Christian athlete Jeremy Lin, who was recently traded by the Brooklyn Nets to the Atlanta Hawks, said that while he "doesn't fully understand God's intentions," he has "full faith" in His sovereignty.
In an email sent to his digital prayer group last week titled, "Jeremy Lin Prayer Requests 39," the former Nets guard asked his followers to pray for him amid the transition.
"Please pray for me as I'm embarking on a journey to live a more Spirit-filled life, as well as to hear from God more often," he wrote. "Also hoping for continued health over my body, smooth transition into Atlanta and quick acclimation with my teammates."
He added, "In many ways, I don't understand what God's intentions are through the trade and in bringing me here to Atlanta, but I have full faith in his sovereignty!"
In Juy, ESPN reported that the Hawks acquired Lin from the Brooklyn Nets for a 2020 second-round draft pick and the rights to 2016 second-round draft pick Isaia Cordinier.
At the time, Lin, who sustained a season-ending knee injury in the first game of last season, took to Instagram to post a picture of himself wearing his new team's uniform.
Lin included a Bible verse from Proverbs 16: 3 along with the picture which reads, "Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established."
Speaking to the media in September, Lin said he has been "fully cleared for everything," but the team will monitor how daily practices and eventual games affect his knee.
"I just know I want to have fun, I want to be healthy and I just want to play again. That's what I miss the most," Lin said. "I think most seasons, I come in with a very clearly defined agenda and things that I want to see happen and goals, but having the game taken away from me for such a long time, I just want to play and have fun."
While acknowledging it will be difficult to get back to the level at which he was playing during the multi-week phenomenon known as "Linsanity," Lin said he's up for the challenge.
"I think being hurt for so long, I'd be lying if I said that wasn't a question I was asking myself," Lin said when asked how much more basketball he thinks he can play. "I don't know, but I'm not afraid of the challenge. ... I'm not worried about it. I haven't put many miles on my body the past two years in terms of going through a lot of wear and tear besides the injury, so I haven't been playing 82 games the past two years.
Throughout his NBA career, the 30-year-old guard has leaned on his faith, explaining that his "purpose" is to play basketball "for the glory of God."
"The stuff off the court is great and it's fun, but it's definitely secondary to my primary job," he explained back in 2014.
Lin will be a free agent again after the 2018-19 season, meaning he will be able to sign with a team of his choosing next summer.
