We all have seen the ads about the “Easy” button. Just hit the Easy button and things become easy. I actually have an Easy button on my desk that doesn’t work anymore, because I used it so much. I think the batteries died.

I love the “easy “button,” but I think a better button would be a “New” button — one that gives us a fresh start. We could hit it at the beginning of a year (or month or day) and start over with a clean slate. Wouldn’t that be great? We could hit the New button for lots of things: diet, workout routine, pets, schools, sports teams, coaches, friends or jobs. The list could go on and on.

Those of us who watch a lot of sports programs on television have probably seen the St. Louis Cardinals’ “blanket” commercial. It begins with a man who wraps a red St. Louis Cardinals’ blanket around himself. As it turns out, the blanket is the one constant in his life as he grows up. As a child, he uses it as a cape when he runs up the steps, and he drapes it over his bed when he studies. It is on the seat when he learns to play the drums as a teenager, in the trunk when he moves out of the house, and around his girlfriend while they watch a movie. The commercial ends with the man wrapping the blanket around his child as these words come on the screen: “Without sports, what would we hold on to?”

NFL coach-turned-analyst Herman Edwards calls it like it is. You may or may not agree with him, but you will certainly not be bored. He isn't afraid to be open and honest based on his years of experience as a player and coach, and he doesn’t beat around the bush.

The sports world loves to pay tribute to great athletes and coaches. Halls of fame, retired jerseys and numbers, street names and building names all honor famous sports heroes. But what are they really honoring? Some were great men and women off the field, but for the most part those things honor great achievements in athletics. In my book there's nothing wrong with that until we look at how we truly honor Christ in our sporting careers.