Former NFL Coach Tony Dungy: Faith, Fatherhood, & Football

Tony Dungy won his first Superbowl during his second year in the NFL. When he was traded and released at 25 years old, he thought his career was over. 

On this Father’s Day episode, listen as the former NFL player and coach shares how his faith saw him through many unexpected twists and turns in his career and family—such as becoming a father to 12—nine of them through adoption.  

Connect with us through email at gps@billygraham.org or on Facebook at Billy Graham Radio.

If you’d like to know more about beginning a relationship with Jesus Christ, or deepening the faith you already have, visit FindPeacewithGod.net. 

If you’d like to pray with someone, call our Billy Graham 24/7 Prayer Line at 855-255-7729. 

Transcript

Tony Dungy: 
[00:00:00] I thought I was going to continue on and play in the NFL. But the draft came around, and I didn’t get selected. And I can remember that night after the draft was over. It was the first time in a long time that I really prayed. I said I don’t understand this, Lord. I have worked very hard. I did everything I was supposed to do. And it looks like my career is over. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:00:25] Tony Dungy is a former NFL player and coach who has experienced all the highs and lows that can come with a career in pro football. Today, he’s an NBC broadcaster. But more than that, he’s a Christian, husband to Lauren, and father of 12. You’ll hear how Tony’s faith intersects with the successes and setbacks of raising a family and building a professional football career. It’s all here on this special Father’s Day edition of GPS: God. People. Stories. It’s an outreach of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. I’m Jim Kirkland. As a father of children ranging in ages from 40 to 5, Tony deeply understands the blessing and the responsibility of fatherhood. This was something that Billy Graham spoke about on Father’s Day in 1956. 

Billy Graham:
[00:01:17] One of the greatest needs in America is for men who will muster the moral courage and appropriate the spiritual strength to lead their families by example and present in the ways of God and character building.  

Jim Kirkland:
[00:01:30] You’ll hear more from Billy Graham’s Father’s Day message later in this episode. You can also find out more about trusting in God right night at our website FindPeacewithGod.net. That’s FindPeacewithGod.net. And we always have that address listed as a link in our show notes. 

Audio tag:
[00:01:52]

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:01:58] Although Tony Dungy grew up in a Christian home, his childhood faith quickly took a backseat to something else. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:02:06] Both of my sets of grandparents were Christians. Both of my parents were highly involved in the church. My dad was in the choir. My mom taught the Sunday School. My dad’s father was a minister. So, I heard the gospel message, heard about Jesus from a very young age. Was always involved. But when I got to be about 9 or 10 years old, sports became big in my life. And I got the bug. I got the itch. 

