"Jesus Is Better than the Super Bowl" Top TV Event of the Year Again Showcases Christian Athletes

The Super Bowl has long been an arena in which Christian athletes have shined ranging from Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers and Shaun Alexander to Reggie White and Kurt Warner.

This year TV's big event will showcase Denver Broncos's Peyton Manning and Seattle Seahawks' quarterback, Russell Wilson.

Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning doesn't publicly discuss his faith as frequently as some other Christian athletes, but he has said that he wants his actions to speak louder than his words.

The future Hall-of-Famer Manning led his team to a Super Bowl berth by throwing for 400 yards and two touchdowns in last Sunday's AFC Championship Game against the New England Patriots. The four-time league MVP has been stellar throughout the season, setting NFL regular season records in both passing yards (5,477) and touchdowns (55).

But while many people focus primarily on Manning's performance on the field, the part of his life that he has said is most important – his Christian faith – is rarely discussed.

In Manning, the book published in 2001 that he co-wrote with his father, the quarterback shares how he came to faith in Christ in a New Orleans church as a 13-year-old boy, according to an excerpt of the book posted to the Young Conservatives site. His priorities in life, he wrote, have been faith, family, friends and football – in that order.

Russell Wilson will be facing off with Manning in the Super Bowl. Wilson and several of his teammates recently sat down with Mark Driscoll, the preaching and vision pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, to discuss their faith in an interview that was posted to the Resurgence website.

Tim Tebow Returns to TV

Tim Tebow has reiterated his interest in being a quarterback in the NFL after it was announced this week that he has been hired by ESPN as a college football analyst for the SEC Network.

The former Florida Gators quarterback said during a conference call with reporters on Tuesday that although he is grateful and excited for his new opportunity with the ESPN network, he still wishes to continue his career as a quarterback long term. The 26-year-old began playing for the NFL in 2010 for the Denver Broncos, and then moved on to the New York Jets where he endured a tougher spell. Over the 2013 preseason period he played with the New England Patriots but was dropped before the regular season got underway.

Tebow told reporters he still trains five days a week, saying: "I feel like I'm the best that I've ever been as a quarterback right now, and I hope I get the opportunity to show that."

The NFL free agent went on to add that he is excited about his ESPN opportunity, saying "but who knows what the next few months will hold?"

Tebow's contract as an analyst for ESPN includes an out clause that allows the athlete to leave the network should a team express interest in recruiting him.

Tebow added on Tuesday that he hopes to be both an objective and positive analyst for EPSN: "I would love to continue to be someone that is positive but also be someone that is objective," Tebow said.

"I have never had a hard time saying what I believe or standing up for something, and hopefully, I can continue to be that same person as an analyst and sharing what I believe about players, about teams, about games."

The evangelical football player will be serving as an analyst for "SEC Nation," where he will travel to league campuses each week to host a Saturday morning pre-game show. While working as a network analyst, Tebow will also contribute to other ESPN sports programs, such as "SportsCenter" and ESPN Radio.

Tebow released a statement Monday announcing his excitement at the new opportunity: "I am so excited that ESPN has given me this incredible opportunity. When I was 6 years old, I fell in love with the game of football, and while I continue to pursue my dream of playing quarterback in the NFL, this is an amazing opportunity to be part of the unparalleled passion of college football and the SEC."

Justin Connolly, ESPN's senior vice president of programming for college networks, added in a statement that Tebow "is an SEC icon with a national fan base and broad appeal. He will be a significant contributor to the compelling content we will deliver with the SEC Network. Tim brings a wealth of knowledge about the game, the conference and the passion among SEC fans."

The NFL quarterback will begin his new analyst gig when Texas A&M opens the 2014 college football season at South Carolina in August.

Show Hope Announces Partnership with Tim Tebow Foundation

Show Hope™, a nonprofit orphan care ministry founded by GRAMMY® award winning Steven Curtis Chapman and his wife Mary Beth, announced a partnership with the Tim Tebow Foundation that will raise awareness and provide assistance for families, who have a desire to adopt children with special needs.

