Now that Spring Training is complete, baseball season is in full swing (pun intended).
While I was never a very good baseball player (ask the guys on our church softball team), one of the items that has always been on my bucket list is to see a game at every Major League Baseball stadium. There are currently 30, 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. So far, I’ve gotten to 18.
As a matter of fact, without consulting Google, can you name all 30 teams?
I’ll be right here when you get back.
My favorite team of all time is the St. Louis Cardinals. Being at Busch Stadium with my grandfather, dad, and brother will always remain a favorite memory from my childhood.
The year after we moved to the St. Louis area, the Cardinals won their 10th World Series championship (2006), led by future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols. This was Pujols’s first championship and, one would assume, the highlight of his season. But that would be an incorrect assumption.
On a flight back to St. Louis after playing the San Francisco Giants, Pujols had the immense privilege to lead one of his teammates to Christ. He says, “Nothing even comes close to the excitement of sharing my faith and leading a lost friend to the Lord” (Pujols: More Than the Game).
This week in particular, there will be a significant openness to an invitation or a Gospel Conversation (Rhythm #6). They won’t all be home runs (see what I did there); some might even feel like a swing and a miss. But every time we’re obedient, He gets the glory.
Every time I step on the field, it’s to glorify God.
No matter if I’m going 5 – 5 that day or if I’m 0 – 4.
I look up to the sky every time I get a base hit and every time I cross the plate to remind myself it’s not about Albert Pujols.
It’s about the Lord Jesus Christ.