Jim Kirkland:
[00:02:37] Tony’s dad taught him how to catch and throw a baseball in their backyard in Michigan, but basketball became his favorite sport. And he played it non-stop. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:02:47] My dad would take me to games. And I started at that point of thinking how could I be the best athlete I can be. From the time I was probably fourth or fifth grade through high school, it was tunnel vision. Sports number one thing. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:03:03] And soon, football specifically became the number one thing in his life. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:03:09] I started playing football when I was 12. And slowly, I got better at football than anything else. I still had this passion for basketball. I enjoyed it, but football is where I kind of started to find my niche. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:03:25] While Tony played on several good teams in high school, it was in his senior year that his football team went next level. And because of that Tony’s talents were recognized. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:03:36] I was selected to the Michigan All State team as a quarterback. And I was selected to the Parade All American team as a high school player. I started getting scholarship offers and ended up going to the University of Minnesota. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:03:52] One of the main reasons Tony chose the University of Minnesota was because they allowed him to play both basketball and football. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:04:00] My first year, as a freshman, I played a little bit on the varsity football team. Got in some games. Did okay. Got to basketball season and I played a little more on the basketball team. And I loved it. And I was excited about going forward with a two sport career. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:04:19] But Tony got hurt during the football season of his sophomore year and had to go into rehabilitation. As a result, he missed the next basketball season. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:04:30] That kind of led me into football. I just got better and better at that. My junior year, we had a new coach who came basically from professional football. And he put in a pro style system. We passed the ball more than most teams in the Big 10. I set some school records. Some Big 10 records. And that was the first time I really thought about, well, I could possibly be a National Football League player. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:04:55] There were other reasons that was looking like a very real possibility. In his junior year, the University of Minnesota finished third in the Big 10 football conference. And Tony earned the Big 10’s most valuable player award. Then during his senior year, Tony started having dinner with NFL coaches and talking with scouts. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:05:16] I thought I was going to continue on and play in the NFL. But the draft came around, and I didn’t get selected. And it was-it was pretty heartbreaking. And I can remember leaving my apartment that night after the draft was over. And it was the first time in a long time that I had really prayed. And I said I don’t understand, Lord. I have worked very hard. I did everything I was supposed to do. And it looks like my career is over. I didn’t have the type of faith where I could pray and ask the Lord what He was trying to show me. It was just like I kind of expressed my disappointment. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:05:54] At the time, Tony didn’t have a close relationship with God and was not involved with the church. He spent his Sundays attending meetings or practices or studying. But when Tony’s football career seemed over, he prayed. And God quickly answered 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:06:11] The next day, I got a call from the Pittsburgh Steelers. And they were, at this time in 1977, they were the iconic franchise. They’d won two Super Bowls already and had some great Hall of Fame players on the team. And so, I was very excited. Gosh, the-the Steelers are calling me. And they said they wanted me to come and try out. They didn’t need a quarterback. They didn’t need me to play there, but they thought I could switch to a different position. If I was willing to do that, they would sign me. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:06:42] Tony thought about it, prayed about it, and just had an urge. He wanted to go there. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:06:49] I wanted to play with the best. I can’t explain why. I know now that it was the Holy Spirit directing me and sending me there. But at the time, there was just this feeling these guys are the best. That’s where I want to go. That’s what I want to do. So, I signed with the Steelers. And it was the best thing that ever happened to me. It-it changed my life almost overnight. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:07:11] After seven years of hard work, three years in high school and four years in college, 21 year old Tony Dungy was completely dialed in on his career in the NFL. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:07:23] And I get to the Steelers and the very first meeting we had – Chuck Noll was the head coach. And he’s up in front of the room. He says welcome to the National Football League, gentlemen. You’re now going to be paid to play football. So, it’s your profession but don’t make football your whole life. You’re going to have to leave this game at some point. And if football is your whole life, you’ll leave the game disappointed. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:07:47] Tony had never heard a coach talk like that before. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:07:51] I was expecting him to say, you know, you worked hard in high school. You worked hard in college. You’re going to have to work three times as hard because this is tougher. It’s a higher level. All of these things I’m expecting this. And he’s saying don’t-don’t put everything into it. We’ve got to get you to understand where you’re going to get your satisfaction from. You’re going to do some things off the field. You’re going to get involved in the community. We’ve got to find out what’s going to make life significant for you away from the field. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:08:19] That approach to the game wasn’t the only surprise for Tony. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:08:23] The next thing he does, my coach, he says we’re moving you to defense. You’ve never played defense before. You really don’t know that much about it. The normal way they did things was they always put rookies together with rookies as roommates. The veterans who knew each other were roommates. He said I’m going to put you as a roommate with a guy named Donnie Shell. He’s a veteran defensive back. You can learn from him. And he’ll help you grow as a player. I did. And it was amazing because Donnie Shell was the most fired up on fire Christian athlete I’d ever been around. