[Booksneeze] — Men of Sunday by Curtis Eichelberger

menofsunday

I requested to read and review Men of Sunday: How Faith Guides the Players, Coaches, and Wives of the NFL by Curtis Eichelberger near the end of the last football season. It’s taken me awhile to finish it, but the start of the 2013-14 football season seemed like a prefect time to bring this book back out.

Men of Sunday is a really interesting read as it looks at the place faith in God takes in the world of those in the NFL. For me, it was a comforting discovery as a Christian and a fan of football, because I have struggled many times with the way it often feels like football trumps God in the lives of many as soon as the season begins.

It didn’t take long to get sucked into the book, and it  really grabbed can my attention as it delved into how a Christian can play such a violent game, in which they know they will at some point injure a fellow player.  “…while the game is violent, all players on the field know the rules and agree to share the risks equally…” p. 37

From there it took a good long look at how faith impacts players, coaches and their families through interviews and personal stories. It’s a true study of the intersection of football and faith. I learned so much about many players and coaches that I had only known by name and team.

If you love football and want to take a look at the players outside of stats, scores and the usual media coverage, I recommend checking out Men of Sunday and get another perspective of the sport and its players.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Five on Friday: Things I am looking forward to…

When things get a little overwhelming (as they did this week for awhile) I often stop and think about things I’m looking forward to doing in the future.  (All within the next 45 days!)

1. COLOR RUN! I signed up this week for my very first 5K. Super excited for it, as its been on my “bucket list” for awhile. I’m no runner, but I have wanted to try a 5K for awhile. Why not doing the happiest 5K on the planet?? With friends, to boot! I better get to doing  little training in the next month so it doesn’t kill me dead.

2. New Orleans, LA. I have a dear friend from high school getting married in October, and her wedding is in NOLA. This, too, is on my “bucket list.” (Hey, wait, I’m going to knock two things off my bucket list soon? That’s a little creepy…) Still working out a lot of logistics of the trip, but its happening, dammit. I can NOT pass up this chance to go to New Orleans!

3. Vacation? I have some days blocked out coming up to potentially get outta town for a few days with my husband. Just get away. From everything. And relax. And enjoy each other. Determined to make this happen.

4. A quick trip to Texas. Wow, a lot of travel going on in this list. But I am Texas-bound again soon. I have a dental appointment AND its my brothers 40th birthday. This is coming up FAST and its hard to fathom it. But I’m looking forward to it, too.

5. Getting past things on my to do list and being able to return my focus on things that really make me happy: photography and writing. I’ve let both slip to the back burner and that’s not right… I should focus more on what makes me feel most alive and less on the mundane. Look forward to getting back to that.

 

fiveonfriday