Lemanski Hall

It was the day every ball player dreads.

I had been called into the Chicago Bear's office. It was the final day of cuts. And I was released.

Football had always been my life. I started playing peewee football at age 6, played all through High School, went to the University of Alabama on a full scholarship, won the National Championship with the Crimson Tide in 1992, and was drafted by the Houston Oilers – before they became the Tennessee Titans.

I spent four years with the Oilers and then was traded to the Bears, had a very good year with the Bears, and went to training camp confident that I would not only make the team but be a starter. I started the Lemanski Hall Foundation in my hometown, offering scholarships and holding football camps.

And then I got the news. I was released. Cut. I was without a team. And even though I hoped to be picked up by another team, it was devastating.

But I'm so thankful I went through it. I'm so thankful God took me through it. God gave me time to reflect. My focus had been on football, not on Him. He taught me not to take Him for granted.

He got my full attention.

It was during that time my wife and I became even closer. We started to pray together. We focussed on God. And He built me back up. He took away football, until the Cowboys picked me up in week 5, but He made me even stronger.

I learned the real meaning of my favorite passage – "I can do all things in Christ who is my strength." (Philippians 4:13)

There are always challenges. I've faced challenges every year that I've played football, especially in the pros. The NFL stands for Not For Long, because there is no job security. But God has given me strength to meet the challenges, not just in football, but in life. He is teaching me to be steadfast, to focus on Him instead of worrying, and to read my Bible as diligently as I read my playbook.

God is bigger than football, and I've learned to trust Him.

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