Tim Johnson: From Super Bowl Champ to Senior Pastor

Tim Johnson: From Super Bowl Champ to Senior Pastor

Pastor TJ

Tim Johnson: From Super Bowl Champ to Senior Pastor

BY PAKSY PLACKIS-CHENG

Timothy Johnson went from a professional career as a Defensive Lineman in the National Football League (NFL), winning Super Bowl XXVI, to serving as the senior pastor at Orlando World Outreach Center, in Florida.

In April 2017, the second annual He Got Up will be held at Camping World Stadium, in Orlando, Florida. Instead of a football game it is a Palm Sunday service, bringing together 120-plus organizations serving thousands of people. Partnering cross-sector allows Pastor Johnson to streamline services offering people a path back to self-sufficiency.  

impactmania spoke with Pastor Johnson about his professional football career, the impact makers that made an imprint on his professional DNA, and, in turn, how he is making a difference in people’s lives.


How do you go from being a defensive lineman in the NFL, winning the Super Bowl, to serving as Senior Pastor at a church?

[Laughs.] My life is the first miracle I’ve ever seen. I got involved in sports and it gave me a built-in community. I never knew my father, have never even seen a picture of him. That leaves gaps that are hard to fill in a young man’s soul and life. You can pretend in life a lot of times — I didn’t want people to feel my hurt, loneliness, and sense of illegitimacy.

I ended up going to Penn State University on a full scholarship. While it was an amazing experience, I learned more about who I was not.

Questions like “Who is God?” came up. I didn’t slow down as a kid to ask questions like “What am I here for? What is my purpose? Why are we doing all of this?”

What experience spurred that question, “Who is God?” to pop up in your mind?

You know how people say, “religion is a crutch”? I found that all my comforts and conveniences in life, family, and friends were my crutches. When I went to Penn State, they were gone. I had to see real life. The program took care of me, but who I was as a person got exposed to me.

What did you see? Who were you?

I didn’t know. I was always framed by what people said about me. At Sarasota High, I was one of the captains of the football team. I was an All-American, All-State, Lineman of the Year, and Athlete of the Year. I worked at the Boys Club, was prom king, and was named most likely to succeed. I was tied to so many good things that I thought that’s who I was. Something in me knew that wasn’t all there was to life.

Sometimes people don’t slow down enough to ask questions or they’ve been diluted by popular culture and traditions that they don’t get honest. What if what I believe is not true? I don’t mind challenging myself. For a lot of people, that’s scary. They cut themselves off from new experiences.

During my sophomore year at Penn State, I was in the hospital. They thought I had spinal meningitis. It was a bad situation. Where do you look when you’re on your back? And so, I looked up and asked, “God if you are up there, can you help me out?” [Laughs.] I wanted to cut a deal with God.

I ended up being co-MVP for the Penn State spring game. For weeks, I tried to read my bible. I thought, “I’d better keep my end of the bargain or this is not going to be good for me.” I tried my hardest, but it felt like reading Greek upside down.

Then, football players and I ended up in a gathering at a church. [Former NFL quarterback] Todd Blackledge was speaking and holding a Bible. I was sitting in my seat with a million questions. I thought, “Why do I feel like I’m supposed to live like that?” As I sat there, my heart was stirred; I had more questions than answers. But I knew God was calling me.

Is there anything you’ve learned playing in the NFL that helps you in your role today?

Yes, it takes teamwork to make a dream work. It takes a passion for what you do to persevere. Sacrifice and leadership are huge. Being able to have a clear line on a vision and having a leader who is inviting people to join on a journey of a lifetime are critical.

Give me an example of something specific you learned that you apply today.

The coaches I played for are legends in the world of sports. 

Joe Paterno demanded excellence and character. The expectation he had for us to become men, not just athletes, was exceptional. Something I desperately needed. So many athletes and people are defined by their job. He was helping to build us to be productive citizens in our communities and our nation.

