The Strength To Keep Fighting

An Interview with Michael Chang By Timothy Dalrymple Michael Chang was born in Hoboken, NJ, in 1972. He won his first national title, the Junior Hard Court Singles, at the age of 12. At 15, he won several national titles in the 18-year-old category, entered the professional tour, and became the youngest player ever to win a draw match at the U. S. Open. When he won the 1989 French Open at the age of 17, he was the first American player to win since 1955 and the youngest player ever to win a Grand Slam tournament. His 1989 title is equally remembered for an epic match against Ivan Lendl, when Chang overcame severe leg cramps but refused to give up. He adopted unorthodox tactics, like hitting the ball high into the air to slow the game, receiving serves near the center of the court, and even serving underhanded in order to break Lendl's concentration. Chang fell to his knees and broke down in tears when the match was won. Seven days later -- and one day after the height of the Tiananmen Square Massacre -- Chang won the tournament in a five-set victory over Stefan Edberg. As an Asian-American, Chang was a trailblazer in his sport. His record as a year-end top-ten ranked player for six consecutive years in the 1990s is matched only by Pete Sampras, and he is one of very few players to win ATP titles in three different decades. As his peak, he was ranked no. 2 in the world in 1996, as he was runner-up at three Grand Slams in 1995 and 1996. Known for his extraordinary speed and fighting spirit, he is widely considered one of the greatest tennis counter-punchers of all time. Chang is also known as an outspoken Christian and a committed philanthropist. His Chang Family Foundation , founded in 1999, seeks to share the gospel through local and international sports and Asian outreaches. He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2008. He was interviewed for Patheos by Timothy Dalrymple. At the height of your tennis career, you were outspoken about your faith. How did you become a Christian in the first place? I was raised going to church in the San Diego area, because my parents thought it was a good thing to go to church. My grandparents were very involved, and they helped to found a church in Thousands Oaks. I didn't really enjoy church when I was growing up. It was tough to keep my attention. But my grandparents prayed for me constantly, and gave me a Bible when I was an early teenager. It went straight up on my bookshelf. One particular Sunday, at my grandparents' church, an elderly lady spoke in the main sanctuary. She was incredibly engaging and funny. Even to this day, I remember exactly what she talked about -- and it stirred my heart. I was 15 years old, and I had a lot of questions about life. I was trying to figure out who I was and what I should do with my life. I asked questions about friendships and love and what it means to live in this world. After hearing the sermon, it seemed that the Bible would be a great place to look for answers. I pulled the Bible off my bookshelf and started looking at the index for the subjects that interested me -- and the first one was love. I looked at 1 Corinthians 13. "Love is patient, love is kind..." I thought, "Wow, this is good stuff!" So I went through other subjects, and eventually it was a habit every night to look up something new. From there, I read about Jesus' life, and started to see things happen in my own life that could not be mere coincidence. I started to realize that God was real, and He was trying to get my attention. From there, my faith grew. When did it become clear to you that your athletic life and your spiritual life were closely related? In retrospect, God's timing was incredible. I came to know the Lord that first year I was on the professional tour -- before all the fame and money, before the French Open in 1989. If I had experienced all of those things before I became a Christian, it would have been more difficult. In the eyes of the world, what is labeled as success is very different than what is labeled as a success in the eyes of the Lord. If I had already been a success in the eyes of the world, if I had achieved all those things "on my own," then I might not have been able to see my need for God. But because I came to know the Lord before all that, my definition of success and my purpose in tennis were different. I was still out there trying to beat my opponents and win titles. But I realized that the gifts I had been given through the sport of tennis were not to be used selfishly, for my own glory. My talent was a gift given by God so that I could touch lives in any and every way I could; I was given a platform to proclaim God's word and share everything I could. I learned this early on. You can win matches and hit great shots, but people forget those things quickly. Peter Sampras is a good example. After his thirteenth major title, he was celebrating that he was close to beating Roy Emerson's record. Ten minutes after he had done it, the press asked, "So what else can you do?" People will forget great wins. They will forget great shots. But when you touch a person's life for Christ, it stays with that person throughout this life and hopefully even