Watching the Gonzaga basketball team play in this tournament is truly something special. \u00a0In the game against USC, freshman point guard Jalen Suggs was clearly setting the pace, making eye popping bounce passes between defenders on fast breaks, hitting open shots, etc. He has great athletic ability and great court awareness.\u00a0 But this is true of all the Gonzaga players.\u00a0 They are great athletes, but they play for one another.\u00a0 As Suggs put it in the postgame interview below:<\/p>\n
\u201cWe play together as a unit, man, and we play for each other. That\u2019s what makes us so special.\u00a0 Everyone gives their all, for each other, for the coaching staff.\u00a0 And when we get out there, we\u2019re all in unison, and man you see it, we have so much fun, we\u2019re always smiling.\u201d<\/p>\n
If I was teaching my sports class right now, I would ask my students to reflect on what all of this has to do with Holy Week and Easter.<\/p>\n
Since I\u2019m not teaching that class this semester, I will just offer a brief thought.\u00a0 When we give our all for one another, put our gifts at the service of one another, it builds up the community. \u00a0This is how we find life and our way forward.\u00a0 We even might find a smile break out on our faces, as we are having so much fun. \u00a0Joy is breaking in.<\/p>\n
Ego, on the other hand, or our false self, always brings the focus back to me.<\/em>\u00a0 This is a dynamic we all struggle with every day, in small and large ways.<\/p>\n The whole point of this week is that Jesus gave his very self, out of love, for others.\u00a0 According to scripture, his death and resurrection break the power that the devil has over people that keeps them in bondage.\u00a0 You might recall that this devil is traditionally known as the father of lies, who tempted Jesus with \u201call the kingdoms of this world\u201d and their glory.\u00a0 Underlying the most consequential lies we tell is the attempt to gain something for ourselves: usually power, wealth, or fame. \u00a0In this sense, the bondage we are set free from is precisely our self-centeredness, our need to turn the spotlight back on ourselves at every turn.<\/p>\n The Gonzaga players have found a way to break the spell of ego or the false self and to begin to play and live for one another and for their coaches.\u00a0 Joy is breaking in to their lives.<\/p>\n May joy break into your lives as well on this Easter weekend.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n