T-Ball

I can always tell when it’s baseball season again. You see, we live across the street from the elementary school and every afternoon before it gets dark, the “little guys and gals” come to the baseball backstop, directly in front of our house, for T-Ball practice. I enjoy watching the pre-school and kindergarten future baseball stars practice a round of T-Ball. It’s really kind of funny, to tell the truth. Once the batter hits the ball off the “t”, he or she doesn’t really know what to do. And I sometimes wonder if their parents really know what to do either! For instance, take little Johnny. He comes up for his turn at hitting the ball, and even though it’s balanced on the “t”, it may take a few tries before he connects with the ball and hits it somewhere in the infield. What does he do then? Does he run, and for what base? Does he run after the ball and try to catch it, even though two or three other children are all running towards the ball to see who might be the first one to “catch” the ball? And what do they do with it? Do they throw it back to the parent who is acting as coach and home plate catcher? Do they throw it to another child who now finds himself or herself in the same conundrum? Or do they try to chase down the runner who just hit the ball and call the batter “out”? Oh what to do? What to do? I guess I’m being a little harsh, but it’s fun to watch them play. Certainly I’m no expert at the game, but they are having fun and at the same time, getting a little understanding of how to play “the national pastime” There are a lot of people, and even Christians, who are like those precious little children. They get into church and get involved for a little while, maybe even teach a Sunday School class or fill some other need in the church, and do a good job at whatever they do, but at the same time, never ever even really know what God has called them to do, or even know and understand the ability and spiritual gift that God has given them with which to serve the Lord. I’ve had senior adults in churches where I served as pastor tell me, “Preacher, I don’t know what my gift is!” You might not know the “name” of the gift, but you functioned in performing that particular gift and found fulfillment.

There are others who “join” a church like they are joining a civic organization or a community club, and think that if they can join a church and even be baptized, and give financially to the church and even help someone who needs clothes or is hungry, and all the while think, “that’s all I have to do in order to get into heaven.” But both groups of people can, like those little children trying to learn how to play baseball, flounder around and never be spiritually or even emotionally satisfied.

Could you be one of those people in either group? Listen to the words of the Psalmist in Psalm 37. Here’s what the writer said. “Trust in the Lord and do good. Dwell in the land and feed on His faithfulness. Delight yourself also in the Lord and He shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.” In other words, folks, whatever lies before you, whatever burden you bear, whatever questions or quests for meaning that you have, give them all to the Lord. Trust Him to handle your needs, and your heart. Don’t lean upon your own understanding, but in all your ways, whatever they may be, trust the Lord to handle them, and He will bring your needs about. He will heal your hurts. He will open doors that need to be opened for you and close doors He doesn’t want you to walk through, and in the process, take care of your deepest desires, and lead you into ways you have never even dreamed about before. Jesus said, “The Devil comes to steal, to kill, and to destroy,” and he does! Yet, Jesus goes on to say, “But I have come that you might have life and have it abundantly!” And in that “abundance” is life at its very best, and life everlasting.

The Psalmist said in Psalm 34, “I sought the Lord and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.” Won’t you trust in the Lord today as your Savior and Lord, and give Him all your hopes, all your needs, and all your dreams and desires, and see that He will indeed bring them to pass?