Sometimes, I will write a blog post based on a picture. As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words, and in this case, it definitely is. In the case of the above picture, I might go as far as to say it is worth a million words. I'll explain shortly.
The above picture is a screenshot off ESPN's NBA page, and you can find the link to the article here. It is quite a read, but primarily a sad one. I generally don't like to write about sad stories, for as believers in the Way (that is, Jesus Christ), our focus needs to be upward and forward, not backward, except to grasp lessons learned or lessons needed to be learned.
Jerry West played in the National Basketball Association (the same league as Michael Jordan, LeBron James, et al) from 1960 until 1974. He was the point guard alongside other greats like Elgin Baylor and Wilt Chamberlain. His teams went to the Finals nine times but won only once, and he famously won the Finals MVP award in 1969 in a losing effort. Most notably, the NBA's league logo is a silhouette of West in action on the basketball court.
He went on to be a coach, general manager, and adviser to various different teams, but as the article linked two paragraphs ago references, his heart never left the Los Angeles Lakers, the team he played for and coached once his playing days were done. I wasn't alive when he played or coached, so I mostly know of him as the executive who had a keen eye for pushing decisions (from the advisory role) that his employers needed to make, such as hiring Phil Jackson in 1999 as head coach over incumbent (interim) Kurt Rambis when he was advising the Lakers (cited in the same article two paragraphs ago), or threatening to quit his post in 2016 with the Golden State Warriors if they dared to trade Klay Thompson for another player to fill a position of need, thinking it would take them over the top. (In both cases, his employers listened to him and reaped the benefits professionally.) Further, I always had thought of West as a happy person. He was well-off, had a good playing career and, from what I can tell, an excellent advisory career. I mostly remember seeing (other) photos of him smiling, being a happy person living a happy life. (After all, one of my childhood fantasies was to someday be a successful general manager of a sports team, as I liked the idea of scouting players and trying to see how I could put together a championship squad.)
But Jerry West was not a happy person. (Hence the photo.) The ESPN article listed a key pain point that endured with him for many years without resolution, which would explain quite a bit. But pictures often capture more than we might ever know. West's Wikipedia bio, contains a lot of information about his basketball life, and some of his personal life. But there's no mention of any faith, no mention of Jesus. He died in June, full of years, but also full of emptiness. The Bible makes it clear that there's only one way into heaven, and that is to surrender your life to Jesus Christ as your Lord, King, and Savior. If there are any Jerry West fans out there reading this post, I'm very sorry to have to say this, but he didn't make it into heaven. He never received Jesus Christ into heart or into his life at any point while he was here on earth. He's in hell now, enduring torture far worse than feeling or being abandoned by the Los Angeles Lakers organization he loved, worshiped, and idolized. That was his love, and basketball was his god, not the God of the Bible or His Son Jesus Christ. Ultimately, whether or not he could get reconciliation with the Lakers should never have been what he set his heart on, but rather the God who made him and gave him every opportunity to choose to know Him and love Him instead of basketball.
My last post talked about Dikembe Mutombo who passed away a few weeks ago. Although Mutombo also had a pretty good career playing basketball, it was clear with him that basketball was not the be-all, end-all in his life. Jesus Christ was, and basketball was simply Mutombo's platform. The wealth Mutombo accumulated was, among other things, put into building a hospital in Congo (bearing his mother's name, I might add) to provide medical care to his countrymen and women in a location where proper medical care was scarcely available, if that. Mutombo honored God and his mother. By contrast, West's relentless pursuit of the basketball grind and basketball success ate at him, all the way to the end.
I promised I would remind you of real hope before I closed out today's post. First, that Mutombo is in heaven, having heard those words, "well done, good and faithful servant," from our Lord, King, and Savior Jesus Christ. Secondly, that for those still living, there is still time to repent and turn to Jesus and give your life to Him.
For He says:
“In an acceptable time I have heard you,
And in the day of salvation I have helped you.”
Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
and,
And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. (Jesus is talking)
