1 of 10
Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney
Auburn football head coach Hugh Freeze speaks at the 21st annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast for the city of Hoover at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham — The Wynfrey Hotel on Tuesday, May 7, 2024. Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney.
2 of 10
Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney
Rev. Jon Chalmers reads a passage of scripture and gives the blessing at the 21st annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast for the city of Hoover at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham — The Wynfrey Hotel on Tuesday, May 7, 2024. Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney.
3 of 10
Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney
Auburn football head coach Hugh Freeze speaks at the 21st annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast for the city of Hoover at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham — The Wynfrey Hotel on Tuesday, May 7, 2024. Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney.
4 of 10
Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney
Hundreds attend the 21st annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast for the city of Hoover at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham — The Wynfrey Hotel on Tuesday, May 7, 2024. Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney.
5 of 10
Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney
Joshua Hitchcock, a third grader at Green Valley Elementary, recites the Pledge of Allegiance at the 21st annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast for the city of Hoover at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham — The Wynfrey Hotel on Tuesday, May 7, 2024. Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney.
6 of 10
Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney
The Hoover public safety honor guard presents the colors at the 21st annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast for the city of Hoover at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham — The Wynfrey Hotel on Tuesday, May 7, 2024. Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney.
7 of 10
Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney
Mayor Frank Brocato introduces guest speaker Hugh Freeze at the 21st annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast for the city of Hoover at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham — The Wynfrey Hotel on Tuesday, May 7, 2024. Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney.
8 of 10
Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney
Auburn football head coach Hugh Freeze speaks at the 21st annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast for the city of Hoover at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham — The Wynfrey Hotel on Tuesday, May 7, 2024. Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney.
9 of 10
Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney
Auburn football head coach Hugh Freeze speaks at the 21st annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast for the city of Hoover at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham — The Wynfrey Hotel on Tuesday, May 7, 2024. Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney.
10 of 10
Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney
Auburn football head coach Hugh Freeze speaks at the 21st annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast for the city of Hoover at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham — The Wynfrey Hotel on Tuesday, May 7, 2024. Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney.
Auburn football coach Hugh Freeze spoke a message of advice and encouragement to nearly 500 people who attended the Hoover Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham — The Wynfrey Hotel Tuesday morning.
Freeze, speaking in the packed main ballroom of the hotel, said everyone in life goes through times of uncertainty when they don’t know the next step to take or what the future holds.
“Sometimes with my future, my family, my jobs, I really wish God would just slip me a note and let me know how this is going to play out,” Freeze said.
That uncertainty sometimes can cause anxiety and depression and make people question their faith, he said. “It shakes you up with anxiety. It can rattle your family. I’ve experienced that with my personal family,” he said.
Sometimes, he finds himself running to try to control situations himself instead of seeking clarity from God about the direction to take, he said. That’s when he usually makes mistakes, he said.
He recalled a time when he was an assistant at an SEC school and got let go along with the head coach. He ended up at Lambuth University in Jackson, Tennessee. Six months in, the coaching staff learned the school was going under financially and they quit receiving paychecks, he said.
Two-thirds of the way through the season, he was offered an offensive coordinator job at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and was ready to take control of the situation and take the job immediately, he said. But his wife reminded him that he had a whole staff of assistants working for him who also had families and that he needed to pray about the job offer for a few days before answering, he said.
He reluctantly agreed, and as he was reading a devotion one day, the scripture verse with it was Philippians 2:4, which gives directions to not look out for your own interests, but the interests of others. He knew then he had to stay at Lambuth for the time being, he said.
Two months later, two men walked into his office with $1 million each to cover the backpay for him and his coaches and their salaries the following year as well, he said. God took care of him when he sought clarity from God about the direction to take and obeyed, he said.
“The world right now is desperate for a group of people that are armed with love, humility and grace and the power of the Holy Spirit to stand and say, ‘This is who Jesus is, this is why I follow him, and this is why you should also,’” Freeze said.
Other times, he has followed his own way, trying to control situations, and he regretted it, he said. There are times when people find themselves looking in the mirror and wondering how they got to such a rough place in life, he said.
“The reason why you and I don’t have clarity when we face the next step with uncertainty is because the noise in my life is driving out the presence of God,” Freeze said. “We can’t sit still. We have to be stimulated … We scroll, we swipe, we look, we’re non-stop stimulated. Scripture and prayer is just a small part of what we do. I just never slow down and get close to him. That’s when clarity really comes to me.”
“The fight for our inner peace is the fight for our awareness of God’s presence,” Freeze said. “There is a direct correlation to the pace at which I live my life and the turmoil and chaos that comes with it. … When I slow down, he shows me my next step. He doesn’t show me the end, but he shows me the next step.”
The problem is not that God needs to get louder, Freeze said. The problem is that we need to get quieter and draw near to Him so we can hear him, he said.
“Everyone who knows me knows there is a huge difference in the Hugh that walks in his flesh and the Hugh that walks in the overflow of being with God,” Freeze said. “I can be reactive. I’m unclear. I’m uncertain. I’m not decisive, as opposed to walking with Him, there’s freedom, there’s peace, there’s clarity, there’s confidence.”
Freeze gave three “anchors” that people who believe in God can hold onto when they find themselves drifting into uncertainty. He recommended people remember they belong to God, find a place of service and always remember that God is faithful.
No matter how many times you may have failed, it’s important to finish this race of life well, Freeze said. “You still have God waiting on you to say, ‘Hey, come home. Let me give you clarity amid all the uncertainty. I’ll show you the next step,’” Freeze said.
Freeze’s talk lasted about 35 minutes. Before he spoke, Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato encouraged people in the audience to pray for the city and its officials, public safety workers, schools, businesses, residents and neighbors. He also asked people to pray for unity, peace and prosperity for the city.
Pastors from Hunter Street Baptist Church and Prince of Peace Catholic Church also shared a few words and led the audience in prayers. The prayer breakfast was organized by the Hoover Beautification Board.
