My Response to "I'd first like to thank GOD!"

This is my response to Vanessa's post about celebrities thanking God during their acceptance speech:

Your post got me thinking about another group that praises God regularly: athletes.

As a sports fan, I often find it ridiculous when athletes, after a big win, will start their post-game interview by saying, "First, I'd like to thank our lord and saviour Jesus Christ." Former St. Louis Ram, New York Giant and Arizona Cardinal quarterback Kurt Warner was fond of saying this. In Warner's eyes, God, it seemed, had a vested interest in the goings-on of professional athletes.

The thing I always wondered was: do these same athletes praise God after they lose or is God only on their side when they win? Did Kurt Warner thank Jesus after his Arizona Cardinals lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Super Bowl XLIII? I wonder.

Then something occurred this past NFL season that surprised even me. After he dropped a game-winning touchdown catch in overtime against the Steelers, Buffalo Bill wide receiver Steve Johnson went on Twitter and actually blamed God for dropping the pass. Yes, he blamed God. The Tweet went as followed:

"I PRAISE YOU 24/7!!!!!! AND THIS HOW YOU DO ME!!!!! YOU EXPECT ME TO LEARN FROM THIS??? HOW???!!! ILL NEVER FORGET THIS!! EVER!! THX THO..."

While most people ridiculed Johnson's statement as asinine, I found it refreshing that Johnson would not let God off the hook for his drop, even if he still manages to thank God at the end.

But Johnson's tweet was exactly what I was looking for. He brought home the point that if God is with you when you win, he must also play a role when you lose.

I do not know if these athletes and celebrities are consciously making a decision to thank God (OK, Kurt Warner most definitely is), but the end result is still the same.

Whether Scarlet Johannson or Kathy Griffin's quotes are crass or not is beside the point. Think about what Johannson said. At the end of the day, does God really give a darn if Kurt Warner won a football game or if so-and-so won a Golden Globe? According to the people who thank God, I suppose he does.