Evans mixing faith and football
Heath Evans knows there are fans out there who wonder how tough a Christian athlete can be. How can someone who takes part in the violent and brutal world of the NFL consider himself a Christian?
Like any good fullback, he meets the question head on.
“I would challenge people, anyone who would have that point of view, to read the New or Old Testament, to read about a God who is a lion, not just a lamb. They really don’t do the Bible justice,” said Evans, in his fourth season with the Patriots.
“The Bible is more like Braveheart or Gladiator. That’s the Bible. When you start putting these stories together, you start to get the sense that God is a mighty God.”
Evans is one of several players on the Patriots who consider themselves Christians. Over the last few seasons, New England has always had a strong spiritual presence in the locker room — players like David Patten, Tyrone Poole, Richard Seymour, Rodney Harrison and Don Davis (who would also serve as a coach) have always been outspoken in their faith.
While some Christian athletes around the NFL encounter flak from teammates, Evans, who joined the Patriots midway through the 2005 season, said Foxboro is an easy place for a Christian player.
“It is, because we’re a veteran team that a lot of players of an older persuasion,” he said. “I think for the most part we have a bunch of respectful guys who aren’t trying to drag other people astray.”
That’s not to say he necessarily sees eye-to-eye with everything around him.
“Bill Belichick and I probably don’t believe in a lot of the same things, but the principles he applies when it comes to leading this team are the same principles I live by,” said Evans, who helps lead a team Bible study once a week. “He sacrifices so much for this team, so many of his hours doing the nitty-gritty things that are needed to lead this team, and put us in a position to win. And I respect that.”
Evans’ journey to Christianity was a relatively short one. A Florida native, he was raised in a Christian household, and went to church every week as a youngster. But as he got older, his parents gave him the final decision.
“I got to decide whether or not it was a bunch of hogwash, or is this something I’ll follow myself,” the 29-year-old Evans said. “As I went on to high school and college, that relationship with God grew for me. And in my adult years, I’ve fallen far short of perfection, but I’ve continued to try and live my life through the word of God.”
Evans’ belief system led him to create the Heath Evans Foundation, a program he began after his first season in New England. “The Heath Evans Foundation is dedicated to fostering hope and healing in the lives of children and families affected by sexual abuse,” reads the mission statement. “We are committed to breaking the cycle of abuse through healing the psychological, physical, and spiritual wounds inflicted on innocent children; to bring hope and healing to the young victims of sexual abuse.”
“We’ve been blessed, and we want to pass that blessing on to others,” Evans said.