Steelers Minkah Fitzpatrick: ‘I’m Nothing but the Product of Sitting at the Feet of Jesus’
By Movieguide® Contributor
Pittsburgh Steelers safety, Minkah Fitzpatrick, was the recipient of the Bart Starr Award, which is given to the player who shows great character and leadership on and off the field.
In his acceptance speech, at the Super Bowl Breakfast, he delivered a message filled with grace and hope.
Per Sports Spectrum, “The four-time Pro Bowler and three-time All-Pro received the award for his work supporting foster children through his faith-based Unshackled Foundation, and his contributions as a member of the Steelers Social Justice Committee.”
At first, Fitzpatrick prayed and thanked God.
But then he said, “As I receive this award for my good character, my good relationship with the Lord, I just want everybody to know that I’m nothing but the product of sitting at the feet of Jesus. I’m nothing but a product of a man who sits at the feet of Jesus, at the foot of the cross and lets Him mold his heart, mold his mind. I’m not a perfect man by any means, way, shape or form. You can ask my mom.”
Fitzpatrick didn’t have the season he had hoped for this year.
He was plagued with injuries that forced him to only appear in 10 games. In his speech, Fitzpatrick shared that he felt “defeated.”
However, he took his emotions to the Lord in prayer and God answered him.
Fitzpatrick felt God say to him, “A good man is a dead man. A good man is a man who is willing to pick up his cross and follow Jesus. A good man is a man who’s willing to get up on that cross daily, sometimes multiple times throughout the day, pin his flesh to it and continue to follow Christ.”
From then on Fitzpatrick focused on bettering himself and focusing on those that are closest to him.
“I’ve always prided myself on the fact that I’m always working on myself,” he explained. “I’m always working on my relationships. I’m always working on being a better man, a better brother, a better son, a better football player. As I was sitting at His feet and just letting Him work on me, work on my heart, He revealed a lot to me. He revealed to me that I use this game and my craft at times as an excuse to not fulfill my duties as a brother, to not fulfill my duties as a son. To not be there for my people in my life.”
“If you want to be a good man, if you want to be a great brother or a great son, a great husband, just sit at the foot of the cross. Sit in silence with Jesus. Sit in silence with God. Let Him mold you and work on your heart, and you’ll be everything that you want to be,” he added.
This isn’t the first time Fitzpatrick has been so unashamed of his faith.
Movieguide® previously reported:
While he takes his job seriously and is among the top NFL players in his position, he knows his faith needs to be his foundation.
“Your walk is going to dictate your character and your destiny and how you move throughout your life.” Fitzpatrick expressed. “So, the faith journey is relying on God, but there’s thing that we got to do as well. He places things within our reach and not within our hand for a reason that require us to get closer to Him in order to get through those things.”
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