Read
Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? — unless indeed you fail to meet the test! I hope you will find out that we have not failed the test.
2 Corinthians 13:5-6
Reflect
My all-time favorite baseball player is Mike Schmidt, the former third baseman for the Philadelphia Phillies. During his career, Mike became famous for being a slugger and knocking 548 home runs, which at the time was the seventh most in major league history. He led the league in home runs eight times and had the most runs batted in four times. He was also the National League’s Most Valuable Player three times.
But another interesting statistic is that Mike was great at drawing walks and was prone to strike out. He led the league four times in strikeouts and another four times in walks; during his career, he struck out 1,883 times and was walked another 1,507 times. That means that he came to bat 3,390 times and didn’t hit the ball. During his career, Mike averaged 559 plate appearances per season, so that means that he played the equivalent of six years without ever hitting the ball.
Do you ever feel like it’s been years since you’ve “hit the ball”?
You might have a long list of what might amount to strikeouts or walks in your life, but that doesn’t mean that you’ve failed. A player like Mike Schmidt, who swung and missed so often, is still considered a success and is even in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Remember that you have God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – present with you throughout your “strikeouts” and “walks,” and that He will also be present when you, in faith, break through with your hits. Our success in faith isn’t hindered by our setbacks.
Today, pray that the Lord will encourage you in spite of any setbacks or failures you might encounter and that He will help you continue to step up to the plate and strive for success in faith.
Reflection copyright © 2025 Doug DeBolt and Charles Fulton.
Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
