Believe
Ted Lasso.
The mustached coach of the fictional football club, AFC Richmond is beloved by fans worldwide. It’s not because of his knowledge of the sport. And it’s not because his team goes from bottom dweller to Premier League champion (although they come close). It’s because people love Ted. Ted is a good guy. He believes in forgiveness. He believes in second chances. He believes in the best inside each and every person. And we all need to be reminded from time to time that we have this capacity within us; to behave in kind and loving ways to one another that inspires instead of degrades; that uplifts instead of tears down. When the show came out in the height of the pandemic, it was a salve everybody needed. Things seemed so bleak. On top of the millions of people dying, the worst in people seemed to come out. The guy in Tennessee who bought over 17,700 bottles of hand sanitizer and sold them for up to $70 a piece while people were scrambling to find ways to protect themselves.[1] The attacks on people of color including Asian hate crimes in the Bay Area (the Bay Area of all places!) and who could forget the death of George Floyd at the hands of the police which sparked protests all across America.[2] Jason Sudekis, who plays Ted Lasso on the Apple+ show and created the character, says it was because of all of these divisions between people that inspired him to give Ted the outlook on life that he has.[3] And it seems we need those “Lasso-isms” once again.
For the next few weeks, we are going to dive into the world of Ted Lasso.
We’re going to revisit some of his famous lines and speeches. And we’re going to talk about what they mean for us today. One of the reasons people are so drawn to Ted is because the things he talks about are universal truths that resonate with who we are. They also happen to be the same things Christ taught centuries ago. Kindness, humility, and respect for one another are the same things we need now as we did then, and as we always have needed. It’s good to be reminded of them; in fact, it’s necessary. I think that’s why many of us come to church, because when the world gets tough, we need to be reminded of a better way. The Lasso Way. But really, it’s about the life God wants for all of us to have.
Our Ted quote for the week is from Season 3, Episode 5 – Signs.
The club is stuck in a losing streak. They’re once hopeful season is mired in failure despite their talent and best effort, and then they hear the news – through social media of all things – that their best player has chosen to leave the team and retire. On the wall of the locker room is a hand drawn yellow poster Ted made that has one word – “believe.” It’s been a reminder to them through his three years of coaching the team to believe that anything is possible. Suddenly, the poster splits in two and falls off the wall. The players are shocked. They think it’s a sign they are destined to fail, and they start losing their heads over it. And that’s when Ted steps in. He tells them it is a sign. But it’s JUST a sign. And it’s not what will dictate the team’s success. He says, “Belief doesn’t just happen ‘cause you hang somethin’ up on a wall. It comes from in here (points to his heart). And up here (points to his head). And down here (points to his gut). The only problem is we all got so much junk flooding through us, a lot of times we end up getting in our own way. You know, [stuff] like envy or fear or shame. I don’t want to mess around with that [stuff] anymore. Do you?… You know what I want to mess around with? The belief that I matter, regardless of what I do or don’t achieve. Or the belief that we all deserve to be loved whether we’ve been hurt or maybe we’ve hurt somebody else. Or what about the belief of hope? Yeah? That’s what I want to mess with. Believing that things can get better. That I can get better. That WE will get better…To believe in yourself. To believe in one another. That’s fundamental to being alive. If you can do that, if you can truly do that, can’t nobody rip that apart.”
Let’s break it down with some God speak.
When Ted says, “Belief doesn’t just happen ‘cause you hang somethin’ up on a wall,” he’s driving home the idea that faith comes from within. Whether it’s on the pitch or in a church. THINGS do not define our faith. They might remind us of it. They might inspire us. But they are not the heart of it. The cross that hangs from our ceiling does not define our faith either. It represents what we believe but it is not the foundation of our belief. Jesus is the foundation of our belief, and sometimes we forget that. We start investing hope in things instead of Christ within us and Christ amongst us. Remember the story I shared with you about the church that split up over a couch? If Christ were there amongst them, do you think a simple couch could split them apart? Of course not. But we let so much stuff get in the way of Jesus and Ted talks about that next. He says, “The only problem is we all got so much junk flooding through us a lot of times we end up getting in our own way. You know, [stuff] like envy or fear or shame.” All those things come from our insecurities about life. And they stop us from being the people God wants us to be. They stop us from being our very best. They trigger something nasty within us that deep down we must know is wrong. But we give in to it don’t we? Here’s another example. People love their seats at church. I can tell almost instantly who is and who isn’t here based on which seats are empty. I had a pastor friend who was telling me about a church member who was so attached to her seat that it stopped her from being a Christian. A newcomer had entered the sanctuary and not knowing anyone or where they liked to sit, found a place with her kids and sat down. This church member came up to her and said, “You’re in my seat.” Imagine being that visitor. I’m guessing you’d think twice before coming back to that church…and maybe ANY church after that. Sometimes we just need to get out of our own way and let our faith guide us.
But what is it we need to focus on?
Ted says, “You know what I want to mess around with? The belief that I matter, regardless of what I do or don’t achieve. Or the belief that we all deserve to be loved whether we’ve been hurt or maybe we’ve hurt somebody else. Or what about the belief of hope?” What about hope? When things get tough it’s hard not to lose hope or to have faith in ourselves. When we make mistakes or we’ve been hurt, sometimes it’s hard to believe we deserve good things in our lives. But you matter. God didn’t send his son into the world because he doubted you. Christ came because God believes you are worth it. Do you remember the story about the prophet Samuel? He’s looking for someone worthy because God has rejected Saul the King, so he goes over to Jesse’s house and asks him to bring his sons forward. First comes his eldest Eliab and Samuel thinks, “Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord (1 Samuel 16:6).” And God says, “Nope.” Actually, God tells Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart (1Samuel 16:7)” We get so caught up in things that are ultimately unimportant and we lose focus on what counts. We need to hold onto our faith because we know there is a God who loves us and values us for who we are.
Ted closes with a simple message.
And it’s what leads into our reading today. Ted says to the team, “To believe in yourself. To believe in one another. That’s fundamental to being alive. If you can do that, if you can truly do that, can’t nobody rip that apart.” When I heard that, it had echoes for me of our reading this morning.
31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:
“For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. – Romans 8:31-39
Nothing can separate us from the love of God.
When we believe in the God who loves us and who gave his Son for us, there is nothing that can take away his love for us. We can face the day ahead unafraid because God is there for us. That’s the power of belief. I know it’s easy for me to say all of this to you and another thing to really believe it for yourself. But that’s why we need one another. To hold each other up when doubt creeps in. To be there for each other when times are tough. That’s what Ted Lasso did for so many of us both during the pandemic and afterward. He reminded us of a truth God has been sharing with us for centuries – that belief in ourselves, in who God created us to be, can be powerful. And because our belief can be rocked by doubt creeping in, we need to be reminded of it every once in a while so our faith remains strong. You matter. You are loved.
[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/14/technology/coronavirus-purell-wipes-amazon-sellers.html
[2] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-52861726
[3] https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/15/entertainment/jason-sudeikis-ted-lasso/index.html
Craig's Corner 