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Photo Credit: Photo credit: Thomas Serer

A Star is Born - Timo Tagaloa

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Since I was a youngster, sports have always been a big part of my life. I enjoyed playing sports because I saw it as a way to express myself. But my main motivation was found because of the acceptance and popularity that came with it.

In high school, I played all sports, but it was in rugby that I excelled. There I gained popularity, particularly with the girls. I soon realized I was building a reputation around the school and it felt good to know I was well known.

After leaving high school, I wanted to pursue my goals in rugby. I remember at one of my club rugby games there was a news reporter watching the game. The next day I saw my name in the newspaper. On the back of the newspaper, in the sports section, there was a big photo of my face and in big headlines it said: “A STAR IS BORN.” The newspaper article talked about my rugby prowess and the impact I had made in club rugby after coming straight out of high school. It said that I was going to be an All Black. It also went on to compare my playing style to that of the famous All Black, Bryan Williams. After that, wherever I went, people would stop me and ask for my autograph or shake my hand and talk, people would whisper my name as I walked by or they would stop in their tracks to look at me. I had suddenly become really popular.

But with the popularity, there came a lot of expectations. Because of what the public was reading in the newspaper, they had an expectation that I should play like an All Black — that everytime I touched that ball inside my 22-yard line, I should run through all fifteen of the players, score the try and kick the goal! I soon realized that if I wasn’t living up to what the public expected from me I was labeled a “loser”.

Being labeled a “loser” really affected my performance because I am a person that likes to please people. I would always be dwelling on what other people thought of me. This pressure became too much for me. One day when I was attending a party, I found myself alone in a pitch dark room, thinking about my life. Although everything on the outside seemed okay, I was really hurting on the inside. I may have felt that I was a popular guy, but I was really lonely; there was an emptiness in my life. I was so down I even thought about committing suicide, thinking it was the only way to please everyone. At the party, I got up from where I was sitting and went to a medicine cabinet to try and find a sharp object to go ahead and slit my wrists. Fortunately, I couldn’t go through with it.

Suicide was always in the back of my mind. One day, while I was at a mall, I noticed a group of Christ-following musicians singing, playing songs, and handing out little flyers inviting people to come down to the local scout hall for a cup of tea and some biscuits. I couldn’t refuse this offer because I was hungry and the food was for free. I went down and had maybe two or three cups of tea and about four or five packets of biscuits. As I was finishing eating my last biscuit, this young man approached me and we started talking. I can still remember clearly, what he said to me.

He said, “Timo, if you were to die tonight, from a scale of 0 to 100%, how sure are you that you would spend eternity with God? The second question he asked was, “Timo, if you were to stand before God and He asked you, ‘Why should I let you into My Heaven?’ what would you say?”

I couldn’t answer him because I thought I was already a follower of Christ. I was brought up in the Church. He told me that I needed to know Christ personally. I didn’t know what that meant, so he explained to me how I could know Christ in a personal way, through a small booklet, called “Knowing God Personally.” As he explained this to me, I realized that this was what was missing in my life. So that night, I asked Christ to take control of my life.

When I asked Christ into my life, it wasn’t like I was hit by a spiritual lightning bolt or there was some angelic choir singing, but I slowly began to see changes in my life. I now have a purpose for living and a direction in my life. The most important change I have seen is that I want to please God — to appease Him and not others. There is a verse in the Bible that helps me stay focused and motivated. Colossians 3:23-24 says, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive and inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”

—Timo Tagaloa, Samoan left winger for the Samoan national rugby union team and the All Blacks

Photo Credit: Photo credit: Thomas Serer

A Star is Born - Timo Tagaloa

Jan 22, 2020

Since I was a youngster, sports have always been a big part of my life. I enjoyed playing sports because I saw it as a way to express myself. But my main motivation was found because of the acceptance and popularity that came with it. In high school, I played all sports, but it was in rugby that I excelled. There I gained popularity, particularly with the girls. I soon realized I was building a reputation around the school and it felt good to know I was well known. After leaving high school, I wanted to pursue my goals in rugby. I remember at one of my club rugby games there was a news reporter watching the game. The next day I saw my name in the newspaper. On the back of the newspaper, in the sports section, there was a big photo of my face and in big headlines it said: "A STAR IS BORN." The newspaper article talked about my rugby prowess and the impact I had made in club rugby after coming straight out of high school. It said that I was going to be an All Black. It also went on to compare my playing style to that of the famous All Black, Bryan Williams. After that, wherever I went, people would stop me and ask for my autograph or shake my hand and talk, people would whisper my name as I walked by or they would stop in their tracks to look at me. I had suddenly become really popular. But with the popularity, there came a lot of expectations. Because of what the public was reading in the newspaper, they had an expectation that I should play like an All Black — that everytime I touched that ball inside my 22-yard line, I should run through all fifteen of the players, score the try and kick the goal! I soon realized that if I wasn't living up to what the public expected from me I was labeled a "loser". Being labeled a "loser" really affected my performance because I am a person that likes to please people. I would always be dwelling on what other people thought of me. This pressure became too much for me. One day when I was attending a party, I found myself alone in a pitch dark room, thinking about my life. Although everything on the outside seemed okay, I was really hurting on the inside. I may have felt that I was a popular guy, but I was really lonely; there was an emptiness in my life. I was so down I even thought about committing suicide, thinking it was the only way to please everyone. At the party, I got up from where I was sitting and went to a medicine cabinet to try and find a sharp object to go ahead and slit my wrists. Fortunately, I couldn't go through with it. Suicide was always in the back of my mind. One day, while I was at a mall, I noticed a group of Christ-following musicians singing, playing songs, and handing out little flyers inviting people to come down to the local scout hall for a cup of tea and some biscuits. I couldn't refuse this offer because I was hungry and the food was for free. I went down and had maybe two or three cups of tea and about four or five packets of biscuits. As I was finishing eating my last biscuit, this young man approached me and we started talking. I can still remember clearly, what he said to me. He said, "Timo, if you were to die tonight, from a scale of 0 to 100%, how sure are you that you would spend eternity with God? The second question he asked was, "Timo, if you were to stand before God and He asked you, ‘Why should I let you into My Heaven?’ what would you say?” I couldn't answer him because I thought I was already a follower of Christ. I was brought up in the Church. He told me that I needed to know Christ personally. I didn't know what that meant, so he explained to me how I could know Christ in a personal way, through a small booklet, called "Knowing God Personally." As he explained this to me, I realized that this was what was missing in my life. So that night, I asked Christ to take control of my life. When I asked Christ into my life, it wasn't like I was hit by a spiritual lightning bolt or there was some angelic choir singing, but I slowly began to see changes in my life. I now have a purpose for living and a direction in my life. The most important change I have seen is that I want to please God — to appease Him and not others. There is a verse in the Bible that helps me stay focused and motivated. Colossians 3:23-24 says, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive and inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” —Timo Tagaloa, Samoan left winger for the Samoan national rugby union team and the All Blacks