Benjamin Watson on Jeremiah 9:22-23 – “Humility: Channeling Our God-Given Gifts”

Show Notes

Mark is absolutely delighted to welcome Super Bowl-winning tight end, Benjamin Watson, to the podcast today. In addition to his great success with four different NFL teams, Benjamin is the proud father of seven whose family is deeply devoted to their Christian faith. He has been a finalist for the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award on multiple occasions, is an author of two books, and leads a charitable initiative entitled Freedom Friday. The passage he has chosen to discuss is Jeremiah 9:22-23.

Benjamin begins the conversation by summarizing the selected passage and its significance for him. Mark then describes how Benjamin very much embodies the passage’s message of using God-given gifts to better communities, particularly through his Freedom Friday initiative. Benjamin also shares how ‘God repeatedly showed up’ for him and his family, the heartwarming story behind his unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, the role that faith and biblical verses play in the NFL, and his experience with fear and how he overcame it. He concludes, as all guests do, by detailing the lessons he has learned about mankind. As Mark notes, Benjamin’s website reflects a Christian family devoted to their faith and acting on it through the alleviation of suffering and creation of opportunities in ways that genuinely and directly benefit the least fortunate. You will discover that he and Mark are truly kindred spirits in this regard, as they both bring this passage to life not only in their conversation here today, but so very much in the way they lead their lives as well.

Episode Highlights:

Benjamin’s summary of the passage and its significance for him
How he embodies this passage
Using the gifts God gives to better communities
Freedom Friday and how it began
How ‘God repeatedly showed up’ for Benjamin and his family
The story behind his unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and fine
The role of faith and specific biblical verses in the NFL
Benjamin’s experience with fear and how he overcame it
The lessons that Benjamin has learned about mankind

Quotes:

“We need to have some humility in the way we speak, in the way we act, in our thought process, because of the blessings that we have.”

“It talks about God being God of kindness, justice, and righteousness which is what kind of informs how I believe we should act towards people and the things we should be involved with.”

“Don’t deny these gifts. Thank God for them, work on them, develop them, don’t be falsely humble, acknowledge God gave me strength, God gave him wisdom, God gave her riches…now our job is to channel these gifts.”

“God strategically places His people where He wants them to be.”

“Push for a certain moral standard that not only benefits us personally, and as a representation of the God that we serve, but will also benefit our country collectively for the long term.”

“There are a lot of things that are important, but we have to hone in on what God wants us to be involved in.”

“Certain verses inspire certain players at certain times.”

“After every single NFL game, players from both sides come to the middle of the field…you’ll see a circle of players pray together - both teams, hand in hand.”

“If we can trust our eternity to God, I can trust him with my career, I can trust him with my relationships, I can trust him with the things that I see right now.”

“God can use your talents, but He doesn’t need them.”

“Our lives are best lived when they are poured out for other people.”

Jeremiah 9:22,23 - https://www.sefaria.org/Jeremiah.9.22-23?lang=bi

Links:

The Rabbi’s Husband homepage: http://therabbishusband.com/

Mark’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/markgerson?lang=en

Benjamin’s homepage: https://thewatsonseven.com/

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