Concordia Lutheran High School exists to provide for those who attend a Christ-centered educational experience. Everything our school does, from the academic programs to the extra-curricular events serve this purpose. Christ is at the center of all we do!
There are times the world of athletics can seem at odds with this philosophy. Athletics is, or can be, quite cut-throat. High school varsity-level programs exist to win games. Every athlete doesn’t always play. Sometimes athletes get a little edgy on the court or field. At times coaches slam headsets on the field or kick a bench in anger at a referees call or interpreted error. Fans can yell things at coaches, other players, or other fans that certainly are out of place in general, but certainly at any sort of Christian-based activity. It is a guarantee that a well-meaning fan of another school will send a note asking how a team from Concordia can wear crosses on their jerseys, when their fans or their coaches or their athletes act “like THAT!”
There is no doubt we are here to compete at Concordia. We want all of our programs to win championships regularly. We want each program to consistently put on the field or the court a product that resembles excellence in attitude and effort. We should be the hardest working teams in the arena at each event. But…how do we couple this competitive attitude with an attitude of Christ-like servitude? How do we answer those who might question our Christianity when our players, coaches, fans, or even teachers or administrators act in ways that are interpreted as flying in the face of our Christ-centered philosophy?
We say this. We are all sinners of sinful parents living in a sinful world. That cross you see on our jersey does not mark us as perfect individuals. It marks us as those who understand that we sin daily and are in need of a Savior. It marks us as understanding that failure intersects with our lives almost every moment we live. We are deeply aware of our sins of omission and commission. It marks us as dead in our sins. BUT…that cross also points us to our Savior who died for all on Good Friday, rose again on Easter morning, lives for us today in Heaven, and will come again in glory to take us all home to be with Him.
Athletics is arguably the most powerful experience an athlete will have during their high school years. We strive at Concordia to make that experience a positive and affirming one, and hope that those who are a part of athletics agree. The coaches assembled for the 2024-2025 school year are outstanding individuals eager to take on all of the challenges that await. There will be mixed emotions, from elation to devastation. But through it all, Christ WILL be at the center of Concordia athletics from the first events this weekend through the final events next June. Win or lose, playing or sitting on the bench, injured or All-State, we are all victorious eternally through belief in Him!