Last week, Kenny McKinley, a wide receiver for the Denver Broncos, took his own life. Many were left to wonder why. Those close to him never would have thought he was in a place emotionally to take his own life. A Yahoo article I read today offers some explanation:
In two seasons after being a fifth-round draft pick in 2009, McKinley had scarcely played because of knee injuries. On Saturday, the Broncos held a service for him and McKinley’s father recalled how his son, when he was just five, had once made a business card out of an index card that read, “Kenny McKinley, football player.”
That type of self-imposed pressure may lead to trouble down the line.
“So much of what we try to do is about developing an identity outside of being a football player,” said Williams, who sought counseling during his rookie season with the New Orleans Saints. “If your identity [is] wrapped up in you being a football player and you’re in a sport where so many guys are replaceable, what’s going to happen when you don’t have football?”
McKinley had been hurt much of his two years in the NFL. It seems as if life without the identity of a “football player” was difficult to deal with. I think we can all sympathize with this.
If you’ve been around sports much, you know the intoxication of it–the joy, the fame, the self-worth it can bring. Most people I’ve seen who participate in sports recreationally (whether it be as a participant or a volunteer) still wrap up part of their identity in sports. I know I’m still guilty of it. People who do this take a “good” thing and make it an ultimate thing. Those of us who are Christians though know that our identity should be found in Christ.
My prayer for those of us in sports ministry is that we could challenge those who find their identity in sport. This is part of our role as a sports minister. Help people see their sin–show them how that worldview falls short. Call them to something higher, to something better–to Christ. Help them to see what role sports would have if Christ was truly the center of their life and their identity.
