Tony Dungy & Benjamin Watson: A Call to the American Church

—Excerpt from James Weldon Johnson's "Lift Every Song" (1900), Section 3

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For all of us, 2020 will be the most exhausting years. There are sometimes more than 20 children between our two families, and it seems that fatigue is endless. Compared with the tiredness of our two wives, Lauren and Kirsten, our tiredness has not lost our confidence. These two wives shoulder the burden of responsibility that only mothers really know. How hard we tried.

In 2020, the school's teaching activities will be placed behind the scenes. The timetable will not change every week, every day or even every hour, but every minute. Travel to the restaurant has been reduced, and there is no chance of escape from going to the cinema or watching a football game. For many people, the weekly routine of sitting on a church bench on Sunday morning no longer exists. Why don't we get bored?

We work and play in the National Football League as a routine matter. For us, it may be Monday instead of Sunday that interrupted our routine activities. In many ways, our daily habits and the structures we create provide us with a stable environment in a crazy world. In 2020, creating a routine is more challenging than seeing the sun in Boston in late December. The two weeks to stop the spread of COVID-19 turned into months of uncertainty. If we know exactly when this epidemic will end, we may be better able to deal with this problem. But, just like life, we don’t know what will happen tomorrow.

However, our sense of exhaustion is far beyond our schedule. Violent conflicts in American cities, a seemingly endless electoral cycle, where even the best friends have become enemies, reduced trust in the government, the media and even the church, exhausting our collective spirit and intensifying our anger And let us find the answer. Both of us can say that not all our tears are silent.

For both of us, the burden of racial inequality and division in this country is heavy. We all acknowledge the progress made, but we are not blind to the long road. But we are inspired by so many people, and now they seem to be more willing than ever to engage in difficult discussions, to understand the past and present of our outstanding country, and to recognize that we all need to move forward and we need to listen Instead of talking. God gave us two ears and one mouth for a reason.

Our frontline workers-doctors, nurses, soldiers, police and firefighters-have exceeded production capacity in 2020. Many friends and family members lost their jobs and even their lives. Common grief at funerals and memorial services is usually shared by one person, and the celebration of life diminishes or disappears.

Hall of Fame coach Tony Dungey. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

But God has a plan in everything he does, and this is a good plan. In the midst of hardship, 2020 will have many blessings. Many of us spend more time with our immediate family members than ever before. After exhausting all the last Netflix viewing options, we lost our attention. Now, we have a greater appreciation for the children’s teachers, and our country’s love for sports has also been correctly reflected. Remind us that athletics is more about the community than what happens between the white lines.

Compared to staring at screens and spreadsheets, many of us spend more time outdoors hiking, biking, and watching the sunset. Our highways are not so busy and the routes to almost all places are shorter. There are blessings if we are willing to watch.

As difficult as 2020, God does not guarantee that 2021 will be better. For some of us, the new year will be worse. However, as Christians, we must become better. The impact of 2020 on our church and its pastors is immeasurable. Our church leaders are exhausted and cannot see such fatigue. Many online services are now available online, and this service is unlikely to change when the United States resumes business. Donations have decreased, the church’s budget has reached its limit, and there are fewer pollutants in the stools. Many unanimous church participants may never return. Innovative online viewing of churches has flourished, but the ratings of many churches have fallen sharply in recent months.

Too many churches worry about challenging discussions and are reluctant to point out the truth of the Bible because they are worried about the promotion of secular culture. Others like people sitting in their seats and prefer to spend money in the basket, so they don't do anything offensive or challenging. Some pastors are doing their best to make the church flourish. They spend a lot of time building a platform on Instagram instead of saving souls.

Where do we go from here? We need to challenge each other, support each other, and face each other when facing love. Although this is not simple, it is necessary. As Christians, we need to testify for unbelievers and clear our doors. If we live like the world, why should non-Christians listen to us, and more importantly, listen to God? Our responsibilities to the body of Christ are as follows:

Although such a task may seem daunting, it is not. This is equivalent to about 15 minutes a day. There are online reading plans, and even

Help this blessing-this is a blessing, not a task. Encourage others to join you. We can even let you choose to read the Bible, and you can also choose a diary to read the Bible in the following content

. If our Christians do not understand the Bible, how can we expect to share God's Word passionately and accurately?

Pray for our pastors, teachers, politicians, family and friends. Many of us tell each other that we will pray for them, but do we do this? Instead of telling someone that you will pray for him or her, say, "I will stop and pray with you now." Then, stop and pray.

Repentance is a word we forgot, but it means to deviate from where we are going. Repentance applies not only to salvation, but also to daily life. If 2020 exposes our hearts to worry, jealousy, racism, pride, greed or anger, we must repent before we can expect to share the word of God passionately and accurately.

The relationships established in our local church are vital to our personal growth and the growth of the entire church.

The Bible requires Christians to dedicate to the church. We can debate whether tithing is the Old Testament or the New Testament, but we all know that God calls us to give and give generously. Tidy is challenging, especially in uncertain times, but our church desperately needs to survive. If you have the ability to dig deeper, now is the time to do so.

Former NFL tight Benjamin Watson (AP Photo / Elise Amendola)

In conclusion, we will jointly host "Football Sunday-Sports Spectrum Program" in early February. The theme of the event is "Shake", taken from Psalm 16:8: "I keep putting the Lord before me; because he is on my right, I will not waver." Please encourage your local church to participate. This will be a practical and encouraging way to re-interact with our church family in person or online. For more information, please visit:

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We don't know what the future holds, but God calls us to follow him. It has been a long time since Christians have revived in this country, and the call to action in accordance with the above steps will affect our country in ways that we cannot even imagine.

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