Game

I have a theory.  People just love The Ohio State University, buy products with its logos, root for OSU in person or on TV, and many kids dream of going there one day.

This loyal following is there for a reason.  Cleveland.  We stalwart souls in the northeast Ohio region haven't really had much to cheer about.  I don't pay one iota of attention to the Indians pre-season or otherwise because we've all gone down that path before.  The new stadium drew record attendance for a number of years, but the Indians couldn't get to the top.  And then they went to the bottom.  Then there's the Cavs.  It's always something.  How about the Browns?  Now we've lost Phil Dawson!! 

New owners come and go, new players come and go, and new facilities come, but nothing much seems to change in Cleveland.  The disappointment is so great for rabid sports fans that they turn to a place that produces winners -- OSU.  They stoke their adrenalin and go to work on Monday still full of the taste of victory.

Last night I was really hoping Akron could go to the NCAA tournament, show their stuff, and make it through to the second round for the first time in their history.  It just didn't happen.  In fact, it was a train wreck.  The final score was a disparaging 88-42.  Someone will probably say today that it was the worst defeat in NCAA history since the playoffs started.  Sure, there are reasons for what happened.  Their point guard apparently sold marijuana and got caught with it.  He hung around with another guy who did the same.  Then two players came down with the flu on Wednesday afternoon.  In some ways, it sounds like Cleveland, doesn't it?

It's tough to be a fan of Cleveland sports, and it's tough to be an Akron fan.  Trust me, I know.  You go to bed upset and sleep lousy.  Then while you are awake during the night after sleeping lousy, you get mad at yourself for caring enough to sleep lousy.  It's just a game!!  But it does reflect life.  Once you put your heart into something, you script a certain result.  Don't we all do that to some extent?  We want the team to fulfill something within ourselves that's hurt or missing.

And I do feel bad for the Zips team.  They seem like a group of decent young men who worked hard towards a goal.  Their record would have been 28-6 had it not be for losing their point guard right at the end. 

The one thing I need to do is just remember this:  we have a God who has put everything on the line for us.  He gave it all.  And unlike us, when it doesn't turn out right, he never quits.  Isn't that something? 

This weekend is Palm Sunday, Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem to the throngs of Jews who appeared to love him.  Who could know that the Sanhedrin, Pilate, and Herod Antipas would all play a part in moving him toward Calvary?  That His own disciples would turn away from him?  And that our sins were the underpinning of it all.