Have you ever played the game of baseball? I've played a lot of baseball/softball in my day, earning me the nickname "Good Eye." Now if you don't understand the game, a person with that nickname usually never swings at a bad pitch, never strikes out, and always either winds up on base by a hit, or by a "base on balls," which means the pitcher threw 4 bad pitches that the batter did not swing at which were considered outside of the "strike zone." Sometimes I would get a good pitcher that I could hit off of and would hit a grounder in between 1st and 2nd base trying to advance another runner and get called out at first base, which in baseball, is called a sacrifice. I got called "out" plenty of times, but usually it was to advance the runner or trying to steal a base. I might not be able to do those things now, but as an object lesson, baseball is a good fit, so read up!
One thing we as Christians need to realize is that there are people in our lives we might be witnessing to that watch a perfect pitch coming at them, but refuse to swing at it as it sails over the plate, thru the strike zone and into the mitt of the catcher. Point being, while witnessing to those who are lost, some people will bring you down, (refusing to swing), while others will lift you up, accepting Christ and coming into the Kingdom of God, (hitting a home run!).
Gravity people tend to try to bring everything and everyone in their lives down, giving Newton his due. (I still do that sometimes, but hey, none of us is perfect). Depression, disappointment, illness, or a feeling of not being loved is just enough to put someone in the dumps because of the way they've been treated by others or by fate. This causes us to have this tendency to leave a wake of emotional or physical destruction in our path, not just to ourselves, but to others as well. Even after someone gets saved the devil will still use their past to keep them down, thus gravity continues to win, just like the ball sinking just before it goes over the plate, the result of which is usually a strike or a strike out.
Those who pitch the ball, the ones who try to reach out to the "gravity" crowd, find out pretty quick that perhaps they are not meant to lead that particular person to Christ and that it will take others along the way to help that person get there. While we should never stop praying for them or give up on them, it is not our job to save them. Once they've heard the "Good News" only they can save themselves. That job belongs to them and the issue is between them and God alone. They are the only ones who can swing at the ball or let the ball go by into the catchers mitt.
They have to walk into the batters box and as the balls are pitched, they need to either let it go and get a ball or a strike or swing and get a hit. Some just need to learn how to play the game, but others? They may not want to play at all. It's almost like teaching a kid to trust that you will catch them when they jump off the side of the pool into your waiting arms. They have to learn to trust. Some can, some won't. With swimming, baseball, whatever it may be, you can only do so much "for them," before they have to do it "themselves." We can only preach the gospel, tell them of the saving grace of Christ's death, burial and resurrection and how Jesus took all of our sins upon Himself so that if we simply believe in Him, we will be saved. He died for all of us and He is coming soon to take His "team" (the Church), back to the original "Home Plate" which resides in heaven!
Nobody can make the choice for someone else to swing at a good pitch or even a bad one. If you've ever been to a minor league baseball game or even a little league game, no matter what is shouted from the dugout or by the crowd, only the batter with his full attention on the ball, can make the choice whether to swing, or not to swing. While you can teach someone the principles of Christianity, you cannot make the choice for them to accept Jesus, that is up to them. When someone we've pitched the Gospel to decides it's all nonsense, it can cause a lot of gravity in our lives as Christian's. It could take a lot of innings to save just one person! And in any baseball game, if the game is tied, it goes into "extra innings," in which pitchers come in from the bull pen to pitch until one team scores, thus ending the game, and it can go as many innings as necessary to determine the winner. (Trivia Fact - The longest Baseball Game in History was on May 1, 1920, with the Brooklyn Robins at the Boston Braves. The game went 26 innings with a final score of 1 to 1 meaning the game was finally called as a "tie"). In a lot of cases, when you "pitch" Jesus to somebody, they may not swing right away, but somewhere towards the end of the bottom of the 26th inning, they may decide to swing and hit a grand slam! Just to clarify, I'm not talking about a Denny's Grand Slam with pancakes, eggs, bacon and sausage. A Grand Slam in Baseball is when the bases are loaded and the player at bat hits a home run, scoring all three runners and himself to score four runs on one hit.
Wouldn't it be awesome if in our Christian walk, we could all pitch to a friend who hit a grand slam every day? Don't let the gravity get you down. Have some steadfastness and never lose heart! Jesus doesn't want us to give up on people. He wants us to pray them into the kingdom, even if they tell us they don't want to hear about God or Jesus anymore and want to be left alone. Everyone swings at a pitch once in awhile, and that's all you'll need to keep you going and moving on towards the next "batter up!" Sometimes you will find people who are totally clueless no matter how hard you try to explain it to them. You can try and try, but they are so busy making it all about themselves that they just can't see the gift of Jesus right in front of them, which means, the game isn't quite over, and God may be calling for a relief pitcher to take your place. After you leave the mound, all you can do for that person is pray for them and the one that is now witnessing to them. Just remember, God works on them even after we've finished witnessing to them and at some point, they might get a hit that gets them home!
