Minn. Twins Pitcher Kyle Gibson Shares About his Faith and Faith Night

Kyle Gibson was drafted by Minnesota Twins in 2009, and got called up to the majors in 2013. We interviews Gibson about his faith and his involvement in the 2nd annual Twins Faith Night at Target Field.

What does Faith Night mean to you personally?

We have a responsibility to utilize what God has given us and He has given us (Twins players) a really cool platform to be in the public eye and to hopefully compete and play the game as God would want us to, and keep loving people, and to spread His love around to as many people as we can.

We are hoping Faith Night builds from last year. We had a lot of fun last year. It’s a cool event to be a part of. And hopefully local churches and fans who are coming to the game will be interested in sticking around.

How does Faith Night further the Kingdom of God in the Twin Cities?

Last year when we were thinking about doing Faith Night, we were hoping for 1,000 or 1,500 people and it ended up being 4,000-5,000 people, so it was really cool. There’s a potential for 30,000 people to be at the game. And it gives people a chance, who never have heard of Faith Night, the ability to stick around post-game and hear a message, worship music, and hear some Twins players talk about how their faith impacts their life. Whereas some of these people have maybe never thought about having faith in God and allowing faith to direct their life. I think it can have a big impact.

We are in a time right now as a country, where love can go a long way. Christ’s love and the love of God is a form of love that I tend to lean on quite a bit. And it’s a great thing for the community.

Being in the public eye, what kind of responsibility do you feel to live out your Christian faith well?

It’s a privilege and a responsibility to share my faith as a Christian and a Major League Baseball player. Everyone in that locker room has been given more monetary funds than we’ll need in a long time and we’ve been given people around us that have a lot of influence. And with that influence comes a lot of responsibility to steward it and use it for the right reasons. That’s what Faith Night and some of the charity work that many players are involved in, is all about, it’s stewarding the blessings and that we hopefully spread the Word of God and spread the Kingdom.

By being open about your commitment to your faith, do you get ridiculed/teased or feel like an outsider by teammates?

It’s a pretty cool atmosphere in the locker room. There may be some players who aren’t going to go to Faith Night, but nobody gives me a hard time about it.

There’s multiple teammates that I know who don’t believe in God. But we have talks about religion and spirituality, and they’ll discuss why they choose not to have a faith. I am always trying to make good decisions, so that the decisions and words I am choosing aren’t a damage to my witness. In no means am I perfect, but the way that I live, and the decisions that I make are hopefully directing people to seek God’s love.

Do you feel you are better prepared for life “after sports,” when the time comes, due to your faith and hope in Jesus?

I’d like to play baseball for a really long time if I can, if it works out that way, then great. But my faith gives me something else to live for even while I’m playing. There are certain priorities in my life that come before baseball; being a father and a husband, and being a Christ follower are three of those. It’s tough to be a godly husband and father during baseball season when I am barely around my family during the summer. But it’s about finding ways to make sure those priorities slip as little as possible. And make sure my family feels like they are number one for me, and that I’m not allowing baseball to take over.

For more details about Faith Night at Target Field.

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