3 Nov, 2009
A Not-So-Welcome Reception
GREEN BAY, Wis. — He's the iconic quarterback who, for 16 record-setting years, symbolized the grit of the storied Green Bay Packers franchise.
Favre knows better than to expect a warm welcome (at Lambeau Field). Favre said, "...playing there with another team is obviously something new to me.
Signing with Minnesota made Favre "the ultimate traitor," says Krystina Engebos, 25, a bartender at Titletown Brewery Co. in Green Bay.
Dave Dushek, 45, a UPS driver from Rice Lake, Wis., and a shareholder in the Packers, the only community-owned big-time professional sports team, stated, "Now, it's like Brett went from the Hatfields to the McCoys."
Packers fans have found a variety of ways to express their feelings about Favre's return.
Green Bay mayor Jim Schmitt selected four "tasteful" suggestions from among 1,000 to mark the occasion.
Schmitt declared today "Flip-Flop Friday," when city employees can wear flip-flops, a barb at Favre's on-again, off-again retirement.
Titletown Brewery will host a Saturday tailgate party featuring waffle fries with green and purple ketchup, tweaking Favre's Jets and Vikings incarnations.
Schmitt will rename Minnesota Avenue "Aaron Rodgers Drive" for Sunday.
"Some people wanted to change Brett Favre Pass to Brett Favre Interception."
Playing off the quarterback's uniform number, an Appleton, Wis., radio station will hold a mock "Funeral-4-Favre" at a Green Bay sports bar today with hearse, casket, pallbearers and a mannequin corpse.
"As soon as Brett became a Viking, he was dead to us," says WAPL disc jockey Rick McNeal, 51.
A sarcastic "We'll Never Forget You, Brent " T-shirt produced by a Madison, Wis., store provides a popular anti-Favre expression.
Sax came up with "Mourn4" black armbands, which are being sold for $5, with all the proceeds benefiting the Wisconsin Breast Cancer Coalition. He expects to sell 4,000 to 5,000.
(To see the full article by by Jim Corbett, USA TODAY, go to http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/2009-10-29-brett-favre-green-bay_N.htm)
Matthew 13:57 [NIV]
And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, "Only in his hometown and in his own house is a prophet without honor."
I Peter 4:4 [NLT]
Of course, your former friends are surprised when you no longer plunge into the flood of wild and destructive things they do. So they slander you.
Matthew 10:22 [NIV]
All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.
What does God's Story teach us about the reception we will get as His followers?
Once a loved hero at Green Bay, Brett Favre is now an outcast. Those who cheered his name now curse it. Though today's article is full of many striking statements, "He is dead to us" certainly stands out.
Jesus had the same experience. He also was not welcome in his hometown because they just knew him as the kid from down the street. He was just an ordinary carpenter's son. "Who& is he", they thought, "to claim to be the Son of God?"
Jesus also warned his disciples that they too would not be received well. He told them in very clear terms that they would suffer for His name.
This message from Jesus was not just for the disciples standing before Him that day. It is true for you and me. All over the world brothers and sisters in Christ are being persecuted. While I was on a missions trip to Brazil, I remember a 16 year old girl who made the decision to follow Christ. She made this choice knowing that she would be kicked out of her house and that she would never get to speak to her family again. She would be "counted as dead". Other Christians around the world are even put to death for their faith...every day...even at the very moment you are reading this.
Praise God that His Word also says that he who stands firm to the end will be saved!!!
Connecting today's story, God's story and my story
- Stop and pray today for your brothers and sisters all over the world who are undergoing persecution at this very moment. Pray that God will give them the strength and faith to endure all things for His name!
- Re-read I Peter 4:4. This verse teaches us that our friends should notice a difference in us...and that it might not be well received. You may be getting pressure from your former friends (who don't know Christ yet) to continue living as you used to. Stand strong! If they speak badly of you, don't fire back at them...but humbly pray for them and count it a blessing to endure persecution for the One who endured all for you!
- You are "playing for a new team now" and it will take great courage. Remember that if you stand firm to the end, you will be saved!
I Peter 2:12 tells us to "live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us."
When you stand firm (with the help of the Holy Spirit), your lost friends may criticize you at first, but eventually they will see the reality of God living in you and want the same for their lives.
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