{"id":306717,"date":"2021-02-08T07:00:04","date_gmt":"2021-02-08T12:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/%series%\/the-greatest-prize\/"},"modified":"2021-02-08T07:00:04","modified_gmt":"2021-02-08T12:00:04","slug":"the-greatest-prize","status":"publish","type":"podcast","link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/the-greatest-prize\/","title":{"rendered":"The Greatest Prize"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We all get discouraged, but according to former NFL football player Derwin Gray, it is possible for you to really live &#8220;The Good Life.&#8221; Join us today with hosts Dave and Ann Wilson on FamilyLife Today.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":294104,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"https:\/\/mp3.familylife.com\/fl2021-02-08.mp3","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"00:26:52","filesize":"24.6M","filesize_raw":"25792270","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":""},"categories":[2906,2822],"tags":[4299,6724],"podcast_series":[8428],"cwp_profile":[9183],"series":[2101],"class_list":["post-306717","podcast","type-podcast","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-becoming-a-christian","category-growing-in-your-faith","tag-faith","tag-life-challenges","podcast_series-the-good-life","cwp_profile-derwin-gray","series-familylife-today"],"acf":[],"episode_featured_image":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2024\/09\/FLT-Podcast-Cover-2-508x508-3.jpg?w=508","episode_player_image":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2023\/02\/image-scaled.jpg","download_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-download\/306717\/the-greatest-prize","player_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast-player\/306717\/the-greatest-prize","audio_player":null,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"light","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/familylife-today\/id212174303?mt=2&app=podcast","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0j5UaKdQOHQCuo1bt0ebEm","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"},"youtube":{"key":"youtube","url":"","label":"YouTube","class":"youtube","icon":"youtube.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/feed\/podcast\/familylife-today","embedCode":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"fWdidnGVCL\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/the-greatest-prize\/\">The Greatest Prize<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/podcast\/familylife-today\/the-greatest-prize\/embed\/#?secret=fWdidnGVCL\" width=\"500\" height=\"350\" title=\"&#8220;The Greatest Prize&#8221; &#8212; FamilyLife\u00ae - A Cru Ministry\" data-secret=\"fWdidnGVCL\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script>\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(d,l){\"use strict\";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&\"undefined\"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),c=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display=\"none\";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):\"link\"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute(\"src\")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener(\"message\",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll(\"iframe.wp-embedded-content\"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute(\"data-secret\"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+=\"#?secret=\"+t,e.setAttribute(\"data-secret\",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:\"ready\",secret:t},\"*\")},!1)))}(window,document);\n\/\/# sourceURL=https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-includes\/js\/wp-embed.min.js\n<\/script>\n"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1001\/2024\/09\/FLT-Podcast-Cover-2-508x508-3.jpg",508,508,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"kfairris@familylife.com","author_link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/author\/kfairrisfamilylife-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"We all get discouraged, but according to former NFL football player Derwin Gray, it is possible for you to really live \"The Good Life.\" Join us today with hosts Dave and Ann Wilson on FamilyLife Today.","meta_box":{"show_notes":"","transcript_url":"https:\/\/transcript.familylife.com\/fl2021-02-08.pdf","transcript_content":"<strong>Bob: <\/strong>When Derwin Gray was drafted into the National Football League, all of a sudden, he started hearing from people\/important people in his life, who wanted something from him. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> My dad was not involved in my life, and so I held that against him. I remember one time I saw him; and the first thing he said was, \u201cI need a truck.\u201d I was like, \u201cWell, I need a dad.\u201d That was incredibly painful. But without Christ, you don\u2019t really know what to do with that pain. You think you can bury your pain; but in reality, your pain ends up burying you. