Faith keeps Indiana Fever basketball star Sophie Cunningham grounded amid the noise of a WNBA career.
“I love Jesus…I rely a lot on my faith because of what I do for a living,” she said on Theo Von’s “This Past Weekend” podcast. “You get a lot of hate; you get a lot of praise. And I think that morally in my head and everything, it just keeps me stable and it keeps me who I am.”
“I don’t care what people’s opinions are about me because I’m not living for their praise,” Cunningham emphasized.
Cunningham told Von that she actually started listening to more of his podcasts because he has been curious about faith.
Von shared that he’s working to stay connected to God through prayer but admitted that when life gets busy, the connection falls away, and he wishes his relationship with God was “stronger.”
“There’s nothing that you can or can’t do that’s going to separate you from God’s love and grace and forgiveness,” Cunningham encouraged. “Like that’s why Jesus came and died on the cross because He already knew everything you were going to do.”
Related: WNBA Guard Gets Baptized Again: ‘Thank You, Jesus’
Cunningham is taking her faith seriously. Earlier this year, she got re-baptized.
“I got baptized when I was little but I was feeling a tug on my heart to do it on my terms as an adult! Such a fun, amazing day. Thank you Jesus,” she wrote on TikTok alongside a video of her baptism.
She called it “one of the better things” she’s done in her life.
“I’ve always been a faithful person, but I just feel like now it’s my own decision,” the athlete explained, according to The Indianapolis Star.
Cunningham’s words and Von’s honest admission point to the same truth: faith isn’t a one-time decision, but a daily practice of staying close to God. Whether you’re a professional athlete facing the highs and lows of public opinion or a podcaster wrestling with distraction and fear, the invitation remains the same.
Jesus says in John 15:5-7, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”
Jesus calls His followers to remain in Him, and through that connection comes stability, peace, and purpose that the world’s praise or criticism can’t provide.
For those who feel their connection to God has grown weak, there’s encouragement in Von’s honesty. Recognizing the distance is often the first step toward closing it. A simple prayer, offered honestly, is enough to begin again. As Cunningham put it, when your identity is rooted in something greater than other people’s opinions, you’re free to live for an audience of One.
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