This week’s Faith, Family, & Football feature is: Russell Okung, Current Seattle Seahawk.
PE: Why is faith important to you?
Okung: My faith is important to me because I realize that I'm not on this world by accident. My faith speaks to my heart. It gives me confidence, strength, and renews me each day. Though I don't physically see my faith, I see it manifest through my life, with my platform, off and on the field as well as my personal life. My faith is my rock!
PE: Tell us about your family and the impact they’ve had on your life?
Okung: I come from a single parent house hold and I attribute that to much of my success. I was force to grow and mature at a young age which gave me a completely different perspective on the world. Not being privileged growing up, I don't take anything for granted. Each day I wake up, step on the field, or have a hot meal, I am extremely grateful. I’ve learned that the best way to show my appreciation is to live a life of gratitude.
PE: What does being a father mean to you?
Okung: I'm currently not a father nor did I have one growing up. My father passed when I was a very young boy. I have never had my father in my life, but my heavenly Father has always been present. The good Lord has placed plenty of outstanding mentors in my life to help facilitate my walk. I'm lucky enough to have God fearing men of great valor and integrity to help me. It has not been so much what they have said to me, but the way they have lived their lives. I've seen them go through adverse situations and persevere through them. That's a sign true manhood. I have committed my life, seeing how they are, to living a life full of purpose and holding myself at a high standard.
PE: How has your faith and family helped you develop off the field?
Okung: My faith and family have been a back bone for me on and off the field. Each day, I'm maturing and challenging myself to be the best man off the field I can be. I’ve been fortunate to see good examples set by my family through their faith. As a result, I have grown in my faith and am able to have an even greater impact in the community at home and in my team’s city.
PE: How do you balance faith, family, and football?
Okung: In my transition into the league, I had to find enough time to manage all three. The best way to balance is to prioritize what is most important first and from there surround yourself with people who believe in the same thing you do. I learned quickly that I could not do this thing alone and looking towards the veteran players was extremely helpful.
Since they went through most of the same things I was going through, they had tons of experience on how to go about time management. The best advice I got from them was to have a 'first thing is first' approach. In doing so, I knew what was most important and primarily needed to be taken care of.
PE: What advice would you give to student athletes and current professional athletes in regards to their faith, family, and football?
Okung: My best advice is to keep things in perspective. Always remember what matters most and most importantly what last. The word of God tells us to "seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added on to you". In saying that, you can remember as long as you keep your faith first, everything else will fall into place. Then you remember that the battle is not yours, but Gods and that you can never fail. We are promised a hope and a future. Live on those principles and things are guaranteed to work for your good.
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