The crowd was cheering as Justin Tucker got into position to take the kick. The distance the ball had to travel made a positive outcome seem impossible. But there’s always hope, and he’s quite a kicker.
Time seemed to pause as the football sailed toward the end zone, bounced off the goal post, and went over. History happened—and maybe a miracle—and the Ravens won the game.
You can’t watch a moment like that and not be full of awe. Justin Tucker, a practicing Catholic who makes the Sign of the Cross on the field, was born to kick—and kick far and accurately. When I see someone so clearly in their element, using talents given to them by God, I find myself thinking about how each person has a vocation.
God gives us gifts to use on this earth. He has something in mind for us that only we can do. God didn’t likely mean for you or me to kick a football that far and that way. But just as He gave Justin Tucker that ability, He gave us talents to use in certain ways that can have a dramatic impact on others’ lives.
Maybe He gave you the ability to listen to people and really, really hear.
Maybe He gave you tremendous physical strength.
Maybe He gave you a heart full of compassion for people you encounter—even strangers.
Maybe He gave you a talent to speak or to sing or to run or to dance.
Maybe He gave you a mind for solving problems of every kind.
Maybe He gave you the patience to negotiate with toddlers.
Maybe you can run or rhyme or reason or ruminate or rollerblade in a way that is uniquely your own.
Maybe you have other gifts you haven’t even discovered yet.
I talk about that with my children from time to time. I want them to choose paths in life that they are good at and that they enjoy. I hope they will ask themselves what work God might want them to achieve on earth—and then seek that out. I don’t want them to do that because that is a burden or a responsibility, but an opportunity to live out who they are with joy.
That can apply to everyone, especially knowing that we are never finished growing and learning and discovering new aspects to ourselves. Even Justin Tucker probably didn’t know he could kick a field goal that far and that well while under that much pressure. But he did.
So, who knows what God has in mind for you to achieve for Him? Anything is possible.
The Catholic Review profiled Justin Tucker in 2012 when he was a rookie. He discussed his Catholic faith and love of singing. Read the story here.
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