beyond. So my faith helped me put things in proper perspective, and helped me have a humble attitude, knowing that the success that I had was not a result of my own doing but was due to the gifts and opportunities God had given me. Did your faith change the way you played tennis? My faith affected the way I did a lot of things. It made me work harder on the tennis court. I understood that my success was an opportunity to witness. Strangely enough, my losses too were a great way to witness. I didn't really realize that until later. But people are watching you: how you win, how you lose, and how you respond when you win and lose. People watch you. I also realized that I was witnessing not only to the people watching on site or on television, but I could have an even great witness to the players, the officials, the referees, and the staff. Those guys saw me on a daily basis. How you conduct yourself as a tennis player becomes very, very important. You want the respect of the people around you, because that in itself is a witness. One of the questions I was asked most often when I was on tour was, "What is this player or that player really like?" You see a persona on television, but what is he really like in the locker room? That in itself becomes very important. All these things reflect your faith: being humble when you win, gracious when you lose, and always respectful of the chair umpires and the linesmen and the staff. Then, obviously, my faith also affected the way I trained. I was not out there just for myself. I wanted to give the Lord my best. I never wanted to walk off the court thinking that I could have trained harder or done something better, because I knew that Christ was my ultimate audience of one. If I walk off the court knowing that I hadn't given my best for the Lord, I would grieve over that in my heart. So your faith changed you as a tennis player. Did your experience in tennis change your faith? How did your athletic experiences shape you as a Christian? It's an interesting question. We learn so much through reading God's Word, and through the sermons we hear and people we meet. But God has taught me so much through the sport of tennis. Sports is such an amazing parallel to life. You have your ups and downs, your wins and losses, your trials and tribulations. The Lord has taught me so much through tennis, and he used all of those circumstances to help me learn and help me grow. The French Open is really an incredible example. I came from a Chinese heritage, but there were never a whole lot of Chinese people around me. I didn't grow up with an appreciation for who I was and what my heritage meant. But through tennis I traveled to different parts of Asia, and then at the French Open in 1989 I finally understood the reason God had made me Chinese. The Tiananmen Square protest was taking place in the middle of the French Open. When the other players were practicing and preparing for their matches, I was watching the crackdown on television. God brought me through those matches, and allowed me to win on that final Sunday, and I understood that God had wanted me to win not for my own sake, but to put a smile on Chinese people's faces around the world, at a time when there was not much for Chinese people to feel joy about. My match with Lendl is another example. I was very close to quitting in that match. The Spirit moved me to continue to play, and not quit. The Lord wanted me to learn to rely on Him, and to realize that my success did not come from my own abilities but from God working through me. That lesson in itself has been applied in my life countless times in countless different circumstances. When I'm tired and feel like quitting, I remember the times when God was faithful, and I receive the strength to keep fighting. When you see God's faithfulness time after time after time, your hope becomes so much stronger. How was prayer a part of your athletic experience? My prayer life is a constant conversation with God. The first thing I do in the morning is pray and read the Word. The last thing I do before I sleep is pray and read the Word. Throughout the day I am in conversation with the Lord. I could be doing anything and everything. I could be walking outside, or looking for a parking spot, or receiving an email about a friend in need. Obviously you need to have set-aside times to be still before God, but you can thank Him, praise Him, or ask of Him in any situation. In the midst of matches, I could talk with the Lord about how I was struggling with my forehand. We could talk strategy. I could ask for help to focus or concentrate when a particular fan was being distracting. Press conferences are a great example. If I got a tough press question, I would ask the Lord for wisdom and guidance. I cannot explain how it happens, but the Spirit would give me the words to say, and it feels as though I'm just repeating the words as they're given to me. The answer would come out as something I would not normally say, but it came out eloquently and smoothly and I would marvel at what I just said. I can give countless examples. You were known not only for your quickness, but for your tenacity on the court. Some of your most famous moments, including the match