A Person of Heart

I'm a huge fan of Nebraska Husker Football. And in case you haven't heard, on Sunday they fired their head football coach, Bo Pelini.

Reasons being that he never won big games or won any type of championship, on a conference or national level. Also, the perceptions seemed to be that his bosses didn't like the way he represented the university on television when he lost his temper like most football coaches do. But contrary to what people believed, and how television perceived him, Bo was a solid guy. At least he was to me first hand. 

I wrote an open letter to Nebraska football about my experience of watching my daughter a few hours after she was born while the Nebraska-Miami game played in the background. A week later Bo Pelini wrote me back personally, congratulating me on her birth and wishing us the best as a family. 

No cameras, no press conference, none of that. Just him as a man.. A good man. I don't think many high profile coaches would take time out of their busy day to read the letter, let alone respond. A man of heart.

On top of this, his players, both current and past, have said over and over again that they don't just love Coach Bo, but they'd die for him. Die for him because he showed them how to have a good heart.

And then today Nebraska hired a new coach, Mike Riley. 

As I noticed from comments to various articles and new sources, thousands beyond thousands of Husker fans flipped out in anger because he wasn't on anyone's radar of who they thought they'd hire. He's not exactly a high profile name who has won championships.

But you want to know what nearly every player says about Mike Riley? They'd die for him. They'd die for him because of how showed them to have a good heart.

Coach Riley is well-known for his Christian faith. Not to mention Bo has the same faith.

Two good men teaching young men what it takes to be one outside of football. Men of heart. 

I wonder if we might ever live in a society where being a person full of integrity, and love might outweigh the wins. 

I guess I can understand it from a university stand point. Its a business mentality. It's all about the money I suppose. You have to so what you have to do for the benefit of the money.

But I think what should be first on our minds is the person, and the people they are affecting. Not the numbers.

We live in a world where we measure things by accomplishments and successes and forget about the heart. So much so that we tell people their unsuccessful when they still have it.

Imagine a world where this wasn't the case. Imagine where people kept up and lifted up and supported at all costs for things of integrity, things of love, things of heart over anything else.

I encourage you, be a person who looks at the character and heart of another before you tear them down for what they have or haven't done.

Be a person that others will look at the character and heart of.

Be a person of integrity.

Be a person of love.

Be a person of heart.