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>This is <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> for Monday, February 8<sup>th<\/sup>. Our hosts are Dave and Ann Wilson; I'm Bob Lepine. You can find us online at FamilyLifeToday.com. It takes something remarkable\/something supernatural for us to be able to respond rightly to people who have hurt us deeply. We\u2019re going to talk more about that today with Derwin Gray. Stay with us. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>And welcome to <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>. Thanks for joining us. I guess this is appropriate, that in the week after the big game we would have a couple of football players. I guess I should say, the couple of football players here; right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> Don\u2019t say that, Bob; it\u2019s been too long. [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> You were an NFL chaplain for 33 years; but you did play college ball, Ball State\u2014in the Hall of Fame at Ball State\u2014right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> Okay, Bob. Are we done with this part?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann:<\/strong> He is <em>very<\/em> famous, Bob. [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> We have here today a guy who was in the league for five years?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Six years.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Six years?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Don\u2019t steal a year from me, Bob. [Laughter] That\u2019s pension right there, baby. [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Derwin Gray joining us today on <em>FamilyLife Today.<\/em> I guess, since the game was last night, we\u2019re probably going to talk football a little bit today; don\u2019t you think?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> Let\u2019s talk football! Why not?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann:<\/strong> How\u2019s everybody feeling? You guys doing okay with this?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> I ate too much. [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> That\u2019s what the game\u2019s all about; isn\u2019t it? It\u2019s about the wings and everything else you\u2019ve got going on.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> I made sure I didn\u2019t flush the toilet at half-time, because that\u2019s a plumbing problem. [Laughter] Did you know that?\u2014it really is. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Here\u2019s the real important thing. Why are you in the Ball State Hall of Fame? What did you do to accomplish that?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> Did you\u2014you\u2019re going back to that!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Bro, I don\u2019t know about for you; but the older I get, and the further away I get from my college and NFL career, the more impressed I am with it. [Laughter] Because when you\u2019re in it, you don\u2019t realize it. But when you\u2019re out of it, you go, \u201cMan, that was dope!\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Are you in the BYU Hall of Fame?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> I am not in the BYU Hall of Fame. There is a giant banner of me at the stadium, which is <em>really<\/em> sweet. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tDid you throw for a lot of yards? I mean, were you a quarterback?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann:<\/strong> Okay; here we go. We\u2019re going to get into the <em>stats<\/em> now. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Like what did you do? Give me some numbers. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> I don\u2019t know; ask my wife.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann:<\/strong> I don\u2019t know the stats, but I know they\u2019re <em>good<\/em>. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> Here\u2019s my claim to fame. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Blow the whistle; time out. This is <em>not<\/em> what we\u2019re here to talk about today. [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> I mean, I\u2019m just impressed. Not too many people can say, \u201cI\u2019m married to a Ball State Hall of Fame quarterback.\u201d [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann:<\/strong> That\u2019s right. And I say it all the time. [Laughter] And he\u2019s in the high school <em>baseball<\/em> hall of fame. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> Whatever. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Hey, I mean, you see the twinkle in her eye? [Laughter] She\u2019s like, \u201cI got the quarterback!\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann:<\/strong> That\u2019s right; I did. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> And she was the cheerleader, so there you go. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Listeners, let me explain. Derwin Gray, who is\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> I thought we were interviewing Derwin. He came in and took over. [Laughter]\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Derwin joining us on <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>. He\u2019s a pastor; he\u2019s an author. He lives in Charlotte, North Carolina. He and his wife Vicki have been married for\u2014\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> \u201428 years. