The Father, Son, and the Holy Touchdown - A Conversation about Sports and Spirituality

"The Father, Son, and the Holy Touchdown""I want to give all glory and thanks to God" - Fernando Mendoza after winning NCAA National Championship.Have you noticed that more and more athletes are praising God during post-game interviews? Maybe you noticed the amount of athletes praying before the game starts. Where did this come from and why are athletes so outwardly religious now?I spoke with Sterling Harris, an ex-NFL lineman turned spiritual minister. We discussed the convergence of religion and sports and how spirituality has become increasingly important in modern athletics.Please consider donating to the Podcast to help support video production and engineering:buymeacoffee.com/nathanmerkelBelow is a biography of Sterling along with the URL to his website:https://sterlingharris.org/Sterling Harris was born in Dallas, TX and grew up in Terrell. Sterling was a high school football standout with an array of awards including Super-Prep All-American, All-State, All-Area, and All-District, as well as a top four finalist for Class 4A player of the year in the State of Texas. He also excelled in the classroom as an honor roll student, and he graduated in the top 10% of his class from Terrell High School. Sterling was voted Best All Around Boy his senior year. During this time, he also owned and operated his own company specializing in acreage mowing and bulldozer work.During his years at SMU, Sterling worked for a variety of companies that include Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, State Farm Insurance, Sewell Motor Companies, and ORIX Real Estate Capital Markets where he refined his business skills. Sterling holds a Business Management degree from the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University. While attending SMU, he was a four-year football letterman at the right tackle position. After graduation, he signed an NFL contract with the Cleveland Browns. Sterling suffered a broken foot during his rookie season. After battling back from the injury, the Browns sent him to NFL Europe where he played and started at the offensive tackle position for the Frankfurt Galaxy. Sterling was forced into early retirement by a reoccurring foot injury he suffered in NFL Europe after his second year in the NFL.[Disclaimer: The opinions in this episode are of my own accord and DO NOT reflect the opinions of any respective organization or institution.]