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:09:01] Donnie would be instrumental in Tony’s coming to grips with his faith. The two players would sit in their dorm room and just talk. Donnie would ask Tony about what he was reading in the Bible. And he’d tell Tony about what he was reading and how it had impacted him that day. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:09:19] I’d never been around an athlete like that. But he had everything that I wanted. He’ been on the team. He’s playing. He was married. Had kids. And all the things I was looking for, he had it. So, I’m going to emulate him. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:09:33] So when Donnie invited Tony to a weekly Bible study after practice, Tony followed suit. He walked in to see 25 other men there, many who were Tony’s heroes. He hadn’t realized you could be a professional athlete and a follower of Jesus. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:09:50] And I said, guys, my mother used to talk about this. My dad. I was in church when I was a little kid. But I didn’t know that the two could coexist. And that is when my life really started to change when I was 21 years old and I saw these guys who I respected who weren’t afraid to demonstrate their faith in Christ. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:10:11] Now, Tony had accepted the Lord as a child. He had been at a church service. And the minister had asked who wants to go to heaven. Tony raised his hand. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:10:22] I had heard enough from my parents. I knew what that meant. Jesus died on the cross for our sins. Yeah, I get that. Yes, I want to go to  heaven. Yes, I believe in Christ. I was a Christian, but I wasn’t letting Him be in charge of my life. I was still directing my life and I was focused on sports. Yeah, I’ll-I’ll go to church. Yes, I’ll talk about it. Yes, I’ll listen to my parents. But really what’s driving me is this-this desire to be who I want to be inside. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:10:51] All that changed when Tony started seeing his teammates living for Jesus. Football wasn’t the most important thing in their lives instead honoring God was. And one Bible study, in particular, helped Tony recognize that. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:11:06] The chaplain went over 1 Corinthians chapter nine. He’s at this point where Paul’s talking about what it really means to be a Christian. And he says, uh, in verse 24 you know that in a race everybody runs, but only one first prize. So, run to win. And I was like, yes, that’s motivation. God says it’s okay to run to win. I want to be the best. That’s great. But then, the next verse says athletes do it for a prize that’s going to fade away. We need to run for the eternal prize. And the chaplain said make sure you’re running the right race. All the effort and energy you put into winning a Super Bowl, that’s great. God wants us to do that. He wants us to be the best at what’s He’s given us the ability to do, but don’t mistake that for the ultimate in life. You’ve got to make sure that you’re spiritual race is getting that same energy. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:11:58] Tony’s focus began shifting from his athletic career to what God wanted him to do. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:12:04] The first thing I did was start reading the Bible. And that was a big change for me. Most of what I had gotten before, my mother was a Sunday School teacher. And I memorized verses because my mom made me. Well, now, when my teammates with Steelers said you’ve got to memorize, you’ve got to know the Bible just like you know you play book. Well, I would never think of going out on the field and not knowing what I was supposed to do. When we got the game plans on Monday or we had our playbook, I knew it forwards and backwards. I was not going to make a mistake. They said that’s how you have to be with your Bible. Once I started reading the Bible, I would sit there and read and say, man, I didn’t know that. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:12:48] The faith that God was building in Tony carried him through the highs and the lows of his career. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:12:56] We did win a Super Bowl my second year with the team. I got traded a couple of times. I got released and no one wanted me. No other teams wanted me. And my career was basically over. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:13:09] Just like on his draft night years earlier, Tony talked to God. This time his prayer was completely different. He prayed, Lord, I’m at a crossroads. I know You’ve got a plan for me. I don’t know what it is. Please show the next step for me. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:13:30] Not long after that, Coach Nolls, my old coach, called me on the phone. And he said have you ever thought about being a coach. You have good communication skills. You love the game. I think you could be a good coach. I’ll create a spot on my staff if you’re interested in doing that. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:13:46] He was interested. Tony joined the Steelers organization as the youngest assistant in the NFL at just 25. Under Coach Chuck Noll, Tony learned about leadership. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:13:57] He was the best mentor that I could have had in the coaching field because he was highly successful, but he understood that there was more to life than football. There was more to football than just winning. And he demonstrated that. Family was important to him. Relationships were important. Having a life away from the game was important. So, I got to learn in my formative years, my first eight years coaching, from a guy who was super successful, but he didn’t do it the way everybody else did. And I saw that you could do extremely well but still respect your family and-and your time. You could still do things in the community. You could still have other interests. And it really got me off to a great start. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:14:42] Tony’s job with the Steelers did more than just give him a great start in coaching. It’s also how he met his future wife. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:14:51] There was a Father’s Day event at this church, Lauren’s church in Pittsburgh. And the Steelers sent someone there every year to represent them and give the-the message. And this particular 1981 Father’s Day, Ted Peterson, one of my former teammates who was still on the team, he was supposed to go. And late, late, late in the evening the chaplain called me and said Ted is sick. And we always send someone. Would you mind going and taking his place?

