Former Dallas Cowboy Stands Tall for Jesus

by Allie Martin

(AgapePress) A former NFL star says years of success on the gridiron can't compare with his life now that he is wholeheartedly serving Christ.

D.D. Lewis was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in 1968 and was a linebacker on the team until his retirement in 1981. During his 13 seasons with the team, the Cowboys had 12 consecutive winning seasons and won two Super Bowls, and Lewis himself garnered numerous honors and awards.

During Lewis's tenure in Dallas, the team was coached by legendary coach Tom Landry, a soft-spoken but strong, steady man of Christian faith. But Lewis -- who became a Christian when he was a child in Knoxville, Tennessee -- says he strayed from his faith during the glory days of the Cowboys.

In the mid 1980s, Lewis hit bottom. Then, he says, he got serious about his walk with Christ.

"God has a way of showing us what He wants us to be and the way He wants us to live,," Lewis says, "and by His grace and mercy I was able to come back to Him, put my stake in the ground, and stand up for Jesus Christ."

The player Coach Landry once called the team's "most under-rated player" says when he committed his life fully to Christ, he found true peace and joy. He says he often heard Landry tell others that it was his faith in God that kept him steady. Landry, he says, kept the faith.

"And that's what I'm saying," Lewis says. "Keeping the faith ... persevering through ups and down, good times and bad times. And that's what is happening to me and other Christians today -- we're keeping the faith. We're not forsaking the faith and going with the world."

Lewis, now a salesman for a fertilizer company, says his faith in Christ has brought him through many tough times since his football career ended more than two decades ago. He speaks at various churches, Christian rallies, and gatherings sponsored by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

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