This week, the Oakland Raiders star quarterback Derek Carr showed his commitment to God after signing the richest contract in NFL history. The contract, which is $125 million over five years, is the highest ever in the history of the National Football League.
After signing the contract with the Raiders for the next half-decade at an annual salary of $25 million, reporters asked Carr at a press conference what he plans to do with the money?
Carr responded to CBS Sports, “The first thing I’ll do is pay my tithe like I have since I was in college, giving $700 on a scholarship check. That won’t change. I’ll do that.”
Carr decided to honor the Lord as He commanded to give the first 10 percent of his earnings to Him, and test Him in His faithfulness that we will be blessed beyond measure:
The Lord promised, “’Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,’ says the LORD Almighty, ‘and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.’” Malachi 3:10
Today, Derek Carr’s using his NFL platform as star of the Oakland Raiders Quarterback to live out his faith. But it hasn’t always been that way.
Carr said in a video released by The Increase Stories in 2014, “I think Christ really became real to me when my wife [who was just a friend at the time]…wrote me a letter, and it said, ‘You’re not the person that I thought you were.’”
Her letter was a wake up call that helped him change his lifestyle, and he asked his teammates to hold him accountable. He said, “You guys know what I’ve been doing. I’m a Christian, and I haven’t been living it…I’m a Christian now, and I’ve asked God for his forgiveness. Now, watch how I live my lifestyle.”
Carr’s financial plans don’t stop at just paying his 10 percent tithe. His stewardship goes further to others. He explains, “I’m very thankful to have it, that it’s in our hands, because it’s going to help people, not only in this country, but a lot of countries around the world.”
Derek Carr’s faith story is an inspiration to many and is an example of the love that God puts in the hearts of His followers.
