Worship Service Under Friday Night Lights

Related Scripture:

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.” -Colossians 3:23

Colossians 3:23 reminds us to do everything with all our heart unto the Lord.   That means the stripes we wear, the whistle we hold, the calls we make, the way we carry ourselves, the integrity we show, the calm we maintain, the fairness we uphold… all of it becomes worship when offered to God.

Worship is often reduced to music, singing, or a Sunday morning moment. The late Archbishop of Canterbury, William Temple, reminds us that worship is far bigger — It is the quickening of conscience by His Holiness, the nourishment of mind with His truth, the purifying of imagination by His beauty, the opening of the heart to His love, the surrender of will to His purpose. And all of this gathered up in adoration, the most selfless motion of which our nature is capable, and therefore the chief remedy for that self-centeredness, which is our original sin and the source of our actual sin.

That definition doesn’t stay in a church building. It ought to permeate our heart posture and walk with us onto any field or court we step onto.

Questions to Ponder:

1. How is our identity as image‑bearers of God manifested on the field as we reflect His glory in officiating?

2. In what other ways can we show acts of worship as football officials, such as discipling or mentoring younger officials?

Larry Etheridge - LFOA - FCA Area Representative (Dawson County, GA)