is his first Super Bowl appearance. He's worked hard to get here. While he's elated about the opportunity, he says none of his success would have been possible with his relationship with Jesus Christ.
"I go back to January 8, 2014, in my bedroom I had an intimate moment where I submitted to Christ. When I said, 'I can't do this alone. I tried it the last 23 years and it's just not working. I need You.' And the way that He has come into my life has changed my life for the better," Allen said.
"Taking that step to submit your life to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is not something easy. But life isn't meant to be, but take heart because He's conquered all, and that's the faith that I have," he said.

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Monday, January 22, 2018

'All the Glory Belongs to God': The Faith of the Super Bowl-Bound Philadelphia Eagles - CBN News Mark Martin, Benjamin Gill


Philadelphia Eagles
Photo Credit: philadelphiaeagles via Instagram
'All the Glory Belongs to God': The Faith of the Super Bowl-Bound Philadelphia Eagles
01-21-2018
CBN News Mark Martin,
Do faith and football go together? For players on the Philadelphia Eagles, the answer is a resounding "yes."
Sunday night the Eagles clinched the NFC Conference Championship which means they're headed to the Super Bowl to face the New England Patriots.
"First and foremost, all glory belongs to God. I wouldn't be here without Him and this is just very humbling and unbelievable," quarterback Nick Foles said immediately after the Eagles' win over the Minnesota Vikings. "I'm blessed to have amazing teammates, amazing coaches."
Foles, who turned in an amazing performance to lead the Eagles to victory, is bold about professing his born-again faith, describing himself on Twitter as a: "Believer in Jesus Christ, husband, father, son, brother."
A number of his teammates share that faith in Christ, and you can bet many on the team will be as "prayed up" for the upcoming Super Bowl as they were throughout the season.
At the start of the season, Foles and teammates Zach Ertz, Trey Burton, Carson Wentz, and Chris Maragos released a Bible study on humility and surrender through the YouVersion Bible app.
And back in November, the team released a video on its Facebook page entitled, "The Locker Room's Binding Force." It's a look at the Christian faith of three players and how Christianity is a big part of the team's unity.
Starting quarterback Carson Wentz, who suffered a season-ending injury, wide receiver Torrey Smith, and safety/special teams player Chris Maragos share their testimonies in the video.
"I was kind of on this downward spiral because the things I was trying to place in my life to give me satisfaction would last for a little bit and then they'd fade away," Maragos said in the video. "And that was my sophomore year in high school."  
"I was really at a crossroads at that point and had to make a decision on where I was going," he continued. "And that's when I gave my life to Christ, and really he supplied that satisfaction and that joy for me." 
Players have the opportunity to attend chapel among other things.
"On every Monday night, we have a couple's Bible study. We have a Thursday night team Bible study," Wentz explained in the video. "And then Saturday nights, we actually get together the night before the game and just kind of pray; talk through the Word; what guy's have been reading, what they're struggling with, and just kind of keep it real with each other."
"To have that here in an NFL facility like this, it's really special," he added.
"As men, you tend to be very sheltered. If I'm going through some things, I may not express that to the next man," Smith shared. "Only you can kind of expose your weaknesses and things you want to work on, whether it's in your relationship or your marriage or your family, whatever it may be."
"When you're able to talk about it amongst your brothers, amongst your family, it helps you grow," he continued. "And when you realize that you can apply Biblical principles to it, it helps us all grow."
"I think the biggest thing that we're always challenging each other with is just to not lose sight of the bigger picture," Wentz said. "I think wins, losses, highs, lows, everything that comes with this game, it's so easy to take your mind and your eyes off of the ultimate prize, and that's living for the Lord."
"And we want to be united," Maragos said. "We want to support each other; we want to support each other in our lives through the difficulties off the field as well as on the field."
"And so I think it's really kind of something to where we're all just kind of binding together to kind of keep each other sharpened and keep pushing forward," he continued.  
That unity helped propel them to the NFC Championship game on Sunday night, and now against the Patriots as well.