But there is something known as boundaries that a Christian must pay attention to as well, or they are likely to fall down to the level of those they are witnessing to. That means we need to be aware of when God is telling us to walk away. You can still be their friend, but don't compromise yourself spiritually to keep them as a friend. Show them you have principles and don't ever waver, because that is exactly what the devil, (the other team?), wants you to do.
In baseball, there are white chalk boundary lines that run down the 1st base line and the 3rd base line. They are there to determine whether a ball that has been hit down either of those lines is either foul or fair. If the ball is called fair, it is still in play, meaning the ball can be fielded by the other team to get the runner out at 1st or another runner out at 2nd, 3rd, or home plate. If the foul ball is caught, the runner is automatically out. If it is foul and not caught by a player from the other team, the batter gets another chance to hit until he actually gets a hit or strikes out.
Just like those white chalk lines on a baseball field, there should be a type of "boundary line" that exists in our hearts and minds for when we witness to others. It's really easy to get ripped apart ourselves when the person we've been witnessing to doesn't accept Christ. We must simply trust God for them and expect good things to happen because even in the worst of times, God does not disappoint. Getting caught up in whether the person gets saved or not can shatter our own faith so we must protect it. We must learn to pray about it, walk away and wait for God to send another "pitcher" to pitch the same ideas, maybe in a different way, so that the person can be saved. God has plenty of "relief pitchers" so don't get so caught up in the question of their salvation that you yourself end up burning out! That's exactly what the devil wants! Please don't let him win?
Sometimes a batter will swing and hit nothing but fouls anyhow, meaning they will bombard you with more and more questions, simply to waste your time. But never stop praying for them because you never know when they might hit a "fair ball," or what Jesus is going to do with your prayers for them! Don't lose heart, just keep praying!
Sure you'll get rejected, but remember. You are planting a "mustard seed of faith," (Matthew 17:20), and someone is going to come along and water that seed by throwing a pitch, then another, and another! You just never know what that rejection might produce! And we should be sharing the love of Jesus with everyone! You never know when they might hit the ball past you so fast it grazes you on it's way over the fence sending chills right up your spine!
God Bless you all for reading and I hope you will all enjoy watching your favorite teams as they play this season. I'm still waiting for the Tigers to win another World Series myself. Hopefully, someday they will actually do it! Aw, hope springs eternal! They haven't won the Series since 1984! So GO TIGERS!
I hope you all enjoy the upcoming Major League Baseball season, or just being out with your kids while they play little league! Remember, while you are sitting in the stands this season, that the Lord's return is very near and there are many out there who need Him! The harvest is ripe, so witness your faith! (John 4:35).
God bless you all! Now get out there and.....
PLAY BALL!
One thing we as Christians need to realize is that there are people in our lives we might be witnessing to that watch a perfect pitch coming at them, but refuse to swing at it as it sails over the plate, thru the strike zone and into the mitt of the catcher. Point being, while witnessing to those who are lost, some people will bring you down, (refusing to swing), while others will lift you up, accepting Christ and coming into the Kingdom of God, (hitting a home run!).
Gravity people tend to try to bring everything and everyone in their lives down, giving Newton his due. (I still do that sometimes, but hey, none of us is perfect). Depression, disappointment, illness, or a feeling of not being loved is just enough to put someone in the dumps because of the way they've been treated by others or by fate. This causes us to have this tendency to leave a wake of emotional or physical destruction in our path, not just to ourselves, but to others as well. Even after someone gets saved the devil will still use their past to keep them down, thus gravity continues to win, just like the ball sinking just before it goes over the plate, the result of which is usually a strike or a strike out.
Those who pitch the ball, the ones who try to reach out to the "gravity" crowd, find out pretty quick that perhaps they are not meant to lead that particular person to Christ and that it will take others along the way to help that person get there. While we should never stop praying for them or give up on them, it is not our job to save them. Once they've heard the "Good News" only they can save themselves. That job belongs to them and the issue is between them and God alone. They are the only ones who can swing at the ball or let the ball go by into the catchers mitt.
They have to walk into the batters box and as the balls are pitched, they need to either let it go and get a ball or a strike or swing and get a hit. Some just need to learn how to play the game, but others? They may not want to play at all. It's almost like teaching a kid to trust that you will catch them when they jump off the side of the pool into your waiting arms. They have to learn to trust. Some can, some won't. With swimming, baseball, whatever it may be, you can only do so much "for them," before they have to do it "themselves." We can only preach the gospel, tell them of the saving grace of Christ's death, burial and resurrection and how Jesus took all of our sins upon Himself so that if we simply believe in Him, we will be saved. He died for all of us and He is coming soon to take His "team" (the Church), back to the original "Home Plate" which resides in heaven!