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> Wow!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> \u201428 years. They meet at BYU. We\u2019ll probably get into a little of that story here. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann:<\/strong> Yes, we need to get that story. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Derwin\u2019s been with us on <em>FamilyLife Today. <\/em>Six years in the NFL\u2014you were with the Panthers and the Colts\u2014right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Yes. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> There\u2019s a whole team full of guys, who won the game last night, who are thinking, \u201cI have reached the pinnacle. I have finally achieved what I grew up dreaming I would achieve. I\u2019ve reached the summit.\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tPart of what we want to talk about today is really the theme you\u2019ve written about in a book you\u2019ve written called <em>The Good Life.<\/em> You\u2019re suggesting that, if you think this is the pinnacle and this is where life is found, you have climbed the wrong mountain; right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Yes; let me put it to you like this: \u201cIf winning the Super Bowl is awesome\u2014I\u2019ve been part of winning some incredible games\u2014but if winning a ring is your greatest prize, there\u2019s <em>always<\/em> going to be an echo in your soul, ringing that there\u2019s more. All the good things in this world is but a <em>9<\/em> to the greatest good. And the greatest good has a name, and His name is Jesus. Let me explain with some context. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBack in 2014\u2014so this was awhile ago\u2014as I was pastoring, and mentoring, and discipling, reaching the lost\u2014whether they were black, white, male, female, regardless of the age\u2014people were not happy. I thought, \u201cOkay; what does Jesus say about happiness?\u201d Hiding in plain sight, in the greatest sermon ever preached by the greatest preacher who ever preached, Jesus literally tells humanity how to be happy; it\u2019s called the Beatitudes. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tJesus is standing on a hill called\u2014the Sermon on the Mount\u2014that\u2019s what he\u2019s doing. He\u2019s overlooking the Sea of Galilee, and His disciples are sitting at His feet. He opens up with these words; He says, \u201cBlessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.\u201d Then, He describes seven other characteristics of a blessed life. The Greek word for \u201cblessed\u201d is <em>makarios<\/em>, and it literally means \u201chappy\u201d; so \u201cHappy are the poor in spirit,\u201d \u201cHappy are those who mourn,\u201d \u201cHappy are the humble.\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tJesus is literally laying out that the life of happiness you want is, actually, a life of <em>holiness<\/em>. Holiness is a theological term, and it simply means this: \u201cWhen we say, \u2018Yes,\u2019 to Jesus, He brings us into His family. He separates us from darkness\/moves us into the light. Now He says, \u201cI\u2019m going to show you how to be a child of the light.\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAs a result of that, you\u2019re going to take upon certain characteristics, and it\u2019s going to give you a happiness that\u2019s <em>not<\/em> contingent upon happenings. It\u2019s not contingent upon circumstances. It\u2019s contingent upon intimacy with Him: \u201cInto-Me-you-see.\u201d When we get to see Him, we start to become like Him. Now, our happiness isn\u2019t rooted in: \u201cMan, I lost my job,\u201d or \u201cCOVID-19,\u201d or \u201cracial unrest.\u201d Our happiness now is not about getting things; it\u2019s about becoming the person we were meant to always be. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> You start this book by taking us on <em>your<\/em> quest for happiness and how you thought you were going to find it in athletics; right?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Yes; I didn\u2019t grow up in the church. I grew up on the west side of San Antonio, Texas. We were po\u2019; that means we couldn\u2019t afford the \u201co\u201d and the \u201cr\u201d in \u201cpoor.\u201d [Laughter] When you grow up po\u2019, you don\u2019t even know you\u2019re po\u2019; that\u2019s just the way it is. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tGrowing up in Texas, I can\u2019t remember a moment when I did not <em>love<\/em> football. I came from a context and an environment that, at age 13, I said, \u201cI don\u2019t want to be like what I see.\u201d I decided at that time that football was my way out of where I was at. So football has always been more than just a game\u2014like I <em>loved<\/em> it\u2014so in essence, it became a god; because the human heart is going to worship something; that\u2019s just the way we\u2019re made. Worship isn\u2019t that complex; it\u2019s simply means this: \u201cI\u2019m drawing affirmation, identity, and mission from something or someone.\u201d Football gave me that. