By Mallory Mattingly
After his grandfather died, New York Mets pitcher Nolan McLean felt motivated to share the gospel that his grandfather lived out.
“My granddad passed away in college, and he was a super devout Christian,” McLean began on an episode of the “Sports Spectrum” podcast. “I mean, every time I got into his car, it was a cassette tape just playing worship music, and it was like three songs, just over and over again. And it was all he wanted to do, was read his Bible, go to church, be a good person and save money. That’s all he cared about.”
“Once he passed away, I went, I had to take some time away from the team and go to his funeral,” the pitcher continued. “And it was, I mean, we grew up in a pretty small town, like my family is all from the same area. And it felt like 1,000 people at his funeral who just came up to me. Obviously, when you’re close to someone who passes away, you’re right there at the casket, and people are telling you sorry for your loss and stuff like that.”
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“But it was just so many people talking about what a good person he was, and not necessarily talking about how Christian-like he was. But I think those things correlate pretty well, like when someone talks about how good of a person,” McLean said.
“And just seeing how many people that my granddad had an impact on, I was like, man, like he did that with a platform in Andrew, North Carolina, with nobody, and like, I’m over here worried about all this other stuff when I can be, like, devoting my life to God and helping out other people on a much bigger platform than what my granddad did it on,” he added.
From that day on, McLean has devoted his life to using his platform well, serving others and being a vessel for Christ.
“I always try to post my Bible studies and my readings on Instagram, because it holds me accountable as well,” he said on the podcast. “But there might be one person in the whole entire year that I could lead towards Christ, and I think that’s worth it.”
On Sunday, McLean shared a photo of his Bible notes on a study titled “Your Breakthrough Year.”
“It’s so easy to get caught up in the rhythm of life and suddenly realize none of your goals have moved,” McLean shared in a photo on his Instagram Story. “Or to look at your current situation, your finances, your circumstances, and think, ‘There’s no way I can get ahead.’ That might be the story others settle for, but that’s not the story God has for you. God calls you the head and not the tail. You are above and not beneath. You are the apple of His eye, deeply loved and completely seen. He has better for you.”
Praise God for how He worked in McLean’s life and used a time of grief to inspire him to proclaim his faith.
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