There is a lovely park about a mile from my home. It has a playground for young children (although I’ve seen parents sneaking a turn on the swings when they thought no one was looking!).

On one end of the park are tennis courts, handball walls, and volleyball courts that are illuminated at night. On the other end are lighted horseshoe pits. However, the area I enjoy the most, is one of two softball fields. In the evening, I sometimes go sit at a picnic table and watch teams play slow pitch softball. Men and women play together on these teams.

That fact brings me to the following true story.

A full moon looked like it was rising directly behind left field. Both teams were really pumped and playing hard. The score was close. As the innings slipped by, I couldn’t help but notice that one gal played differently from the others. Let’s pause while you ponder this question: Were you ever the last one picked on the playground when teams were chosen? That was pretty much the story of my young athletic life. Unfortunately, personality didn’t matter; grade point average didn’t matter; how well you could hit, throw, kick, and catch the ball DID matter. Well, I believe this young lady was probably the last one chosen.

The first time she came to bat, it was “three strikes, you’re out!” Her swing was poorly coordinated. She didn’t even come close to hitting the ball. When she came to the plate again, the outfield came in and stood right behind the infield dirt. On her third pitch, after woefully missing two, she managed to hit a dribbler back to the pitcher. After an easy throw to first, she was walking back to the dugout. One of the neat things was that her teammates gamely applauded her less than stellar achievements.

When it came time for her to bat for the last time, her team was down by one run. The bases were loaded and there were two outs. This time, the outfielders not only came in on the edge of the grass, right behind the first, second, and third basepeople, but sat down and took off their gloves! They were laughing and joking while the pitcher let one fly. “Strike one,” grunted the ump. Strike two was no different. The game came down to one final pitch. The pitcher lofted a pitch in a perfect arc. The lady appeared to close her eyes and took a mighty swing.

The resounding crack of bat on ball startled everyone. I watched in amazement as the ball lofted high and far toward the full moon. All three outfielders scrambled to their feet and, as one player, ran toward the ball, runner after runner crossed the plate. The game was over as her ball rolled dead against the fence in left field. Her teammates let out mighty cheers and actually hoisted her to their shoulders. She appeared to be enjoying every second of her unexpected stardom!

The first thought that came to my mind was the poem, “Mighty Casey At The Bat”. However, to be politically correct, I thought perhaps I should dub this young woman, “Mighty CASETTE At The Bat”.

I got to thinking about all the times in our lives we felt left out, put down, unappreciated, and bereft, especially in our all-important growing up years. We didn’t believe anyone really cared if we succeeded or failed. It seemed there weren’t many cheers going up on our behalf.

Thank God for those very special, important people He puts in our lives. I especially remember teachers who treated me as if I were their child. Each, in their different ways, encouraged me, cheered me on, and supported me all the way. Others, on the other team, underestimated me, even to point of sitting down and taking off their gloves when I came to bat. I had the last laugh, for sure! (g)

Are YOU an encourager? Do others have you on THEIR list of those who greatly increase their sense of trying and accomplishment? If you have a response, use the “Leave a Reply” box below!  Your responses are a great encouragement to me!

RESPONSES TO “LITTLE WHITE LIES” 

– In Africa, Nigeria at least, they refer to speed bumps as “sleeping policemen.” I really enjoyed hearing that when visiting one time (that’s where my dad’s grave is.) Though traffic is the worst in the world, at least as far as the number of fatalities compared with the number of drivers, speed bumps do seem to at least temporarily slow things down.

     I think we need them in life, too. We need to be reminded to slow down, even to a crawl, to regain perspective, or to bring back a sense of peace and calm to our too-busy hearts. Good piece! I never know quite what to expect, a good thing!

– This story is right on target. We have a friend who is leaving a church where the ministers are guilty of this kind of lying. Their confidence in preachers has almost been destroyed. It will take a lot of time for them to rebuild confidence in church leaders. They do see the need to join up with a fellowship of believers, and will likely do so, but this problem of lying and then making the one who confronts believe they are guilty is all uncalled for.

– As for your speed bumps, I agree that there are too many “little white lies” in our world. When will people ever realize that God does not differentiate between a little sin and a big sin—it is all SIN in the end and will send us in the wrong direction.

VALENTINE’S BONUS…

Here is a piece that appeared this month in our Meyer Family Ministries Purple Paper. A pastor’s wife (and good friend) in Louisiana wrote and suggested it needed a wider distribution. Here it is. Hope it helps you understand God’s love a bit better!

YOU ARE LOVED!

   Valentine’s Day seems to be the “day of the year” to celebrate love. Folks exchange cards from the time they’re little tykes until late in life. Cards range from funny to sickeningly mushy.

     I believe it’s okay to honor love on this day. Just like I believe it’s all right to collect food and feed needy people on Thanksgiving or Christmas. My question is this: Can’t we spread all these good feelings and deeds over the whole year? I recently came across the following interpretive version of I Corinthians 13:4-8. Perhaps it will bless you as it blessed me. I found encouragement to evaluate the quality of my own love for God and fellow human beings.

BECAUSE GOD LOVES ME – I Corinthians 13:4-8

Because God loves me, He is slow to lose patience with me.
Because God loves me, He takes the circumstances of my life and uses them in a constructive way for my growth.
Because God loves me, He does not treat me as an object to be possessed and manipulated.
Because God loves me, He has no need to impress me with how great and powerful He is because He is God nor does He belittle me as His child in order to show me how important He is.
Because God loves me, He is for me. He wants to see me mature and develop in His love.
Because God loves me, He does not send down His wrath on every little mistake I make of which there are many.
Because God loves me, He does not keep score of all my sins and then beat me over the head with them whenever He gets the chance.
Because God loves me, He is deeply grieved when I do not walk in the ways that please Him because He sees this as evidence that I don’t trust Him and love Him as I should.
Because God loves me, He rejoices when I experience His power and strength and stand up under the pressures of life for His name’s sake.
Because God loves me, He keeps on trusting me when at times I don’t even trust myself.
Because God loves me, He never says there is no hope for me; rather, He patiently works with me, loves me, and disciplines me in such a way that it is hard for me to understand the depth of His concern for me.
Because God loves me, He stands with me when I have reached the rock bottom of despair, when I see the real me, and compare that with His righteousness, holiness, beauty, and love. It is at a moment like this that I can really believe that God loves me.

     Yes, the greatest of all gifts is God’s perfect love! Receive it, enjoy and appreciate it, then PASS IT ON!

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