Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger spoke about his reality at a virtual conference for Christian men over the weekend. He was honest and open about having flaws and failings.
“It’s not always easy,” Roethlisberger said, talking to Tunch Ilkin, a former Steelers player and one of the ManUp event’s hosts. “People don’t realize all the time that us athletes, we’re human. We sin like everybody else. I am no different. We make mistakes. We get addicted to things. We sin. We’re human. I think sometimes we get put on this pedestal where we can’t make mistakes. I’ve fallen as short as anybody. I’ve been addicted to alcohol. I’ve been addicted to pornography, which makes me then not the best husband, not the best father, not the best Christian I can be.
“But you have to dedicate yourself and understand that you can get out of it because of the grace of God and him saying, ‘Listen, you’re good enough for me the way you are. You don’t have to be perfect.'”
An overview of the purpose of the conference:
Each year, Urban Impact teams up with Coach Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers, to present the ManUp Pittsburgh conference to over fifteen hundred men from the tri-state area. ManUp encourages and teaches men to be godly leaders for their families, and raises awareness of the devastating impact of fatherlessness among youth today. Due to the COVID-19 crisis, Urban Impact will this year present a condensed online program, featuring Ben Roethlisberger, Mike Tomlin, Clint Hurdle, and Ed Glover.
Roethlisberger had a run of incidents when he was a young player with the Steelers. They easily could have derailed and ruined what has turned out to be a dazzling career. Roethlisberger admitted to using his platform/fame in an ill-advised way.
“Last year, we went through a crazy offseason,” he said. “All I thought about was getting back on the football field, and I was like, ‘God, you’re going to give me all this redemption. I’m going to go out there, I’m going to prove everybody wrong, I’m going to win a Super Bowl, and we’re going to give you all the glory, and this is it. This is my comeback year.’ And the second game, I tear my elbow. That was God being like, ‘Hold on, it’s not your plan of coming back. It’s got to be my plan.’ So I had to pump the brakes.
“Those are the wake-up calls that he gives us to say, ‘Hold on now — don’t be selfish and do it on your time. We’re doing it on my time.'”
The big quarterback’s faith has helped him get through the injury.
“I’m so thankful that this injury happened during my walk that I’m in now,” her said. “I don’t know that I would’ve been able to handle it a few years ago, five, six, seven, 10 years ago. I know that my faith wouldn’t have been as strong. Now that I know what it’s about, it’s easy to say, ‘Hey, God, this is in your hands. I’m going to go train my butt off to get back out there, and whatever you have for me, I’m ready.'”