President’s Post
Having found success in both the athletic field and in life, Tim Tebow has continually shown us how to be a Champion for Christ.
As a football standout, Tebow had an incredible college career as quarterback for the University of Florida. He led the Gators in winning two national championships during his freshman and junior years, and he secured the Heisman Trophy during his sophomore season. And his bold proclamation of Christ, paired with his stellar athletic talent, caught the attention of Christians nationwide.
Tebow went on to play in the NFL and then made a strong run in Major League Baseball too. And off the field, he has worked hard to meet the needs of the less fortunate. Through the Tim Tebow Foundation, he has provided medical aid, orphan care, and other ministry outreaches.
Our progressive culture often misrepresents Christians by portraying them as hypocritical for opposing abortion but not having concern for orphans or children with needs. But the facts crush this mischaracterization of the church. For example, Tebow has not only been a strong voice in opposition to abortion, but his foundation also exists to take care of orphans, provide medical needs for children, assist children with special needs, and combat human trafficking.
Tebow’s ministry, including the staff and volunteers, serves as a tangible example of charitable services that Christians provide to a hurting world. But this is not simply done as good deeds – this ministry is out of obedience to Christ and with a passion for sharing His gospel message.
I am thrilled to welcome Tim Tebow to Liberty University as our keynote speaker for our Commencement. Few have chased a dream harder than Tim Tebow. Even when NFL teams wouldn’t roster him, he kept Christ at the forefront. He understood that his identity was in Christ, not football. That is the mark of a true Champion.
To Tebow, this life isn’t about him. Had it been, he would have given up on God long ago.
God’s protection has been evident in Tim’s life since his birth – or rather before it. Tim’s mother experienced a dramatic complication during her pregnancy that doctors presumed would lead to a stillborn delivery and recommended an abortion to save Tebow’s mother. His parents refused an abortion and chose to run the risk – a risk that paid off in compounding ways.
Tebow often credits his parents as establishing the blueprints of his spiritual development. Growing up as a missionary kid overseas, Tebow saw the need for the Gospel amid tidal waves of evil. For example, Tebow’s father purchased four young girls being sold into slavery to guarantee that they would be kept safe. “My dad was not going to be the man who did nothing,” Tebow said. “Had he just stood there silently, who knows where these girls would have been taken and what would have been done to them.”
Tebow has shown what it means to stand up and say no to evil while rallying the troops to fight injustice with him. He has lived out that famous quote: “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
This is a beautiful framework for Christians to shadow. On the national stage, the world saw how Tim Tebow responded to adversity, and his answer was always Jesus.
We cannot control everything that happens to us, but we can control how we respond.
Strive for excellence in your chosen field. Live for the glory of Christ. And remember, students, we are called to glorify God through every aspect of our lives. On the mountain tops and in the valleys, we must keep Christ in the forefront of our eyes.
Dr. Prevo is the President of Liberty University.