Benjamin Jeffrey Utecht earned plenty of kudos in high school and college. He was a Super Prep All-Midwest team pick and all-state pick as punter and he was a Star Tribune All-Metro choice. Ben helped lead his hockey team to second place in state as the goalie and he qualified for the state track meet in long jump as a high school senior. But even then, there was more to him that athletics. Ben also was a member of the National Honor Society and his musical and artistic skills added more awards to his mantle. College was more of the same with Ben being a semifinalist as a senior for NCAA's John Mackey Award (top college TE).
Moving past school, Ben performed the national anthem at the Colts- Buffalo preseason game in 2004. That same year he signed as a free agent with the Colts, where he stayed through the 2007 season. In 2008, he signed with the Cincinnati Bengals and in 2009 his debut album released on Stylos Records.
Music and sports, sports and music ... it seems like Ben Utecht has plenty of ways to define himself. However, Ben doesn't truly define himself as a musician or an athlete. Instead he defines himself by his faith.
“My identity is as a Christian, not a football player or musician. In music and sports, the things people are doing become who they are," explains Utecht. "While people come to hear my testimony as a professional athlete, or see me as a musician, it is who I am as a believer in Christ that I want people to see.”
Yet another facet of Ben Utecht is that of a husband and a father. Ben and his wife Karyn welcomed their first child in March of 2009. It is that side of Ben that I spoke with him about in the Father's Day exclusive.
Ben Utecht Watches a Miracle
When asked about being there in the delivery room, Ben said, "When you are actually in the moment and you are there, standing by your wife's side, going through this whole process, it truly embodies everything that anyone has ever told me about it being a miracle. It is amazing to read through scripture and read about all of the wonderful things that Christ did but to be able to stand next to your wife and witness one of God's most amazing miracles, the gift of life, it truly was moving on so many levels."He went on, "One is the utmost respect that I have for my wife. I sat there convicted about all the times I have complained to her about my little football injuries and all the times where I came home sore and couldn't get out of bed in the morning and here is my wife, just being a warrior, going to work and pushing through pain and giving all that she had. I grew in so much respect for her and it made me realize how much I love my wife. She just laid it all on the line for our family. Two, I realized how much more my wife is in the eyes of God than I had ever seen before. Not only has she been a helper, a supporter and a lover for me, but now I see her as this amazing life vessel that the Lord has used to bring this amazing miracle into our family. It was overwhelming to me to be a part of that. I see her more clearly now and she is the love of my life. It is something that I will always have with me for the rest of my life."
Lessons Learned and Lessons Shared
The knowing that came with watching the birth of his daughter didn't end there for Ben. He shared another lesson that he received on stage in front of about 8000 people.Ben explained, "Some of our closest friends are Bill and Gloria Gaither and they asked me to come up on stage during one of their homecoming events right after the baby was born. While I was talking about being a new dad and balancing two careers, they showed a picture on the screen of my wife and little girl. All of a sudden the Holy Spirit just gave me this vision and I stopped in my tracks in front of all of these people. I said 'I just received something from the Lord that He wants me to share about being a new father.'" He went on, "It was the notion that my whole life I've grown up in the Word, being a pastor's son, and my whole life I've heard John 3:16. But until that moment, I had never really understood the level of sacrifice that God gave us by giving us his only son." Being a father had given him new perspective. "My first thought after seeing my little daughter come out of my wife was 'I am never going to let you go," he shared. "I am going to hold on to you and there is nothing that anyone can do to take you away from me.' The realization that it didn't even take God a blink of an eye to say 'I'm going to give you my son,' knowing that he was going to have to make the sacrifice that he did, was one of the most major lessons I have learned through becoming a father."
The Music of Ben Utecht
My favorite Ben Utecht song, "How Beautiful" is just that ... beautiful. It turns out that he wrote the song for his wife and their wedding. The song was born from the Song of Solomon and Ben used some of the Scripture for the chorus. Now, as a new dad, Ben sees his wife as even more beautiful than ever before and the song has taken on even more meaning.
