Can a sport/hobby obsession be sinfull?

[Ian Gentles]

OK i love my new golf hobby, but wasnt thinking about me .....honest! But we do come accross folks, even in christian circles, who will follow, parake of a sport, or interest, to almost obsesive levels, and possible at great cost, can this be sinfull?

[Dana Grant]

OK i love my new golf hobby, but wasnt thinking about me .....honest! But we do come accross folks, even in christian circles, who will follow, parake of a sport, or interest, to almost obsesive levels, and possible at great cost, can this be sinfull?

Well, actually, I'm dealing with that sort of thing right now. Lindsey is very much into dog agility and now is winning ribbons at shows with her dog. This is something that she loves.

However, ALL of the dog shows are over a weekend, meaning we travel and miss church. During the agility season, that can mean at least one weekend every month from October to April (except December).

That's the only problem we have with it, missing church on those Sundays. Right now, Bert & I have no responsibilities in the church as far as holding an office, leading or directing something, for the first time in 28 years!!! So we are actually enjoying the freedom of being able to travel a little bit here and there -- attending those dog shows with our daughter (without one of us having to stay at home because of a church job).

I know that's probably not what you're talking about, but is it wrong to miss so much church, really? That's another thing to think about when you talk about sports obsessions.......

[Barb Bouldrey]

When sports take priority over our relationship with God they become sin to us. Sports or hobbies can become addictions.

We had two young families in our church with 3 children in each family. All 4 parents were "sports-a-holics" themselves and played sports in high school, college and as adults. They allowed all their children to play as many sports as they desired and urged them to do so.

Well, both of these mothers were the directors of our children's church and decided to discontinue children's church for the entire summer because they would be gone so many Sundays with sports. One family missed 10 of 13 Sundays that summer with their children's sports, daddy's softball league and attending Cardinals baseball games. The other family missed 9 of 13.

Both families left our church to attend very large churches in our towns where their absence would not be missed as much and they had no responsibilities in the church.

The one mother said to me on her last Sunday, "We just feel we need to go where we will be fed spiritually." I looked her in the eye, called her by name and gently said, "But......you have to be here to be fed."

Now, it is possible that they had family worship early Sunday morning before the left the home to attend their sporting events, but I honestly question that.

Is God really first place in their lives? Will their children be Christians? What part does church attendance play in our relationship with God?

One Sunday a month is not as bad as missing 10 Sundays of the 13-Sunday quarter. That is not an obsession.

"Thou shalt have no other gods before me," can refer to sports, hobbies, even family...even the computer.

It is a real spiritual problem to decide just how important being faithful to a church is to my personal relationship with God. I personally believe that the two are both necessary to reflect my commitment to God. I believe the church needs people who are not only faithful to God, but to one of His churches. We cannot build the kingdom of God on "freeloaders" who attend when they feel like, drop their dollar in the offering plate and do nothing to help promote the work of the kingdom of God within a local church.

It is one of my "soap boxes." What is the church of Christ? I know it is the body of believers. And I believe the Bible supports the body of believers meeting regularly for worship and burden sharing and Bible study.

The Bible does not teach that we meet 3 services on Sunday and one mid-week...those are traditional times of meeting. But I do believe the Bible teaches regular worship, and of course, God being first in my life.

If I go before God and ask him to search my heart and He reveals to me that anything in my life is more important to me than my relationship with Him....it is sin. I need to confess it, ask forgiveness for my over-involvement in it, and make a new surrender to Him.

Barb

[Dana Grant]

When sports take priority over our relationship with God they become sin to us. Sports or hobbies can become addictions.

We had two young families in our church with 3 children in each family. All 4 parents were "sports-a-holics" themselves and played sports in high school, college and as adults. They allowed all their children to play as many sports as they desired and urged them to do so.

Well, both of these mothers were the directors of our children's church and decided to discontinue children's church for the entire summer because they would be gone so many Sundays with sports. One family missed 10 of 13 Sundays that summer with their children's sports, daddy's softball league and attending Cardinals baseball games. The other family missed 9 of 13.

Both families left our church to attend very large churches in our towns where their absence would not be missed as much and they had no responsibilities in the church.

The one mother said to me on her last Sunday, "We just feel we need to go where we will be fed spiritually." I looked her in the eye, called her by name and gently said, "But......you have to be here to be fed."

Now, it is possible that they had family worship early Sunday morning before the left the home to attend their sporting events, but I honestly question that.

Is God really first place in their lives? Will their children be Christians? What part does church attendance play in our relationship with God?

One Sunday a month is not as bad as missing 10 Sundays of the 13-Sunday quarter. That is not an obsession.

"Thou shalt have no other gods before me," can refer to sports, hobbies, even family...even the computer.

