The name Jerry Kramer may not be too familiar in Australia, but if we were to mention Kramer to any of our American friends — especially those who love Gridiron — it’s a name they would know. 45 years after his career as a professional athlete concluded, he was still yet to be inducted into the National Football League’s (NFL) Hall of Fame, one of the game’s highest honours. Throughout his illustrious career and even post-his playing days, Jerry had enjoyed many other honours and recognitions for his achievements. Yet an induction into the Hall of Fame had continually eluded him, even though he’d been nominated 10 times over the past 45 years. Despite having his hopes raised and dashed many times, when asked about it again recently, Kramer responded graciously with, “I felt like the NFL had given me 100 presents in my lifetime and to be upset or angry that I hadn’t had this one was plain stupid!”
Jerry Kramer’s account reminded of the words King Solomon penned in Proverbs 14:30: “A heart at peace gives life to the body but envy rots the bones.”
After being denied so many times in favour of other players, it would have been easy to grow bitter, but Kramer hadn’t. As the Bible says, we also need to guard our hearts against the corrosive nature of envy, which “rots the bones”. When we fail to recognise the many things we do have and become preoccupied with what we don’t, the peace of God can elude us. This is a life lesson we desire our students to understand and embrace.
After his eleventh nomination, Jerry Kramer was ultimately inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame in February 2018.
We may not have our desires fulfilled as Jerry’s finally was, yet we can all have the same peace of heart as we recall the many ways God has been so generous to each and every one of us.
As we speak into the lives of our students, we desire that they have this biblical understanding in their minds and embrace it in their hearts. No matter what we want but do not have, we can always enjoy the life-giving peace that God can bring into our lives as we choose to become followers of Him.