Mike Holmgren has found a lot of success in the National Football League, including his most recent appearance in the Super Bowl, leading the Seahawks to the first every Super Bowl. I suspect he will one day be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

In the meantime, I was delighted to learn that he has a personal testimony of salvation in Jesus Christ. I thought some of you might find it as interesting as I did, so I am posting it here to share with you all.

This was his testimony as told to Greg Asimakoupoulos, who works for the Salem Radio Networks, which bills itself as, "Christian Radio's #1 News Network." You can learn more about Salem at their web site ~ http://www.srnonline.com/
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Like many  in First Covenant Church in San Francisco, I was raised in a Swedish-American  family. We lived in a second-floor flat above my grandfather's bakery where  Scandinavian breads and pastries kept us well fed. But on Sundays, all three  generations of Holmgrens were found at church where the bread of life was  generously dispensed. As a child, my appetite for spiritual things was not  substantial. I was more interested in a pick-up game of touch football....  Raised in the shadows of Kezar Stadium where the Forty-Niners played, I  dreamed of one day wearing a Niner jersey. When I was 11, Billy Graham held a  three-week crusade at the Cow Palace in San Francisco. My parents took my  sisters and me almost every night. On the final night, Cliff Barrows led the  audience in singing "Just as I Am."

I couldn't stay seated and  went forward to accept Christ just as I was, grubby tennis shoes and all. But  even as a Christian, I remained determined to make a name for myself on the  gridiron. After leading my high school teams to the state championship, I was  offered a scholarship to play for the highly touted Trojans at the University  of Southern California. Unfortunately, injuries kept me sidelined much of my  college career and I didn't play much. I was gratefully surprised when I was  drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in 1970. But four weeks later, I was  released. The New York Jets picked me up as a back-up quarterback to  "Broadway Joe" Namath, but before the preseason was over, I was cut again. My  dream of playing professional football was over before it had ever begun. I  was devastated.

A girl I had met at Mission Springs Bible Camp  the summer after I became a Christian re-emerged in my life about this time.  Although we had corresponded off and on between summer reunions at camp, our friendship had drifted in recent years. Kathy had taken her faith much more  seriously than I. She went on to a Christian college, became a nurse, and was  serving as a short-term missionary in Zaire. Her inspiring letters helped me  realize how much I needed to trust the Lord in the midst of my  disillusionment. As a result, I recommitted my life to Christ. Proverbs 3:5-6 became the personal line of scrimmage at which I dug in. "Trust in the Lord  with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all of your  ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight." When Kathy  returned from Africa, we became engaged. In 1971, we were married. I began my  coaching career at the high school from which I graduated.

As  our family of four daughters grew, so did my professional opportunities. I  moved up into the college coaching ranks. But ambition was not the demon in  my life it had once been. My wife and kids were a daily reminder of  both God's blessing on my life and His priorities. I had honestly reached a  place where my future was in God's hands. Then a job opened up in Utah. Some  of our friends questioned our judgment in accepting it. But Kathy and I  viewed my position as assistant coach at Brigham Young University (BYU) as a  unique opportunity. We wanted to be an evangelical witness to the players,  coaches, and students on this predominantly Mormon campus. God blessed our  motives. It was during my time at BYU that the San Francisco Forty-niners  invited me to join their staff. For six wonderful years, I worked with the  likes of Bill Walsh, Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, and Roger Craig. Together we  earned two consecutive Super Bowl Championships. Although I was not a player,  God had fulfilled my boyhood dream to be a part of my hometown team. Less  than five miles from the Cow Palace where I had responded to Billy Graham's  message, Candlestick Park became the stadium where I expressed my faith in  God in the course of my job as offensive coordinator.

When  the media began to speculate that I would be offered the head  coaching position of an NFL team, I prayed diligently. When the offers came,  it seemed obvious to us that the needs of our daughters must take  precedence over my career. I opted to decline the contracts and stay with  the Forty-niners. Sportswriters and colleagues scoffed at my reasoning.  They said I'd never be approached again. But God honored our choice. One  year later, I was hired by the Green Bay Packers to carry the mantle of  legendary head coach Vince Lombardi. My first season with the Packers was  beyond my expectations. Despite injuries and a grueling schedule, we nearly  made the play-offs with a record 10 wins and 6 losses. It was the Packers  first winning season in more than a decade. But win or lose, I learned a long  time ago what really matters. It's not SuperBowl rings, but the crown of  eternal life Christ has won for us by His victory on the cross. As the  Swedish hymn writer, Lina Sandell, put it: "Though he giveth or he taketh,  God His children ne'er forsaketh, His the loving purpose solely to preserve  them pure and holy." (Covenant Hymnal: A Worshipbook, No. 87).