Graduating from college was a high priority for Joe. He would make us dress up with a coat and tie as college students on all of our away trips. He showed us how to be professional and instituted a pursuit of excellence, but with humility.

Chuck Knoll, one of the coaches in the NFL, had four Super Bowl wins. He is a passionate man, I learned how to strategize, plan, and be consistent.

Joe Gibbs, another legend that I played for, has been a champion both in the NFL and NASCAR. Joe Gibbs is a man of faith and led his team to championships with heart and conviction by being inclusive. He created a wholesome environment, not just for the players, but for their families too.

Joe Greene, is a Hall of Fame defensive lineman, he taught me mental toughness. He taught me how my faith isn’t a reason to compromise or to be soft. My faith gives me an anchor to be even more intense and more driven in the professional ranks. There’s quite a difference between college and pro.

What would be one of the main differences?

The main differences are the size and the speed of everybody. When you’re in college, you have good match-ups athletically and team wise. But not everybody is at the highest level.

Our team at Penn State was at the highest level. The last few years I was in college, we lost one game in two years. For my senior year, we went undefeated and won the National Championship. I thought that was the highest level, but when I was at training camp with the Pittsburgh Steelers, it was unreal, how fast, how big, and how strong, especially the line men were.

Joe Green and Jon Cole, our strength coach, helped me catch up. I was an All-American coming out of college, one of the best in the country in my position, but it’s a different game when you go pro.

There are many organizations trying to make a difference. Many are stuck in their own lane with little collaboration. You have collaborated across sectors and with so many organizations. How do you make everyone focus when they have their own objectives?

If we don’t come together as a community, we’re going to keep coming apart.

It is most critical to have a clear and compelling vision. People have to see the place and the part they can play in it. The vision has to embody the answer to a question in our culture. It has to provide an answer. The other thing is that it cannot be self-serving.

Our vision answers the question for individuals and families who are homeless, in-need, or in transition. We have over 350,000 people in our Tri County area that are living in and below poverty level. Does that mean that everyone’s homeless? No, the homeless population on the street is maybe 1,500 people. But hundreds of thousands of people are living paycheck-to-paycheck, in the woods, in camps, in motels, in their vehicles, and in shelters. That number is massive, it’s massive.

He Got Up (2016)

He Got Up (2016)

There are many organizations trying to make a difference. Many are stuck in their own lane with little collaboration. You have collaborated across sectors and with so many organizations. How do you make everyone focus when they have their own objectives?

If we don’t come together as a community, we’re going to keep coming apart.

It is most critical to have a clear and compelling vision. People have to see the place and the part they can play in it. The vision has to embody the answer to a question in our culture. It has to provide an answer. The other thing is that it cannot be self-serving.

Our vision answers the question for individuals and families who are homeless, in-need, or in transition. We have over 350,000 people in our Tri County area that are living in and below poverty level. Does that mean that everyone’s homeless? No, the homeless population on the street is maybe 1,500 people. But hundreds of thousands of people are living paycheck-to-paycheck, in the woods, in camps, in motels, in their vehicles, and in shelters. That number is massive, it’s massive.

Why He Got Up, and these issues? Why now?

I look at Ferguson, MissouriBaltimore, MarylandChicago, Illinois. In the last two and a half years, the events that have taken place in our cities have defined the temperature of our nation.

When you see someone gunned down justifiably, or unjustifiably, it creates a crisis. It creates a crisis that causes people to be divided, because they take sides.

In every crisis across this nation where we see riots, picketing, protests; it has been preceded by a need. There is a need in any city where you see that catalytic incident creating a blast of violence. When needs accumulate in a greater way, there’s greater potential for a catastrophe.

We are better at being reactive to crises, which divides us, than being proactive to meet the needs, which could unite us.

We know what to do in a crisis, but the problem is many things get unearthed. They all point to people tired of not having opportunities, resources, or access. The polarizing effect that is taking place is almost embedded in our society. Sociologists will tell you, we are more divided in America than we have been in decades.