against Lendl in 1989, were moments of fighting back against overwhelming odds. Was your faith a part of that? Absolutely. I often found myself in a situation where I was not the biggest and certainly not the strongest guy out there. But I would use the ability that God had given me. Part of that is playing with heart. My ability to be able to move around the court was certainly a strength of mine. But God has also given me an ability to fight. That can be used in my favor not only in the physical sense, but also for psychological advantage. If every player knows that I will chase down every ball, never give them a point, and never give up, they know that their work is cut out for them. Sometimes I won matches before they even started, because my opponent wasn't willing to fight as much as I was. You can look at their faces before the match. It's hot, and they don't feel like playing. Or sometimes it's evident after the match starts, in a long rally, if they're not willing to fight for the point when they get weary. So, for me, without as many physical advantages, it was important to maintain that fighting spirit. Ultimately, though, it came down to giving the Lord my best. If there's a ball that I can get, I will track it down as best as I can. I might not be able to hit the best shot, because I am not in position, but you never know when getting one more ball back will force an error. Sometimes the guy is surprised you reached it and made the shot -- but the most important thing is for him to know that whatever the situation, you are not going to give up. You also earn people's respect. Sometimes Christian teenagers ask whether biblical teachings about being humble and merciful make it difficult for me to go out there and beat my opponent as badly as I can. Sports, I say, is a competition, and you are there to give the Lord your best. Unless you're competing against your mother, you should try to beat the guy on the opposite side of the net as badly as you can -- and, ironically, when you do that, you earn his respect. John McEnroe is a good example. He's a great champion, and his demeanor can make him intimidating. But he will not give you respect as a player until you beat him. I remember playing Boris Becker, when I had lost to him twice before. We played a practice set prior to a tournament in Tokyo, and I beat him 6-4, 7-5. It was just practice, and afterward we came to the net to shake hands. He pulls me toward himself and looks me straight in the eye. "I just want to let you know that you got lucky." I thought, "Okay, Boris! This is just practice!" But he took it seriously because he didn't want you to gain a psychological edge. We played in the semi-finals of that tournament. In my mind, I knew I had just beaten him, so I should be able to do it again. I did beat him in straight sets. So any kind of psychological advantage you can gain will work in your favor, and all the other players know it. If one player knows you will never give up, then everyone else knows too. If one player knows that you will throw in the towel and give up, then everyone will know. The locker room is small. Let's talk about faith and ethnicity. I recently interviewed Jeremy Lin , an Asian-American who has the potential to be successful at the highest level. You were one of the first Asian-Americans to be successful at the highest level of your sport. Did you feel God's call upon you not only as a tennis player, but as an Asian-American tennis player? As someone who could break boundaries and inspire a new generation? You have to embrace the situation God has placed you in. For me, it's important that I am able to witness to the Chinese people. I have a great heart for the people in China. But it's easier for me to relate to Chinese-Americans. I think it's fair to say that in the Asian-American community, because of the Asian heritage and the immigrant experience, it's common for parents to emphasize education for their children. I don't think that should change. Education should always come before athletics. But if you look at the present age of college recruitment and scholarships and admissions, well, many schools don't just look to see that you're smart. Good grades alone may not get you into Stanford or Harvard. They look to see how well rounded you are. Are you doing sports, or are you serving in your local community? If you're an Asian-American in a sport that very few Asian-Americans play, you can give youngsters confidence. If Michael can do that, they'll say, or if Jeremy can do that, then who's to say that I can't do it? When I was in the junior ranks, there were only a handful of Asian-Americans. Now, if you look at the junior tournaments, there are many, many Asian-Americans playing. That is really great to see. For those who see us as role models, you try to be a source of encouragement and inspiration where you can, and at the same time you try to point them to Christ. How have you made use of the platform God has given you? When I was on the professional tour, it was often difficult for me to share with people on a more personal level. I had opportunities to share my faith through the media, or in words I spoke to a crowd after a tournament. But I didn't have much