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWhen I was in eighth grade, my middle school football coach told my mom that: \u201cIf Dewey\u201d\u2014that\u2019s my nickname\u2014\u201cIf Dewey continues to work hard, he could get a scholarship.\u201d My mom told me that; and I said, \u201cWhat kind of <em>ship<\/em> is that?\u201d [Laughter] She goes, \u201cNo, a scholarship\u2014that means you can play football like the guys on TV\u2014you can go to school; you can have a better life.\u201d At the moment, that seed was planted in my heart. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIn God\u2019s common grace, that gave me purpose and aspirations. But like any false god, it lets you down. People will look and say, \u201cWell, Derwin, you were successful. You became an all-state football player. You became an all-American in college. You married your dream girl.\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tMy wife and I got married in college. By the way, I met her second semester my freshman year. Vicki was from a small town in Montana called Darby. I\u2019m from the \u2018hood in San Antonio, Texas. Both of us, non-Mormons, meet at a Mormon school. The first time I saw her, she was in the weight room, lifting weights, because she was on the track team. She was doing triceps extensions. Now, this was before I was a Christian. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> You remember triceps extensions. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Oh, like it was yesterday.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> Were you into the triceps or what?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Yes; totally, because the next thought in my mind\u2014now, y\u2019all, don\u2019t judge me; don\u2019t get judgey\u2014[Laughter]\u2014I was like, \u201cLook at those triceps! [Laughter] We could make superior athletes together.\u201d [Laughter] The next thought was, \u201cI hope she asks me for a spot.\u201d She did; and after she did her exercise, she skedaddled off. Then I seen her a few weeks later, playing basketball; and we have been together, basically, ever since. We\u2019ve been together over 30 years; been married 28 years.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe got married at college, which at BYU is kind of a normal thing to do; it wasn\u2019t weird for us in college. I mean, our families thought it was odd, but both of us were kind of rebellious; so we were like, \u201cWe don\u2019t care. We love each other, so this is what we\u2019re going to do.\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tEnded up having a <em>great<\/em> career, and then I get <em>drafted<\/em> to the NFL. That was my Heaven\/my Nirvana; that was my Mecca; that was my all-in-all. My rookie year was absolutely <em>miserable<\/em>. Vicki and I were looking at each other, going, \u201cCan we go back to college where we were loved?\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Ann:<\/strong> Why was it so hard? \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Well, it was hard because, one, I was now a little fish in a big pond; two, because my wife is white, and I have a much better tan\u2014I\u2019m black. [Laughter] Some of my teammates\/the black teammates, actually, gave me a hard time and gave her a hard time. We just didn\u2019t connect well. It was an older team; I mean, I was like 21, and dudes were 34\/35. I wasn\u2019t playing much. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThen, all of a sudden, there\u2019s this pressure to provide financially for family and friends, who never went to see me play football in high school.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> You\u2019re getting calls from people saying, \u201cHey, Derwin!\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> I\u2019m getting calls from people that I thought was dead. [Laughter] I\u2019m like, \u201cWhat? Did Jesus do a resurrection? Who are you? Where did you come from?\u201d There was a time that my dad was not involved in my life, and so I held that against him. When you don\u2019t know Christ, you don\u2019t know how to process that pain. I remember one time I saw him; and the first thing he said was, \u201cI need a truck.\u201d I was like, \u201cWell, I need a dad.\u201d That was incredibly painful. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBut without Christ, you don\u2019t really know what to do with that pain. You think you can bury your pain; but in reality, your pain ends up burying you. It\u2019s like your mom saying, \u201cClean up your room,\u201d because your clothes are on the floor. You stuff them all under the bed; they get funky and stinky, and they overflow out. That\u2019s what pain does; it turns into bitterness. Bitterness is drinking poison and hoping the person you\u2019re mad at <em>dies<\/em>. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tExternally, it looked great; but internally, it was like I had an existential crisis at 25. Now, I know it was the Holy Spirit. As I\u2019m looking in the mirror in like early February or March, going, \u201cSo this is as good as it gets. There has to be more\u201d; because I knew: \u201cOne, I can\u2019t play football forever,\u201d\u2014NFL stands for \u201cNot for Long,\u201d\u2014and my identity was based on being a football player: that opened doors; that gave me privileges. \u201cWell, who am I, when I can\u2019t do that anymore?