It’s great that organizations provide this for kids, do this for housing, and do that for mothers. But if operating as individual entities and silos were going to work to make the change we want to see, it would’ve worked by now.

What insight do you have for fellow nonprofit leaders on how to collaborate for lasting impact?

I’ll tell you how I did it; it may not be the same for everybody.

While we do have a lot of resources, it’s not always just the physical. We need some healing in our hearts. People need healing, so I pray.

In 2013, I walked 11 weeks of my life, 698 miles. I prayed for cities, for mayors, police chiefs, principals, and schools. Each week, my staff would have cards for me for the towns I was going through, I’d pray for all those entities.

Throughout the next year I kept walking on a treadmill. This inspiration came to me: mamas holding their babies, families coming out of the woods, out of the cars, off the streets, coming together in a large venue. People that society has forgotten. At Easter worship services are huge, but what I felt the Lord say is, “I’m not looking for just another worship service. I’m looking for your worship to become service to those in need.”

The first thing I did was go to my friends in the corporate community; I had to build an infrastructure of support early. I went to my friends at PepsiUniversal Studios, and Hilton Orlando. Eventually, I ended up in the Mayor’s office of the City of Orlando. I got early buy-in from community stakeholders and the business community. We went to school districts and governmental agencies. I started sharing a vision with individuals. Then I asked celebrity friends to help build credibility.

We needed a lot of teams led by high capacity people. What we were targeting would be the basic necessities for people to overcome episodes in their lives. Get as many people as possible drafted back into the mainstream, so they don’t have to be homeless, and don’t have to have government assistance. People have dignity; they’re not looking for a handout. They need a hand up.

A critical area is legal support. We have people hung up legally; they can’t even get a driver’s license. Medical support is big — jobs and education. Also, personal care, ‘cause when you live in the woods with your family, or in a car, you’ll need basic necessities and amenities you may not have access to. One lady came to me and said, “I haven’t had a haircut in five years.” That shouldn’t be…

The teams were built with the most brilliant business owners, doctors, lawyers, barbers, and government workers. That is what made an initiative this large a reality.

More than 25 companies offered jobs plus mentoring. This is a critical part in breaking the cycle. What has the follow-up been to see if people are still employed?

We have people still working today; some of them came as volunteers and ended up getting jobs. The beauty is that this is already happening through existing organizations. Goodwill, for example, is amazing and does an outstanding job of hosting job fairs.

Here is the major problem in most cities: You have a large number of people in need, not just the destitute, mentally ill, and drug addicted. There’s a larger population of people who have had some episodes in their lives that put them in a hole. Then you have a large number of organizations that are meeting needs. You have on the right hand large-scale needs, hundred of thousands of people, and on the left, a large number of organizations meeting needs. Some of those are capacity issues, but in the middle there’s a gap.

At He Got Up 2016, there were 120 organizations. It was a sight to see. The right hand met the left hand, with no hurdles. There was a former nurse, something happened in her life, and now she is in a wheelchair living in the woods. At He Got Up, she enjoyed a great Easter service, had a new wheelchair ordered, food assistance turned back on, and received a haircut and other services. All in one day. All these organizations have a chance to do it together on that one day to truly help people.

What can people do who are busy with their everyday lives? What would be the best thing to do in their community to support some of these issues?

The best way is to be a part of a team. Don’t look at yourself as an isolated unit.

If you had only one hour a month, you can give by participating. We had almost 2,000 people show up Easter morning to volunteer. These are busy people, but they found their part to play and played it. Not only that, they brought friends. If you begin to engage with organizations and learn how they can help — we find that there’s enough room for everybody.

Give me a few words to describe your journey so far.

[Laughs.] Amazing, life changing, and redefining possibilities. This has been a journey where I’ve seen the possibilities of changing the conversation from what has happened, which divides us, to what can happen, which unites us.