opportunity to share my testimony or my experiences on and off the court in a deep and personal way. So that's one of the first things that I felt excited to do. All of a sudden I had the time to do that. In the middle of my career, I would be invited to share my story with a group, but I would be scheduled for tournaments. Post career, I have had more chance to speak. I share with businesses and universities and churches. Sports ministry gives me the opportunity to reach out to the community. I had a chance to write a book, and to go to seminary for a year and a half. God has given me the chance to do a lot of things I could not have done in the midst of my career. That's been fun, and hopefully that will continue to expand. Even though I'm not playing on the main tour anymore, tennis continues to be the platform that allows me to do those things. I'm thankful for that. Any way in which God can use me, that's a good thing. So it's not all downhill when the athletic career is over? It's different for different people. How the Lord's structured my transition will be different from someone else. Some women transition by getting married and having families. Some of my peers no longer train anymore, and play golf every day. After a while that kind of lifestyle grows dry. I can relax and do nothing for a week, but it feels like an unproductive waste of time. My purpose here on earth is to know God, and to help others know God and have a relationship with Him. So the transition, for me, was pretty easy, because my goals and purposes have not changed. Tennis is still my platform, and I still go out and share the gospel, just in a different way. Some people might feel like they don't have a platform. In reality, God gives everyone a platform. Wherever God places you in your life and in your career, you have an opportunity to share with the people around you, people whom others can't reach. At school, at work, travels, it doesn't matter where you are. God brings opportunities. You just have to be sensitive to the Spirit's leading that here is an opportunity to share. Then you can take a few minutes to share your testimony and give an encouraging word. How would you like for people to remember Michael Chang, the tennis player? To be honest, it really does not matter to me. It's not for me to say how other people should remember my tennis career. While my tennis career is important to me, it's not the basis of who I am. It does not define who I am. What's important to me is the day I get to heaven, if the Lord says, "Well done, good and faithful servant." That will be worth so much more than what anyone and everyone can say to me on earth. You can be the nicest person in the world and someone out there will still not like you. I've learned that you just cannot please everybody. Seeking to please men is a constant merry-go-round. Our goal as believers should be to live for the Lord, to please God and not worry about everyone around us. Do what the Lord asks of you, and trust that He will take care of the rest. All the trophies are important to some degree, but they're not life-changing. The circumstances and situations God has brought me through, in tennis, are life-changing. But the trophies sit in a bookcase and collect dust. If a young athlete were to approach you and ask how he could grow in his faith even as he pursues his athletic dreams, what advice would you give? Tennis has a grueling schedule. We often travel outside the United States, and sometimes on Sundays you're traveling or playing. I actually did not get a chance to go to church that often. Each time I did have the opportunity to go to church, it felt like a cherished opportunity to be with brothers and sisters and sing and worship together. I just didn't get to do it that often. For many years, I never went on a church retreat, because of my schedule as a tennis player. So for me, it came down to walking with the Lord every single day, being in the Word, and praying constantly. It was also helpful to travel with a family member, so that we could hold one another accountable, edify one another, and grow and have fun together. Who you associate with goes a long way. Whether you think they will influence you or not, they definitely will influence you, both for good and for bad. Making time for the Lord each and every day is crucial. Especially when you are a youth athlete, there are countless temptations out there. It doesn't take much to draw you off track. It's a sad reality: wherever you go, if you're a well-known athlete, you will be targeted by people. But the more time you spend with the Lord, the more you'll be able to recognize who is good and who is not. There are a lot of temptations out there, and it's best just not to step foot in something that you think might even be remotely wrong. The other thing that was really helpful was that I had a team of people praying for me constantly. I still do, even now. That has also proved to be a huge source of strength, because the Lord answers prayer. For more on Michael, see his book , Holding Serve: Persevering On and Off the Court , or visit the Chang Family Foundation website. You can support the Chang Family Foundation here.

The Strength to Keep Fighting