\u201d\u2014so there is incredible fear.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tSecondly, morally I knew there were things that were wrong. I didn\u2019t know the word, \u201csin\u201d; but I knew if I did something bad, I wanted to do something good to fix it. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThirdly, I couldn\u2019t love my wife the way she deserved to be loved. Now, as I look back, I couldn\u2019t truly love her; because I didn\u2019t truly love myself. I didn\u2019t think I was worth it. Even now, there are times when I\u2019ll pull up to Transformation Church, and the thoughts are going through my mind: \u201cWhat Sunday are they going to figure out I\u2019m not worth staying for?\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI grew up in a context, where my mom was 17 when she had me; my dad was 19. I love them both, but the reality is there were substance abuse issues. There were all types of issues, and they were in and out of my life. Early on, I\u2019m going, \u201cI\u2019m not worth staying for. Football makes sense, because I\u2019m going to show you I\u2019m worth staying for. I\u2019m going to play the best; I\u2019m going to work the hardest\u201d; because, in reality, what I\u2019m saying is, \u201cI\u2019m worth staying for; will you love me?\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThe problem is: \u201cWhat happens when you can\u2019t do that anymore?\u201d That\u2019s what every false god does\/is it says: \u201cFeed me,\u201d \u201cFeed me,\u201d \u201cFeed me\u201d; and it\u2019s never full, and it breaks your soul.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Is that about the time the Naked Preacher came into your life?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> The Naked Preacher showed up on the scene, actually, my rookie year.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> We need to explain to everybody who the Naked Preacher is. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Yes, we need to talk about the Naked Preacher. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> Do we really, Bob? Or can we just let that go?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> No, you need to hear the Naked Preacher story. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Yes; God has an <em>incredible<\/em> sense of humor. I believe He smiles so much more than we recognize. In 1993, when I was drafted by the Colts, there was a linebacker on the team. Every day he would take a shower, dry off, wrap a towel around his waist; then, he\u2019d get his Bible. He\u2019d go to my teammates and he\u2019d say, \u201cDo you know Jesus?\u201d And in my mind, I\u2019d go, \u201cDo you know you\u2019re half naked?\u201d [Laughter] It was the <em>weirdest<\/em> thing! \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI wasn\u2019t a church kid\u2014\u201cDo you know Jesus?\u201d\u2014I don\u2019t know what that means. I asked the veterans on the team; I said, \u201cWhat\u2019s up with the half-naked black man, walking around, talking about: \u2018Do you know Jesus?\u2019\u201d One of my teammates said, \u201cDon\u2019t pay any attention to him; that\u2019s the Naked Preacher.\u201d [Laughter] His real name is Steve Grant, but Naked Preacher was his nickname. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tOne day after practice, I\u2019m sitting at my locker; and I see him walking towards me. I turned my back; because I didn\u2019t want nothing to do with him, or his nakedness, or his Jesus. He touched me on the back; and he says, \u201cRookie D. Gray, do you know Jesus?\u201d That began this five-year relationship. In the midst of the existential crisis\/the moral crisis\u2014the things I\u2019m going through in my marriage\u2014he\u2019s embodying the gospel\/he\u2019s sharing the gospel. One of the most powerful things\u2014and you guys know this\u2014for this listener, one of the most powerful things is to embody what you are proclaiming. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tOne day after practice, the defensive backs\u2014because we\u2019re jokesters\u2014were playing around. Someone threw some tape to hit another guy; and the one guy ducked, and it hit the Naked Preacher in the eye. His eye swelled up; he had tears running out of his eye. He went up to that guy; and he said, \u201cIf I didn\u2019t love Jesus, I would hurt you.\u201d I was like, \u201cThis man really believes this!\u201d because that was grounds for a beat down. That even made the message stronger.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAugust 2, 1997\u2014it\u2019s my fifth year in the NFL\u2014Anderson University in Anderson, Indiana; I\u2019m with the Colts. Externally, the bank account\u2019s nice; the investment portfolio\u2019s nice; my career\u2019s going nice. Things are going <em>nice<\/em> on the outside; but this good life that I <em>want<\/em>, I don\u2019t have. I remember walking from lunch back to my dorm. The best way I can describe it is there was a Grand Canyon-size chasm in my soul.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI get to the dorm room. This was in the \u201890s, so there were no smartphones; the phone is actually connected to the wall. You guys remember those days?