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:15:22] Tony didn’t want to go, but he agreed to for the chaplain. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:15:27] After I talked to the-the men’s group, the minister of the church told me I don’t know, but I think there’s a girl in this congregation you really ought to meet. Just seems like you two would have the same type of personality. And I brushed him off. I said I appreciate that but no thanks. But he was persistent. He called the chaplain. He got my phone number. He called me back and said I really am serious about this. So, he introduced me to a girl named Lauren Harris. And that was right after Father’s Day about the first of July. And by November, we were engaged. We got married the next June. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:16:04] Tony and Lauren shared the same ideas about their Christian faith and what they were looking for in a family. They started building that family in their first few years of marriage. All the while, Tony dealt with changes in his career. The biggest of which happened in 1996. After Tony had been with the Minnesota Vikings for four years. He had had a couple of job interviews for head coaching positions, but none had worked out. That was until he started talking to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:16:33] Tampa Bay Buccaneers that had 13 straight losing seasons, they were looking for a new coach. They talked to several different high profile coaches who for whatever reason didn’t take the job. And, uh, it came to me. And I really felt like this had to be the Lord because I didn’t know anybody in Tampa. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:16:53] Not only was Tony excited to be the head coach of the Buccaneers, he saw this as an opportunity to represent the Lord to his new team and the community. Just as he had learned from Chuck Noll, Tony wanted to tell his players there was more to life than playing football. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:17:10] I wanted my team to be successful, but I wanted the young men to understand that they had responsibilities in the community. That we were going to be role models for the young men that were looking up to them. That we were going to try to make Tampa a better place to live as well as winning games. And that was my goal going down there. It felt like God had sent us there for a purpose and I couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:17:34] There were other people, however, who weren’t as excited for him about his new job. With a rough first season in Tampa Bay, the fans sometimes yelled for Tony to go home or worse. But Tony never got discouraged. And the next year, the Buccaneers went into their season full force winning their first five games. The Bay area went wild with pride. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:17:58] The stadium is selling out now. And we’re on the cover of Sports Illustrated. And it was just-it was one of the greatest feelings because these fans had been waiting for so long for a winning team to support. Now, they were just coming out in droves. And just everybody was on board. And it really felt great. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:18:16] There was another big turn around that was coming in Tony’s life. He and Lauren went to an event focused on foster care and adoption and heard about the need in Tampa for parents who were up for the task. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:18:30] My wife who just has a heart for kids, after it was all over, said we need to do something. We need to get involved. I thought we were doing pretty well. We had three kids already. But she said, no, we’ve got to investigate this. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:18:44] That investigation turned into some public service announcements and fundraisers. Still, the Dungys felt they could do more. In 2000, they decided to open their home and adopt a baby boy. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:18:57] He was a real blessing. Ended up having some health challenges. After just a couple of months, we knew why God had set it up. It wasn’t an accident. Because of where I worked, we had really good access to the top doctors. And we got him diagnosed and taken care of. And we realized God sent him to us. And we thought that there might be a reason. So, we stayed in touch with the lady. And it turned out that we now adopted eight more after Jordan. So, we have our nine youngest are adopted. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:19:31] While seven of their nine youngest were adopted as infants, two of them were adopted out of foster care. Today, their oldest daughter is 40 and their youngest is just 5 years old. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:19;43] It’s just really showed us how God brings us into His family. And He has that kind of love and that kind of care for us that He adopts us into His family. And we’re just like all His kids. And it’s the same way we’ve seen it with our young children. When they know somebody cares about them and loves them and brings them into the family, they thrive on that. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:20:08] Tony’s time in Tampa didn’t just expand his role as a father. There was a pastor at Tony’s church who told Tony about his ministry to prisoners and inmates and invited Tony to speak to them. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:20:23] I went with Reverend Brown. And I remember I was a little nervous going into this – what am I going to say? What are these guys going to look like? I’m expecting to see 40 and 50 year olds just hardened men. And we opened the door and they let us in. And there were so many 19, 20, 21 year old kids that looked like my boys. And they’re baby faced kids. And I thought I see why Reverend Brown now does this. These gentlemen have a future if somebody can reach them and tell them that the Lord has plans for them. So, I was doing that. I was excited about that. We had a ministry called All Pro Dads that we actually started in Tampa. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:21:02] Reverend Brown told Tony that one of the main reasons so many men were I prison was because they didn’t have a good relationship with their dad or they grew up in a broken home. That motivated Tony to do what he could to help get fathers back in the homes. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:21:18] All this was going on and we were winning. And it just felt so good. When I got there in ’96, the owners told me they said we’ve had 13 straight losing seasons. If we can just get where we’re respectable, if we’re in the middle of the pack and have a chance, we’ll be excited. Well, we did turn it around. We became one of the better teams in football. We got close. We almost went to the Super Bowl in 1999. We lost by five points in the game to get to the Super Bowl. We were in the playoffs four of my six years there. So, you’re thinking everything is good. We’re doing exactly what we hoped to do. We’re having an impact in the community. This is going to be a great run. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:21:57] But Tony’s great run came to an end sooner than he expected. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:22:02] At the end of the 2001 season, the ownership called me in. They said you’ve done a lot. You’ve taken us to some really, really good heights; but we just don’t think you’re the person to take us to the top. And we’re going to make a change. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:22:15] Tony was devastated. Things had been going so well both on and off the football field. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:22:22] And again, I remember going out praying after I got the word. And Lord, you’ve taken me through some tough times. And You’ve always had something better in place. I don’t know what it is, but I have to trust You. And I believe You’ve got something for me. Otherwise, this wouldn’t have happened. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:22:38] A couple of days later, Tony got a call from the Indianapolis Colts owner, Jim Irsay. He was ready to make a change in his head coaching position. And he didn’t want to interview anyone else. He wanted Tony. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:22:53] He’d watched me from afar. I was the guy that he wanted. He said come up here. Fly up here and let’s talk about your salary and everything. It’s all set. I want you. And let’s go to work. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:23:04] Tony was blown away by the unexpected opportunity. He signed with the Colts for the 2002 season. The situation was completely different from his start in Tampa. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:23:15] Tampa was down in the dumps when I got hired there. Well, I go to the Colts. They had drafted Peyton Manning three years before. And they had done well, but they hadn’t gotten over the top. And his idea was how can we put this together and finally take that step and become a championship team. So, we had good players there. And it was just a matter of bringing everybody together. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:23:40] As the team bonded, they became stronger and had several great seasons. During the 2005 season, the Colts won their first 13 games in a row. People were picking them to win the Super Bowl. But then, Tony experienced one of the greatest losses of his life. 

