The Spiritual Impact of 'Linsanity'

CBN.com Jeremy Lin’s sudden success has come like a New York minute! With the Knicks struggling, Lin finally gets his chance. He steps into the lineup, leads the team on a winning run and solidifies himself as the Knicks newest star!

Jeremy Lin (in a press conference) “There’s a lot coming my way – but I got to make sure I handle it the right way.”
 
But the 23 year-old isn’t just making an impact on game night, but also in the lives of his fans.

Thomas (fan): “He’s very humble. I follow him on twitter and he always has God is great before he goes to bed and stuff like that.”

Luke (fan): “I’m cheering for Jeremy Lin because he is the underdog and he’s a good player.”

Well, the underdog and recent NBA afterthought use to make a home at the end of the bench. Then he finally erupts, becoming pop culture’s number one, new favorite playmaker. But frenzy aside – you can forget about that. The phenom himself will tell you – it’s all about God’s favor!”

Jeremy Lin: “…Extremely overwhelmed with gratitude and thankfulness.”

Lin says his faith helps him sidestep the hype. The undrafted Harvard graduate has already been cut twice from two teams this season. He knows how fragile this window of opportunity can be.

Jeremy Lin: “With that comes the temptation to want to continue to hold on and grasp and micromanage my career, my future with this team. But I’m learning to surrender that to God. Really being diligent in prayer and the Bible.”

Lin’s spiritual convictions are far-reaching, pulling in the curiosity of fans and teammates.

Tom Buehring, CBN Sports asks Luke, a Jeremy Lin fan, “Spiritually does it inspire you?”

Luke responds, “It makes me believe that there’s something out there. Something like helping us. There’s a God. There’s something out there. Gives me something to believe in.”

Thomas (fan):“You always think about –but never really believe that there’s an outside influence – but you know when you see this, you kind of start to think about it.”

J.R. Smith of the New York Knicks says, “When stuff like this happens to someone there’s nothing you can do. It’s definitely a higher power looking out for you. He’s been blessed so much with the stuff he’s done.”

With a growing global audience watching, Lin’s on-court success is surpassed only by the impact of his off-court perspective.

Lindsay (fan): “He was saying he was ready to give up and quit the NBA thing, but the fact that he believed in God so much and that He’s the one that helped where he is today. I think that’s really important.”

As Lin seizes this moment of a lifetime, the emerging floor general knows the wisdom of staying grounded.