\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave: <\/strong>Oh, yes!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin: <\/strong>I call Vicki on the phone; and I say, \u201cI want to be committed to you, and I want to be committed to Jesus.\u201d What happened next is\u2014I <em>felt<\/em> when I was born again; I <em>felt<\/em> the love of God in Christ just wash over me. It was like, for the first time in my life, that I knew that I knew that I knew that I was loved; and it wasn\u2019t because of my performance. This is what I mean. My whole life was built on this: \u201cHow fast can you run?\u201d \u201cHow good can you play?\u201d \u201cWhat plays can you make?\u201d \u201cHow can you help the team win?\u201d \u201cYou\u2019re a team captain\u2014but it\u2019s not unconditional\u2014it has conditions\/it has strings attached.\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tBut for the <em>first<\/em> time, if you will, there was someone\u2014who looked at my 40 time, my vertical leap, my bench press, my game film called life\u2014and said, \u201cYou are <em>not<\/em> good enough, and I love you anyway; and I\u2014am\u2014your\u2014good enough.\u201d That\u2019s when I was infected with grace\u2014like this idea, as an athlete, everything\u2019s performance, performance, performance, status\u2014and for the first time, it was someone saying, \u201cYou are loved, not because of, but in spite of\u2014and all because of Me.\u201d That\u2019s when I came to know Christ. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tThat began this journey of understanding that God\u2019s greatest goal for me is not to make my dreams come true. God\u2019s greatest goal for me is to form me into the image of His Son: to love like Jesus; to think like Jesus; to forgive like Jesus; to have compassion like Jesus; to love my wife the way He loves her; to be a conduit of His love, and His grace, and His mercy. What we found was this\u2014the happiness we thought we were going to have in a bank account or status, was actually found in a person and in the ability to love and forgive each other.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Dave:<\/strong> One of the <em>amazing<\/em> things about that story\u2014which I didn\u2019t think this is what was going to hit me was Naked Preacher Man, Steve Grant\u2014the boldness of Steve to walk over to you, even when you didn\u2019t want to hear it, and tap you on the shoulder, and sort of share the gospel with you\u2014the boldness of that. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI want to say to a listener, who\u2019s afraid, \u201cDon\u2019t be afraid.\u201d That tap on the shoulder literally changed your life and your legacy!\u2014and everything that\u2019s done\u2014because he said, \u201cI\u2019m going to step into an uncomfortable space, and I\u2019m going to share the gospel.\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> We have experienced a pandemic of unparalleled experiences, at least, in our lifetime. Can you imagine, if a vaccine would have been found earlier, and someone going, \u201cWell, I\u2019ll share the vaccine tomorrow\u201d? No; we would <em>run<\/em> throughout the streets, going, \u201cI have a vaccine!\u201d Well, we have a vaccine that heals and cures something so much worse than COVID. We have a vaccine\/we have the remedy that defeats sin, death, and evil. The medicine is Jesus Himself. If we just pray, we\u2019ll know who the patients are; if we just pray, we\u2019ll know who it is that we\u2019re to share with. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> Yes; and when we get to the point in life, where we\u2019ve reached the pinnacle of whatever it is we were pursuing, and we go, \u201cThis is where I thought I would get to the top, and I would go, \u2018Life is here!\u2019\u201d and you go, \u201cBut it\u2019s not! It\u2019s empty! I thought I would feel something different. I thought there would be more here than to recognize Jesus has said, \u2018I can show you where the good life is.\u2019\u201d\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin:<\/strong> Yes; you know, Bob, just as you\u2019re saying that\u2014and as we\u2019re coming off of the Super Bowl\u2014and of course, football is the greatest illustration for Christianity, but I\u2019m not biased. [Laughter] There are a lot of fans that were watching the game, and they wear the jerseys of their favorite player. But if they were actually go play the game in the jersey of their favorite player, they would get\u2014let me use a biblical word\u2014they would get \u201csmoked\u201d; [Laughter] right? What happens is\u2014in life, we accomplish and get these things; and we get the jersey, but we don\u2019t have the make-up to actually wear it and play the game right. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWhat Jesus is doing in the Beatitudes is\u2014He\u2019s saying, \u201cI want to turn you into a player that can wear the jersey.\u201d What is the characteristics of these players? One, they\u2019re \u201cpoor in spirit\u201d\u2014what does that mean?\u2014God-reliant. Two, \u201cHappy are those who mourn,\u201d\u2014what does that mean?