Tony Dungy:
 [00:23:58] Right around Christmas time, our son was 18 at the time. James, and he committed suicide. And that was devastating. You’re not ready for that at all. It rocked our world. 


Jim Kirkland: 
[00:24:11] At the end of James’ funeral service, after everybody had left the church, one of Tony’s high school buddies came up to him. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:24:20] He said, Tony, with what you know about heaven, if God would allow you to bring James back right now, you had to make the decision, would you bring him back? 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:24:31] No, Tony told him he wouldn’t. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:24:34] And that changed my whole perspective around. I went from feeling sad and feeling just devastated to, hey, God has a reason for doing things. There’s a purpose. We don’t understand it. Yes, we’re devastated as a family, but James is doing fine. He’s in the Lord’s hands. And I need to move forward. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:24:53] Since then, Tony has talked to hundreds of other parents who have lost children. He’s able to share in their grief and encourages them to rely on God. 

Tony Dungy:
[00:25:04] I look back at it and, yes, as hard as that was and I would never want to go through it again. I would never wish it on anybody else. But I do know that God was able to use it for good. My wife, Lauren, and I would pray about that a lot. God, your Word says all things work together for good for those who love the Lord. We don’t see what can be good about this. We just don’t see it. But then, things like that happen. And we’d have to say you’re right, Lord. You can work it for good. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:25:39] And God has continued to work things for good in Tony’s life. In 2007, two years after losing James, Tony helped lead the Indianapolis Colts to victory over the Chicago Bears at Super Bowl XLI. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:25:53] I can remember after the final whistle and we beat the Bears and they’re constructing the podium that they’re going to present the trophy and do the interviews after the game. All of our fans were still there in the stadium. And all of our families are kind of coming over the fence onto the field. And so, you see your players and their families and the fans. Then you realize this was more than just a win for our 53 guys. This was the city of Indianapolis, the state of Indiana, just all the Colts fans. And just really feeling so proud. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:26:29] As the Colts were presented with the trophy, Tony was interviewed by Jim Nantz from CBS. Jim asked this has to make you really proud. You’re the first African American head coach to win a Super Bowl. What does that mean to you? 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:26:44] I knew I was talking to a Super Bowl 100 million person audience. And I was able to tell him, Jim, it was great. I’m proud to represent African American coaches, but the bigger thing for me is that Lovie Smith, the Bear’s coach, and I are both Christian coaches. And we wanted to show people that you can do it the Lord’s way and still be successful. So, I’m more proud of being a Christian coach. That’s probably the highlight of my athletic career there being able to say that in front of 100 million people. 

Music tag:
[00:27:17] 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:27:29] Tony Dungy sees that moment of declaring his faith in Jesus Christ in front of a Super Bowl audience as the highlight of his athletic career. Tony coached two more years before his retirement. Today, he continues to be a spokesman for the Lord as a public speaker, author, and broadcaster at NBC Sports. If you’re ready to place your trust and faith in Jesus Christ, go to FindPeacewithGod.net. That’s FindPeacewithGod.net. You can also find the link to that site in our show notes. Tony Dungy says there are two questions to ask yourself to find purpose and success in whatever work you’re doing. You will him share what those questions are in just a moment. 

Audio tag:
[00:28:19]

Billy Graham: 
[00:28:28] One of the greatest needs in America is for men who will muster the moral courage and appropriate the spiritual strength to lead their families by example and present in the ways of God and character building. 

Announcer:
[00:28:41] Billy Graham … 

Billy Graham: 
[00:28:42] Father’s must find God and dedicate themselves to the building of strong homes. Without Christ, it is impossible for you to be a proper husband and father that you ought to be. Yes, it is the duty and privilege of Christian fathers to so live before their children that they can see Christ in them. To be a real father is a tremendous responsibility. Are you the kind of a father you ought to be? Have you been rearing your children properly? Have you been the kind of husband in the home that you ought to be? God holds you responsible for the spiritual welfare of your children. Today, right now, receive Christ as your Savior. Turn over a new leaf and determine from this moment that you’re going to be the kind of father you ought to be to your children. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:29:29] When you surrender your life to Jesus Christ, it changes the type of parent and person you are. If you want to know more about how to do that and become the kind of parent God wants for your family, visit our website FindPeacewithGod.net. That’s FindPeacewithGod.net. Our guest on this episode of GPS is former NFL player and coach and current NBC sports broadcaster Tony Dungy. His career in professional football has led him all over the country and through many ups and downs. But across the years, a memory from his parents reminded him of a deeper purpose beyond his vocation. 

Tony Dungy: 
[00:30:13] I think my lifelong theme really came from my mother. And she basically said – and my dad was the same way – you can do whatever you want. And God will put something in your heart, a desire, to give you a direction of where to go in life. But the big thing is not what you end up doing. Yeah, you can do anything. Why are you doing it? And more importantly, who are you doing it for? And if you’re doing it for the right reasons and for the right person, for Christ, you’re going to be successful and significant no matter what that line of work is. So, it started for me when I was 21 years old. But whether I was a player, a coach, a broadcaster, a father, uh, a community person, I’m doing it for the Lord. And I’m doing it to point people to Christ. That has to be my life mission. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:32:10] We’re grateful for Tony Dungy joining us on this episode. He and Lauren have moved back to Tampa. And they live there with their younger children. If you have enjoyed this episode, if you’ve enjoyed Tony’s story, would you share it with a friend or loved one who you also think might enjoy listening to this episode of GPS. And don’t forget to subscribe to GPS. That way you will not miss out on any episodes including our next one which comes in two weeks. Lastly, but certainly least, to all the fathers, happy Father’s Day. I’m Jim Kirkland. And this is GPS: God. People. Stories. It’s an outreach of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. Always good news. 

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