"We are privileged to combine our efforts with funds provided by the Tim Tebow Foundation to provide critical help to waiting children with special needs," said Scott Hasenbalg, Executive Director, Show Hope. "With this assistance, we can help to remove the financial barrier that exists for many families. We celebrate the thousands of children that Show Hope has helped through the miracle of adoption, but the truth is, the need is great. Together, we will help make adoption a reality as we continue to transform the lives of many children with special needs."

Show Hope believes that the millions of waiting children around the world should not be left as orphans. By collaboratively addressing their needs, this partnership will have a life-changing impact in illuminating the need for families to adopt children with special needs and by helping to place these children from across the globe with forever families. Additionally, families will be awarded with financial grants to help them overcome the high cost of adoption.

"We are so excited to be able to partner with Show Hope in providing financial assistance to these families who are courageously adopting children with special needs," said Erik Dellenback, Executive Director, Tim Tebow Foundation. "We believe this program is a great way to share God's love and it ties perfectly to our mission to bring Faith Hope and Love to those needing a brighter day in their darkest hour of need."

In helping to shape an adoption-friendly culture, the goal is to come together through this alignment to raise awareness and provide assistance for families to adopt children with special needs and make it a viable option for many to build their families.

"Ten years ago we began this ministry because the need outgrew what we were blessed to do by ourselves," explains Steven Curtis Chapman. "We always believed we can do more by working together and we are thrilled to be working with Tim and his foundation - we believe this is the start of life change for many orphaned children with special needs in the months and years to come."

Approximately 1,000 families apply annually to Show Hope for adoption assistance. Often, families are willing to welcome a child into their home, but are unable to afford the high cost, which averages $25,000 per adoption. Due to the lack of funding, more than 8,000 grant requests have been turned away since Show Hope was founded in 2003. With the financial support from the Tim Tebow Foundation, Show Hope can help more children through grants, which will be awarded in the average amount of $7,000 to $10,000 to each family. With an initial contribution given in December, a hundred percent of the donations received from the Tim Tebow Foundation will go directly toward special needs adoptions. As a result, about 10 to 14 additional families will receive grants on an annual basis.

Additionally, to commemorate the past decade, Show Hope is hosting its 10-year Anniversary Celebration with two full days of fellowship, food, music and fun for the entire family. The event will take place Saturday, May 25 at Show Hope's office in Franklin, Tenn., and carry through to Sunday, May 26 at Lipscomb University in downtown Nashville where attendees will enjoy a live concert featuring Steven Curtis Chapman, Mark Hall of Casting Crowns and Andrew Peterson. Tickets are available at www.ticketnashville.com.

Lecrae Conquers the Charts

An evangelical Christian rapper has taken over the iTunes hip-hop/rap chart. Three of the top 10 spots, including slots one and two, have belonged to Lecrae ever since his new album, Gravity, dropped on Sept. 4.  The deluxe version is also the #2 selling album on the Top Albums chart and Lecrae is expected to sell 60,000 copies in his first week, easily a first for a Christian rapper.

He has also has some high profile fans.  Tim Tebow and Jeremy Lin have all praised him for his straightforward Gospel-inspired message. Lin said, “An artist you have to check out is Lecrae … he raps a lot about the Gospel and I really enjoy his lyrics.”

Just last week, TobyMac premiered at #1 on the Billboard charts - the first time for a Christian artist since 1997.

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'The American Bible Challenge': Jeff Foxworthy Introduces New Game 'The Eye Of The Tebow'

"The American Bible Challenge" was back for a second week, and it brought a new challenge with it, dubbed "The Eye of the Tebow." The premise was simple enough, if certainly difficult for anyone who's not either a hardcore fan of NFL player Tim Tebow, or really knows their Scripture.

Contestants had to fill in the blanks of Bible verses Tebow wore under his eyes during his college football days. They even had a picture to look at to draw inspiration from.

