Homeruns & Quitters

To my readers,

My favorite sport is Baseball. If I had it my way, I’d never miss a game. I can remember as a kid watching the Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa homerun chase with my grandfather. Then two years later, grandpa and I watched Barry Bonds break 73 homeruns! I wouldn’t trade those memories for anything. 

However a few memories I wouldn’t mind trading are my own at a career in baseball.  I played little league until the 4th grade. Going into my last season, I had never hit the ball that wasn’t on a tee.

To make matters worst, I wasn’t a very talented player.  In fact, I was so terrible that I played only five games all season.  The first few games of not playing left me frustrated.  I understand my team wanted to win, but come on! I then decided to quit. 

However, Mom had other plans.

Mom wouldn’t let me quit.  She said that I had made a commitment to my team.  Not only would I be letting them down, I would be missing out on something I loved playing, even if I was terrible.  Despite my complaints, she pushed me back out there and told me to never give up and keep trying my hardest.

 

Fast forward to my final game of the season. I am up to bat with two outs.  It all had come down to this.  The first pitch was thrown- “Strike one!” The next pitch came, “Strike two!” Then came the last pitch.

“Crack!”

I hit that ball deep into center field. I ended up on base.  I had done it! I had hit a ball for the first, and last, time in my baseball career! Though I never played another season of Baseball, that day I was king of the world.

In the New Testament, Paul wrote a letter to the church in Rome saying,

“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.  And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.” Romans 5:3-4, NLT.

I am a quitter. Whenever I run into problems or things don’t go my way, I want to quit and jump ship.  I find myself saying, “Have fun with that! I’m out of here.”

The truth is quitting is easy.

It’s sticking with something in the hard times that is challenging.  It’s when we are in our brokenness, our pain, anguish, and hurt that something happens inside of us.  If we turn our focus onto Jesus in this time, we begin to endure.  No matter how terrible or little of a player you think you are, God has a greater plan and his love is greater than anything we are going through.

The Great Bambino- Babe Ruth

When we endure, we find ourselves changed. Our character is strengthened and when the next trial comes, we can run headfirst to take it on. It’s what we’ve endured and Christ faithfulness and love for us that gives us hope that tomorrow will be a new day.  Those baseball players with the greatest homerun streaks also had the greatest strikeout streaks.

Never give up.  There is always hope.

Simply, 

Tex G.M. Rule

“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.  And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.” Romans 5:3-4, NLT.