Nobody can make the choice for someone else to swing at a good pitch or even a bad one. If you've ever been to a minor league baseball game or even a little league game, no matter what is shouted from the dugout or by the crowd, only the batter with his full attention on the ball, can make the choice whether to swing, or not to swing. While you can teach someone the principles of Christianity, you cannot make the choice for them to accept Jesus, that is up to them. When someone we've pitched the Gospel to decides it's all nonsense, it can cause a lot of gravity in our lives as Christian's. It could take a lot of innings to save just one person! And in any baseball game, if the game is tied, it goes into "extra innings," in which pitchers come in from the bull pen to pitch until one team scores, thus ending the game, and it can go as many innings as necessary to determine the winner. (Trivia Fact - The longest Baseball Game in History was on May 1, 1920, with the Brooklyn Robins at the Boston Braves. The game went 26 innings with a final score of 1 to 1 meaning the game was finally called as a "tie"). In a lot of cases, when you "pitch" Jesus to somebody, they may not swing right away, but somewhere towards the end of the bottom of the 26th inning, they may decide to swing and hit a grand slam! Just to clarify, I'm not talking about a Denny's Grand Slam with pancakes, eggs, bacon and sausage. A Grand Slam in Baseball is when the bases are loaded and the player at bat hits a home run, scoring all three runners and himself to score four runs on one hit.
Wouldn't it be awesome if in our Christian walk, we could all pitch to a friend who hit a grand slam every day? Don't let the gravity get you down. Have some steadfastness and never lose heart! Jesus doesn't want us to give up on people. He wants us to pray them into the kingdom, even if they tell us they don't want to hear about God or Jesus anymore and want to be left alone. Everyone swings at a pitch once in awhile, and that's all you'll need to keep you going and moving on towards the next "batter up!" Sometimes you will find people who are totally clueless no matter how hard you try to explain it to them. You can try and try, but they are so busy making it all about themselves that they just can't see the gift of Jesus right in front of them, which means, the game isn't quite over, and God may be calling for a relief pitcher to take your place. After you leave the mound, all you can do for that person is pray for them and the one that is now witnessing to them. Just remember, God works on them even after we've finished witnessing to them and at some point, they might get a hit that gets them home!
But there is something known as boundaries that a Christian must pay attention to as well, or they are likely to fall down to the level of those they are witnessing to. That means we need to be aware of when God is telling us to walk away. You can still be their friend, but don't compromise yourself spiritually to keep them as a friend. Show them you have principles and don't ever waver, because that is exactly what the devil, (the other team?), wants you to do.
In baseball, there are white chalk boundary lines that run down the 1st base line and the 3rd base line. They are there to determine whether a ball that has been hit down either of those lines is either foul or fair. If the ball is called fair, it is still in play, meaning the ball can be fielded by the other team to get the runner out at 1st or another runner out at 2nd, 3rd, or home plate. If the foul ball is caught, the runner is automatically out. If it is foul and not caught by a player from the other team, the batter gets another chance to hit until he actually gets a hit or strikes out.
Just like those white chalk lines on a baseball field, there should be a type of "boundary line" that exists in our hearts and minds for when we witness to others. It's really easy to get ripped apart ourselves when the person we've been witnessing to doesn't accept Christ. We must simply trust God for them and expect good things to happen because even in the worst of times, God does not disappoint. Getting caught up in whether the person gets saved or not can shatter our own faith so we must protect it. We must learn to pray about it, walk away and wait for God to send another "pitcher" to pitch the same ideas, maybe in a different way, so that the person can be saved. God has plenty of "relief pitchers" so don't get so caught up in the question of their salvation that you yourself end up burning out! That's exactly what the devil wants! Please don't let him win?
Sometimes a batter will swing and hit nothing but fouls anyhow, meaning they will bombard you with more and more questions, simply to waste your time. But never stop praying for them because you never know when they might hit a "fair ball," or what Jesus is going to do with your prayers for them! Don't lose heart, just keep praying!
Sure you'll get rejected, but remember. You are planting a "mustard seed of faith," (Matthew 17:20), and someone is going to come along and water that seed by throwing a pitch, then another, and another! You just never know what that rejection might produce! And we should be sharing the love of Jesus with everyone! You never know when they might hit the ball past you so fast it grazes you on it's way over the fence sending chills right up your spine!
God Bless you all for reading and I hope you will all enjoy watching your favorite teams as they play this season. I'm still waiting for the Tigers to win another World Series myself. Hopefully, someday they will actually do it! Aw, hope springs eternal! They haven't won the Series since 1984! So GO TIGERS!
I hope you all enjoy the upcoming Major League Baseball season, or just being out with your kids while they play little league! Remember, while you are sitting in the stands this season, that the Lord's return is very near and there are many out there who need Him! The harvest is ripe, so witness your faith! (John 4:35).
God bless you all! Now get out there and.....
PLAY BALL!
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ChristianEncouragers.com