Only, it wasn't a picture of Tim Tebow. It was host Jeff Foxworthy's face instead.

"You know, I never realized Tim Tebow was so good looking. He’s always got that helmet on," Foxworthy said. "That is a handsome man right there."

The audience was loving the show in the studio, as were viewers at home. Broadcasting & Cable reported that 2 million viewers tuned in for last week's series premiere, setting a record for GSN.

'American Idol' Contestants Receive Spiritual Support

"American Idol" contestants often endure long days and harsh criticism from judges and audiences. During that time, one may wonder if their spiritual needs are being tended to. Linda Bellesi, though, is determined to take care of contestants and minister to their needs.

Bellesi has worked with contestants from the past seven seasons, opening up her home to their family members and assisting both financially and spiritually to those who appear on "American Idol."


"Seeing God put the pieces together, there's no way I could have made all of that happen," she explained. "This is our message. We're all on assignment every day of our lives."

What does Bellesi think of this season's contestants? So far she has worked with Colton Dixon, who has spoken publicly about his faith.

"Colton is the Tim Tebow of 'American Idol,'" she told the Today show. "I have had some really unique opportunities to pray over him and give input where I can."

full article here

NBA Sensation Jeremy Lin's Playlist Features Christian Music

Most of us by now have heard of Jeremy Lin who is often portrayed as Basketball's Tim Tebow?

Lin's strong faith is reflective even in his music picks.  In a video posted by Fuse, Lin says that his playlist features Christian rapper Lecrae and worship band Hillsong UNITED.

42nd Annual GMA Dove Awards

The Gospel Music Association Dove Awards show was held and recorded last night. It was a night that paid tribute to gospel music’s veterans and recognized the industry’s emerging talents as the show entertained a sold-out crowd at Atlanta’s Fox Theatre. Hosted by Sherri Shepherd, the show will be broadcast Sunday night on gmc at 7 PM.

Francesca Battistelli was the evening’s top winner. The show touched other areas including country music (Kenny Rogers performed), TV (TBS' Tamela Mann won Traditional Gospel Album) and Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow introduced Third Day.

Focus on the Family Benefits from Super Bowl Buy

Focus on the Family has generated a ton of earned media from their Super Bowl buy. It was a brilliant move on their part and dramatically increase their awareness.

Two ad agencies monitored the Twittersphere to determine which brands won consumers' hearts and minds. After all, brands aren't just what the ad makers say. Brands are also what the public thinks. FOTF faired well, finishing in third place.

In contrast, according to the USA Today Ad Meter, it finished toward the bottom of the pack.

Tebow Super Bowl ad strikes light-hearted tone

Even the long-awaited Super Bowl ad from Focus on the Family came with a punchline.

The 30-second "Celebrate family, celebrate life" ad starring Heisman winner Tim Tebow ended with a surprise -- Tim Tebow tackling his mother after she says she nearly lost him during her pregnancy. The pair jokes that they have to be "tough" with all the family has been through.

The commercial sparked debate before it was even broadcast, and some groups called for CBS not to air it. The ad is the first such advocacy ad to appear in television's most-watched broadcast, which draws about 100 million viewers. It aired early in the first quarter.

The subtle and humorous ad made some wonder what all the fuss was about.

The commercial, which shows just Tebow and his mother, Pam, against a white backdrop, does not contain an overt antiabortion message. Instead it sends people to Focus on the Family's Web site, which tells more of the Tebows' story and offers a more straightforward message.

The devout quarterback's mother gave birth to him in the Philippines in 1987 after spurning a doctor's advice to have an abortion for medical reasons.

"I can remember so many times when I almost lost him," Pam Tebow said in describing her pregnancy.

The ad was "very gentle", which was surprising considering how much talk it generated before it even aired, said Tim Calkins, a marketing professor at Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. He said the use of humor helped make the ad more accessible -- and not off-putting to most people -- although the ad's message was hidden, which made it confusing to people who weren't familiar with it.