It is a real spiritual problem to decide just how important being faithful to a church is to my personal relationship with God. I personally believe that the two are both necessary to reflect my commitment to God. I believe the church needs people who are not only faithful to God, but to one of His churches. We cannot build the kingdom of God on "freeloaders" who attend when they feel like, drop their dollar in the offering plate and do nothing to help promote the work of the kingdom of God within a local church.

It is one of my "soap boxes." What is the church of Christ? I know it is the body of believers. And I believe the Bible supports the body of believers meeting regularly for worship and burden sharing and Bible study.

The Bible does not teach that we meet 3 services on Sunday and one mid-week...those are traditional times of meeting. But I do believe the Bible teaches regular worship, and of course, God being first in my life.

If I go before God and ask him to search my heart and He reveals to me that anything in my life is more important to me than my relationship with Him....it is sin. I need to confess it, ask forgiveness for my over-involvement in it, and make a new surrender to Him.

Barb

Amen!! And amen!! Sometimes I think we're feeling so comfortable with not being at church because we are still having trouble feeling "comfortable" again after coming back from that year of being gone; there I confessed it. Seriously. I'm having trouble feeling "at home" again. But that is a personal thing that I have to work through.....

I agree with everything you've said here. It is so sad that things that we love have to take place on Sunday. However, these events are run by people who work all week long on other jobs. When else could they possibly be held? It is a dilemma, for sure. Do we make Lindsey completely forego being involved in something that she is good at and passionate about just so we won't miss church? Do we make the decision that missing church once a month for 5 months is okay? Do we have a family church on those Sundays and say that is okay? There are a lot of decisions to be made here. What message does this speak to Lindsey? Does it say that she is important enough that we make the sacrifice to miss church? Or does it say that since we are letting her be involved like this, that church must not be that important? Could go either way, I guess (except that she has also had the same feelings of whether or not it is okay to miss church that much, and has even said that she'd probably miss a couple of the shows when there are two per month....so we must be doing something right, I suppose!!)

::::sigh::::::this is not easy.

[Joel Merrill]

I think sports can be a good thing but like has already been said, if it is the most important thing, it is too important.

A problem I see a lot is people who have too many hobbies. I know guys who hunt and fish and race cars or motorcycles and are into ball games and seem to be into everything. They don't make any more money than I do and they have a boat and a motorcycle and a golf cart and a snow mobile and a 4X4 truck with oversize wheels and a room full of guns and they go to Canada every year to go fishing and Wyoming every year to go hunting and they go to Chicago several times a year to watch the Cubs. Then they talk about how their wife has to work to make ends meet. I can't help but wonder if their wife gets to spend any money on hobbies or if their kids get to go to camp. Everyone needs a hobby but you can't do everything.

Joel

[Barb Bouldrey]

Dana,
Maybe I should have emailed this to you since it addresses your personal situation, but maybe it is okay to tell you here....

Some may think a pastor's wife should not have this opinion, and it may sound strange after I just got on my soap box about people being faithful to a church but....

I have met you and have gotten to know you over these last few years here on NazNet. I know your heart. I know your family life.

So, I do not think missing one Sunday a month for 5 months is wrong for your family. I expect you and your family to honor God is some way even when you are gone. If cannot find a church with a Saturday night or early Sunday service, I trust your family to take time together to worship...even for a short time.

Our world does not care about the schedule of the church as it once did. Most of the secular world of the midwest has always avoided activities on Wednesday and Sunday for generations...until this generation. Business never used to be open on Sunday....to honor God. Schools never used to schedule activities on Wednesday evenings and Sundays in small town America...until recent years. It never used to be a problem to choose between the church and the world. But it is a problem now.

Lindsey knows how much you love God. She has seen and experienced your spiritual struggles with your church and seen you return because you felt it was what God wants.

If her hobby became an "every-other-weekend", year-round activity, then I would question the choice to be involved.

You will make the right choice. I have no doubt. I believe in you.

Barb

[Ian Gentles]

No sport has taken over, and become their God

[Ian Gentles]

Lindsays interest are important, and do know you folks wont allow her to loose the spiritual emphases

[Ian Gentles]

Her love seems natural and as long as she dosent lack spirutual ellement, which i am sure she dosent

[Ian Gentles]

It amazes me that folks concentrate on Sundays for sport, is this spiritual deception?

[Ian Gentles]

Spots other things, they can be good, they help us stay fit, or take our minds off others things, they have their place, question was about obsessions?

[Gina Stevenson]

Dana, "what Barb said." ;)

Seriously, don't feel that you and Bert -- nor Lindsey -- would allow this to get out of balance ... and letting Lindsey compete after taking time to train ... it's letting her know that "church activities" are not more important than her ... that she's still an important family member. We, too, believe you'll keep things in perspective, knowing you ... in spite of being "directionally challenged," on this earth, don't think your sense of direction is challenged, spiritually. ;)

Dana,
Maybe I should have emailed this to you since it addresses your personal situation, but maybe it is okay to tell you here....

