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Mecklenburg heralds God’s grace as he inspires others Monday, Apr 5, 2010 By Lee Warren |
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He did go on to have an impressive NFL career. During his 12-year career with the Denver Broncos, he played in the Super Bowl three times and the Pro Bowl six times. He is a member of the Denver Broncos 50th anniversary team and his name is on the Ring of Fame at Invesco Field at Mile High. And he’s a nominee for the NFL Hall of Fame Class of 2010. His list of accomplishments after football is also impressive. He speaks in schools, churches and civic groups. He and his wife Kathi formed the Karl Mecklenburg REACH Foundation in 2006 to inspire the youth of Colorado to develop lifelong passions for learning and taking on new challenges. He is involved with the Denver Rescue Mission, Colorado Youth Outdoors, Aspen Youth Experience, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and more. Most recently, he wrote a book called “Heart of a Student Athlete: All Pro Advice for Competitors and Their Families.” In the book, he draws on his faith in Christ as he discusses teamwork, courage, honesty and forgiveness, dedication, desire and goal setting. So, how did he go from a boy who walked away from his faith to a man who now freely speaks and writes about his faith in hopes of inspiring students to avoid the mistakes he made? He points to one particular incident in 1987 as the catalyst for change. The NFL Players Association went on strike that year and Mecklenburg was the assistant player representative for the Broncos. Their primary player representative went home when the strike started and that left Mecklenburg in charge of answering questions from the press and organizing strikes. During the strike, the Broncos’ replacement players were scheduled to play a game on Monday Night Football in Denver against the Raiders. Mecklenburg went to the stadium to picket. While he was there, he signed autographs for a few children of fellow picketers. A child who wasn’t with the picketers slipped into the line and Mecklenburg signed an autograph for him before he realized that the child was there to watch the game with replacement players. “I took it back and I tore it in half and dropped it on the ground,” Mecklenburg said. “He and his dad went into the game and I thought that was it. But the father wrote a letter to the editor of the Denver Post the next day and the media jumped all over it and I was vilified in Denver.” A group of angry mothers formed a group called “Mothers Against Mecklenburg” (MAM for short) and they began picketing book signings he was doing at the time for another book he had written called “Meck for the Defense.” “I was getting threats in the mail,” Mecklenburg said. “It was an amazing thing. It really opened my eyes. For a long time I’d lived for adoration. It’s much easier to listen to people who don’t know you build you up and tell you tell you how wonderful you are based on what you’re doing on your job than it is to listen to your family or your friends say, ‘What are you doing?’ I’d lived for that for a long time. “All of a sudden that was gone. I tried to turn to my family and I’d turned them off in a lot of ways. I tried to turn to my friends, same thing. Finally, I turned to God. It had been 10 years since I had prayed for Jesus to come into my life and the amazing things was, he was still there. The God I serve now was waiting for me to not only believe in him, but have a relationship with him. That was a huge turning point in my life and I’ve tried to keep my priorities straighter since then.” He started reading the Bible and praying regularly and he worked through his relational problems. Years later, someone asked him if his speaking engagements are from a Christian perspective. In the book he says, “I thought about it for a minute, and it occurred to me that I do everything from a Christian perspective. I don’t have another perspective. I am a Christian.” Mecklenburg ended up playing on the losing side of three Super Bowls – one of which was played after he returned to the faith. As he speaks to various groups, he remembers the hardships he faced and the mistakes he made and he uses them to inspire others. “The Bible is full of God’s people running into challenge after challenge after challenge after challenge,” Mecklenburg said. “That’s the way he sharpens you. That’s the way he allows you to find out who you are and what you’re capable of. So, don’t quit if something is important to you.” Oh, and the child Mecklenburg snubbed all those years ago – he reconnected with Mecklenburg through his Web site in recent years. Mecklenburg sent him an autographed football. More information about Mecklenburg and his latest book “Heart of a Student Athlete” is available at www.karlmecklenburg.com. --30--
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