\u2014what breaks God\u2019s heart, breaks my heart; I care for the things that God cares for. \u201cHappy are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,\u201d\u2014what does that mean?\u2014\u201cGod, I\u2019m on Your agenda; align my will to Yours.\u201d \u201cHappy are those who are merciful,\u201d\u2014wow, can\u2019t we use mercy? \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob: <\/strong>Yes.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Derwin: <\/strong>\u201cHappy are those who are pure in heart,\u201d\u2014what does that mean?\u2014it means that you\u2019ve come to the place of understanding that the only thing good in you is Jesus. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>Bob:<\/strong> This is what you walk us through in the book, <em>The Good Life, <\/em>which we are making available this week to <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> listeners. If you\u2019d like to make a donation to help support this ministry, we\u2019d love to send you a copy of Derwin\u2019s book, <em>The Good Life: What Jesus Teaches About Finding True Happiness<\/em>. It\u2019s a look at the Beatitudes, and it\u2019s our gift to you when you make a donation to support this ministry with a donation of any amount. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tYou can make that donation, online, at FamilyLifeToday.com; or you can call 1-800-FL-TODAY to donate. Let me just explain: your donations cover the cost of producing and distributing this radio program\/this podcast\u2014now available through so many channels\u2014this local radio station carries it; you can hear it online; you can get it through the FamilyLife<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> mobile app; you can tell Alexa<sup>\u00ae<\/sup> to play <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tAll of this is possible because listeners, like you, believe in our mission, which is to effectively develop godly marriages and families who change the world one home at a time. Our goal here each day is to equip you with practical biblical help and hope for your marriage and your family. Thanks to those of you who make all of this possible with your donations. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tIf you\u2019re a long-time listener, and you\u2019ve never made a donation, why don\u2019t you make today the day you join with us? Donate online at FamilyLifeToday.com, or call to donate: 1-800-FL-TODAY is the number. Again, we\u2019d love to send you a copy of Derwin Gray\u2019s book, <em>The Good Life<\/em>, as a way to say, \u201cThank you for your donation today.\u201d Be sure you ask for it when you donate. Thanks, again, for partnering with us in the ministry of <em>FamilyLife Today.<\/em> We appreciate you. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tTomorrow, we\u2019re going to talk more with Derwin Gray about what the good life really looks like. We\u2019re also going to get his counsel\/the counsel he gives to engaged couples about how to rightly understand what the good marriage is going to look like. Derwin joins us, again, tomorrow. We hope you can join us as well. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tI want to thank our engineer today, Keith Lynch, along with our entire broadcast production team. On behalf of our hosts, Dave and Ann Wilson, I\u2019m Bob Lepine. We will see you back next time for another edition of <em>FamilyLife Today<\/em>. \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<em>FamilyLife Today<\/em> is a production of FamilyLife of Little Rock, Arkansas; a Cru<sup>\u00ae <\/sup>Ministry. Help for today. Hope for tomorrow.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tWe are so happy to provide these transcripts to you. However, there is a cost to produce them for our website. If you\u2019ve benefited from the broadcast transcripts, would you consider <a href=\"http:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/donate\">donating today<\/a> to help defray the costs?\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\tCopyright <sup>\u00a9<\/sup> 2021 FamilyLife. All rights reserved.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"http:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/\">www.FamilyLife.com<\/a>\u00a0 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t1\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>","theme_header_position":"","post_header_is_sticky":"","is_header_overlay":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast\/306717","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/podcast"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/91"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=306717"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/294104"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=306717"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=306717"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=306717"},{"taxonomy":"podcast_series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast_series?post=306717"},{"taxonomy":"cwp_profile","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cwp_profile?post=306717"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=306717"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}