Some may think a pastor's wife should not have this opinion, and it may sound strange after I just got on my soap box about people being faithful to a church but....

I have met you and have gotten to know you over these last few years here on NazNet. I know your heart. I know your family life.

So, I do not think missing one Sunday a month for 5 months is wrong for your family. I expect you and your family to honor God is some way even when you are gone. If cannot find a church with a Saturday night or early Sunday service, I trust your family to take time together to worship...even for a short time.

Our world does not care about the schedule of the church as it once did. Most of the secular world of the midwest has always avoided activities on Wednesday and Sunday for generations...until this generation. Business never used to be open on Sunday....to honor God. Schools never used to schedule activities on Wednesday evenings and Sundays in small town America...until recent years. It never used to be a problem to choose between the church and the world. But it is a problem now.

Lindsey knows how much you love God. She has seen and experienced your spiritual struggles with your church and seen you return because you felt it was what God wants.

If her hobby became an "every-other-weekend", year-round activity, then I would question the choice to be involved.

You will make the right choice. I have no doubt. I believe in you.

Barb

[Ian Gentles]

I feel, as Gina says, its all a matter of balance!

[Marg Webb]

This is taking me back to the Forties and Fifties, when I came into this denomination.
Just going to the Friday night games and not going to the youth prayermeeting was a SIN.
I had been a Cheerleader and I just was stunned. They prayed for those that went to the games.
To this day my husband has no school spirit and none of those that were always at the prayermeeting had or have. We were a small group then.
I do not think anyone has a right to say what is sin. It is our Lords leadings and not man's.
We read the word at home and prayed around the table regulary. My teaching was from home.
Our church has a Saturday night service and the teens all go to that and some to Sunday.
But home is where the answer is for those that are in Sunday activities.
Wow, this will being on something in discussion I expect, but I have seen church young people that are now Grandparents and they really never miss a game and back all sports, because they were forbidden to be active on Sunday.
Several family's of Grandparents in our church drive in snow, sleet and rain to go, even the out of town games.

Marg.

[Mark Doble]

Years ago I use to compete in bodybuilding competitions. I did very well.
Titles I held were: Mr. Toronto, Mr. Richmond Hill, Mr. Barrie.

I was obsessed with working out in the gym. Like 7 days a week, 3 hours a day. Then my son was born. Six months later I gave it all up cold turkey.

My wife was pleased.

So yes, it had become an obsession with me. The sin was in neglecting my wife and new son. And of course the rest of the lifestyle was a sin as well.

[Joel Merrill]

Years ago I use to compete in bodybuilding competitions. I did very well.
Titles I held were: Mr. Toronto, Mr. Richmond Hill, Mr. Barrie.

I was obsessed with working out in the gym. Like 7 days a week, 3 hours a day. Then my son was born. Six months later I gave it all up cold turkey.

My wife was pleased.

So yes, it had become an obsession with me. The sin was in neglecting my wife and new son. And of course the rest of the lifestyle was a sin as well.

You're still Mr Doble. That's not so bad :)

Joel

[Dana Grant]

Dana, "what Barb said." ;)

Seriously, don't feel that you and Bert -- nor Lindsey -- would allow this to get out of balance ... and letting Lindsey compete after taking time to train ... it's letting her know that "church activities" are not more important than her ... that she's still an important family member. We, too, believe you'll keep things in perspective, knowing you ... in spite of being "directionally challenged," on this earth, don't think your sense of direction is challenged, spiritually. ;)

Gina, that was very nice of you to say. We strive to make that a reality in our lives. My father grew up with a father who always put "church" first -- which is different from putting GOD first -- and always had an excuse of church work to neglect being at my Dad's basketball or baseball games. Oh how much he missed in his life by not participating in his son's activities. It is a joy to see your children participate in something that is a passion to them. It is a precarious balance, however, this church and activity situation. It helps very much that Lindsey is well grounded in her faith and love for the Lord.

Thanks for your kind comments.

[Anne and Dwayne Hood]

Ian, I love the part that I feel it is giving you time with your son. Is that true?
Also, most anything could become sinful, if it took from your allegieance to God and His serive--to an extreme.

[Jon White]

Here in the U.S. the National Basketball Association (NBA) playoffs are underway. I have to be careful when watching the Los Angeles Lakers (my favorite basketball team) because I can get---well, a little animated during their games. I have to check myself at times because my wrath is ignited if I believe there's been a blown call by the officials. Some of you have mentioned balance. I need to have this balance when I'm watching the Lakers and remind myself it's just a game. The fate of the world doesn't depend on the outcome. As others have said, if something---sports, hobbies, pasttimes, work, whatever---becomes more important to us than our relationship with God, it becomes sin.