Read
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.”
Matthew 7:24
Reflect
Ty Cobb is one of the greatest players in the history of baseball. In fact, he was one of the first five players inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y. Unfortunately, much of his reputation after death was shaped by stories that later writers and researchers have challenged, including the work of a sensational biographer who helped turn Cobb into a caricature.
Over the years, a fuller picture of Cobb has emerged, and some of his wisdom has come to light in the process. One quote particularly surprised me. Cobb said, “For years I ate baseball, I slept baseball, I talked baseball, I thought baseball, I lived baseball.”
But then he added, “When you get beyond those years of playing professional baseball, you can’t live on baseball.”
That is a startling thing to hear from a man who played the game as fiercely as anyone ever has.
As I reflect on that statement, I think of another man who played baseball, and who I knew personally. Paul Derringer was one of the best pitchers of his time, though he played on some terrible teams and did not win enough games to make the Hall of Fame. Even so, he had some incredible accomplishments. He made six All-Star teams and won the first night game in Major League Baseball history.
But unlike the fuller picture we now have of Cobb, Paul really could be a distasteful guy when he played pro ball. When he played for Cincinnati, he once got tired of being lectured by his general manager, Larry MacPhail, picked up an inkwell from MacPhail’s desk and threw it at him.
MacPhail said, “You might have killed me, Derringer.”
Paul replied, “That’s what I was meaning to do.”
Baseball took pretty good care of Paul while he was playing. But by the time I met him, he was an old man living on a meager retirement, in failing health and on his third wife. More importantly, he had become a Christian. The man I knew was gentle and kind. Instead of throwing baseballs — or inkwells — he baked sugar-free pies for his friends.
Paul loved baseball, but like Ty Cobb, he found out that you can’t live on the game once your playing days are finished.
No matter how good you are at what you do, it will one day pass away. Even good gifts such as family, education, reputation, career or hobbies were never meant to bear the full weight of a soul. They can bless our lives, shape our days and give us meaningful work to do, but they cannot become the foundation of life.
Jesus said the wise man is not merely the one who hears His words. The wise man is the one who hears His words and does them. That is the difference between admiring the foundation and actually building on it.
A life built on talent, success, reputation or achievement may look strong for a while. It may even look impressive. But when the playing days end, when the applause fades, when health fails, when the storms come, that foundation will not hold.
When our behavior matches our beliefs, Jesus becomes our foundation. We are not simply saying that He matters. We are building as if He matters.
Baseball ended for Cobb. It ended for Derringer. One day, whatever we have built our earthly identity around will end for us too.
Only Christ remains strong enough to build a life on.
Today, pray that the Lord will reveal any areas where your foundation might be weak. Ask Him to help you repair those places, strengthen your spiritual footing and build your life not only on hearing His words, but on doing them.
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Reflection copyright © 2026 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.
