I just can’t get Steve McNair out of my mind. McNair is a legend in Tennessee. He led the Titans all the way to the Super Bowl in 2000 with his great passing and running, falling one yard short of a miracle comeback in the title game as time expired. He is Nashville’s biggest sports hero. Was. He was found with four bullets in him on a couch in the condo he shared with his mistress, a waitress from Nashville’s Dave & Buster’s restaurant named Sahel Kazemi. She was dead, too. The police are calling it a murder-suicide. She was 20.

 

The papers are calling Kazemi McNair’s “girlfriend.” In fact she was his mistress. He was registered as co-owner of her Cadillac Escalade. There are internet photos of him parasailing with her. His high school English teacher commented publicly, “One mistake shouldn’t define a life.” One? One?

 

McNair leaves behind a wife, Mechelle, and four young boys. I am sad for her but even sadder for the boys. Every boy needs his dad to be a hero. It was bad enough that he was gone all the time to be with his mistress (trips to Vegas, California, and Florida), but they will have to live the rest of their lives with the shame that his ended on his mistress’ couch. Will they feel doomed to repeat his life? Will his life define “normal” for them? Where will they go with their shame and dashed hopes?

 

While we all would like to look good in the court of human opinion, only one Opinion really matters–what does God think of us? Psalm 130 is a great comfort: “With you there is forgiveness.” With the Lord is also grace and mercy for healing wounded adolescent hearts. With the Lord is strength to help a betrayed widow find joy again. The key to it all is repentance.

 

We all like to pretend that there’s plenty of time to repent of our sins later. When that illusion appeals to you, you might call to mind the image of Steve McNair’s body on his couch.

 

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Straight talk.  Real hope.

7/20/2009 - Posted by JB
I live near Green Bay, and if the rumors are to be believed, Steve McNair's infidelity is not uncommon among NFL players. Just look at the "Love Boat" incident in Minnesota a few years ago. Many of these men grew up in Christian homes but money and fame make the devils job easy. I pray that this tragedy will lead some players to think twice about breaking their marriage vows out of pure self preservation and even more to repentance and rededication to the Lord.