"I think they took a very interesting strategy. It's clearly an effort to steer away from controversy," he said. "I suspect the people they were going after understood the message, but ... for most people, I don't think the ad really did a lot for them."

Because the ad was so subtle and had so much mystery to it, it will get people whose minds are not made up about the abortion debate to evaluate the group's agenda, said Charles R. Taylor, professor of marketing at Villanova School of Business.

"To the extent that there are people that they can influence, this probably does a good job of driving them to the Web site and getting them to check it out. I think it's much more effective than something more explicit would have been," he said.

The Women's Media Center, which had objected to Focus on the Family advertising in the Super Bowl, said it was expecting a "benign" ad but not the humor. But the group's president, Jehmu Greene, said the tackle showed an undercurrent of violence against women.

"I think they're attempting to use humor as another tactic of hiding their message and fooling the American people," she said.

The ad didn't draw much attention at the Underground Lounge in New York, where the game was on. Sarah Cashin, 39, a business manager, said she didn't see why the ad was controversial.

"I didn't find it offensive. I don't quite understand why everyone was so up in arms about it," she said.

Tebow’s Super Bowl ad isn’t intolerant; its critics are

Sally Jenkins thinks the government has no right to tell a woman whether she can have an abortion or not. But this pro-choice sports columnist also thinks that the group NOW is not right in trying to pull the pro-life Tim Tebow ad from airing during the Super Bowl.

"I’ll spit this out quick, before the armies of feminism try to gag me and strap electrodes to my forehead: Tim Tebow is one of the better things to happen to young women in some time," quips Sally Jenkins in a Washington Post column entitled, "Tebow’s Super Bowl ad isn’t intolerant; its critics are."

Jenkins pointed out that the public is always calling on athletes to be more responsible and to care about social issues, but when star college quarterback Tebow and his mother Pam try to tell their “genuine pro-choice story,” the group National Organization for Women goes on the attack. NOW’s criticism, Jenkins says, reveals that the group is not pro-choice but rather pro-abortion.

"Apparently NOW feels this commercial (featuring Tebow) is an inappropriate message for America to see for 30 seconds, but women in bikinis selling beer is the right one," Jenkins writes.

Rest of the article here.

Liberal Women's Groups Want CBS to Drop Tim Tebow Super Bowl Ad

College football phenom Tim Tebow is about to become one of the biggest stars of Super Bowl XLIV — and he's not even playing in the game.

Tebow and his mother Pam will appear in a pro-life commercial that tells the story of his risky birth 22 years ago -- an ad that liberal critics suggest could lead to anti-abortion violence, even though none of them have seen it.

It's a happy story with an inspirational ending, but pro-abortion critics say Focus on the Family should not be allowed to air the commercial because it advocates on behalf of a divisive issue and threatens to "throw women under the bus."

"This organization is extremely intolerant and divisive and pushing an un-American agenda," said Jehmu Greene, director of the Women's Media Center, which is coordinating a campaign to force CBS to pull the ad before it airs on Feb. 7.

Focus on the Family buys Super Bowl Ad

Focus on the Family will air its first Super Bowl spot during the upcoming Super Bowl game. The 30-second ad will feature Tim Tebow, a former quarterback with the University of Florida's Gators and 2007 winner of the Heisman Trophy, along with his mother Pam.

"Tim and Pam share our respect for life and our passion for helping families thrive," Jim Daly, president of Focus of the Family, said in a written statement on Jan. 15.

Focus on the Family spokeswoman Lisa Anderson would not reveal how much her organization paid for the ad or provide further details about it. But she told CNNMoney.com that the funds were donated specifically for this purpose by unnamed individuals. She said the money did not come from the group's general fund.

CBS, broadcaster of the 2010 Super Bowl game, is charging about $3 million for 30-second spots, according to spokesman Dana McClintock. But CBS would not reveal how much it charged Focus on the Family for their ad.