Chiseled Ep 125 - Chiseled by Football, Refined by Faith - Matt Birk

Born in a town called St. Paul, Minnesota, you would figure that Matt Birk was destined to be Catholic. And he is. But while he followed the rules growing up, the essence of his religion got away from him as a young man, especially after having been accepted into Harvard University and then winning an opportunity to play professional sports.Matt thought he had it all figured out. But the 15-year offensive lineman discovered along his NFL journey that there was much left to learn."When you're given a gift, you don't always appreciate it," he said. "Those seeds were planted in me at an early age. I guess it just kinda took a while for them to blossom fully."Getting married and having his first child — and working in a sport that "hurts" — led Matt back to his faith. Combined with the great fortune of being surrounded by professional players and coaches who embraced and mentored him, Matt discovered that like football, Catholicism teaches you to push through the "passion" to experience the divine.After 11 years with his hometown team, the Minnesota Vikings, Matt became a free agent. It only took a short while after sitting down with another God-fearing Catholic, John Harbaugh, Matt knew it was time to head to Baltimore."I just thought this guy's going to get the most out of me in every way," he said.Matt played with the Ravens for four years and ended up winning a Super Bowl ring with the 2013 champion team. That's when he decided it was time to pack it up and turn toward building on all that he had learned.Working in and out the NFL League Office, Matt focused on doing good and being good. He started programs to encourage more than 100,000 students to read. He promoted not just child literacy, but family learning.Returning to Minnesota in 2019, Matt launched a faith-based high school in an underserved area. He also developed a program called 4HG, "For His Glory," a project to create a healthy sports culture in elementary schools. He's been especially active in the pro-life movement and had a short-lived fling with politics before deciding it wasn't for him.Now with eight kids, Matt looks at his family the way he imagines God looks at His children."Sometimes I just want to be with my kids. I don't need them to perform. I just want to sit with them," Matt said.In multiple stories on this week's episode of Chiseled, Matt shares how football prepared him for faith and vice versa. He describes how the NFL treats religion and describes how "suffering" — in both sport and church — is not merely physical, but a mindset to achieve glory.This week's episode is perfect for anyone who wants to learn more about the history and practice of Catholicism, but it's also great for anyone who really loves football. And as Matt puts it, they're very much the same thing. You will hear all about it when you tune into this week's Chiseled. Amen and enjoy.