Faith and Fandom

I am both a Chicago Bears' and a St. Louis Cardinals' fan. I have been a Bears' fan and a Cardinals' fan for a very long time and there's nothing that will ever happen to change that. I didn't become a Bears' fan because they wiped out the Patriots in Superbowl XX, not am I a Cardinals' fan because Albert Pujols may end up being the best hitter in MLB history, without the benefits of steroids. Of course I'm very proud of the things "my" teams have done, but that's not why I love them. I love them without rhyme or reason. Some years (maybe most years?) it doesn't seem a rational or reasonable thing to do, to root for the Bears and the Cardinals, but I do it anyway. I wouldn't bet against them even if they were on a Detroit Lions-sized losing streak. No way, no how will anyone ever be able to turn me from my love of the Bears and the Cardinals.
My Christian faith is similar, but very, very different. No way, no how will anyone ever be able to turn me from my love of Jesus Christ, but my faith is a rational, proven thing while my fandom is strictly visceral. My family has long been Cardinals' fans so I would have taken it in with my mother's milk, except I had to drink goat's milk instead (go figure!). I first liked the Bears in high school when I read Gayle Sayers' book, I Am Third, then Brian Piccolo: A Short Season. When I started watching the Bears play, it was a no-brainer that I would love them. (That D is da bomb! Too bad we have so much trouble with the offense.) I can tell you why I'm a fan of the Cardinals and the Bears, and though I'll argue with a Cubs' fan or a Packers' fan till we both blow blood vessels, neither love is a rational one. My love for God is.
I have taken the time to test the faith of my fathers. I have discovered that the bible is the most reliable ancient document that exists today. I have read not just the bible, but also the criticism of it. I have researched other faiths, even atheism (whose adherents strangely claim to have no faith). What I have discovered is that Christianity is the most logical, rational decision anyone can make, but it goes beyond the rational and gives me an even better emotional charge than even a Superbowl win gives!
I can't prove the above statement in one blog, or even in twenty, because it's taken me thirty years to get to the place I am now, but if you check back every now and then, you just might find a note or two about the decision that's both logical and emotional.
God bless.