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Philippians 4:4-13

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I’ve always been a very big baseball fan. We lived near Philadelphia when I was a kid, and I latched on to the Phillies easily. The memory of watching Tug McGraw close out the 1980 World Series is still as clear as when I watched the final out in my parents’ bedroom.

As an adult, I lived for 20 years in Atlanta. During those years, it was impossible not to root for the Braves, even though I was still a Phillies fan—and even though the Phillies and Braves became divisional rivals. For several years, the Braves’ pitching rotation was among the finest ever assembled: Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, John Smoltz and Steve Avery.

Among those pitchers, Smoltz was always a particular favorite of mine, especially because of the way he continually adapted. He had been a dominant starting pitcher and won the National League Cy Young Award in 1996 as the league’s best pitcher. But Tommy John surgery on his elbow in 2000 cost him an entire season. When he returned in 2001, injuries continued to interfere with his comeback, so the Braves eventually moved him to the bullpen.

And he became one of baseball’s best relief pitchers.

Smoltz spent three seasons as Atlanta’s closer and set a National League record with 55 saves in 2002. Then, when he returned to the starting rotation in 2005, he once again became one of baseball’s best starting pitchers. His resilience in the face of injuries, changing roles and unexpected setbacks was a huge inspiration.

Smoltz’s faith made his story even more meaningful to me. In a 2005 article, he recalled asking Braves team chaplain Walt Wiley whether he could live any way he wanted until he was in his 40s and then accept Christ when he was ready.

Wiley told him, “Nothing prevents you from doing that—with the exception of one thing: You might not get to your target date.”

Smoltz realized that waiting until later in life was risky. So he didn’t wait. He accepted Christ then.

The testimonies of professional athletes like John Smoltz tend to receive a lot of attention. Their celebrity status certainly elevates them in many people’s eyes. But it is important to remember that they are still people just like you and me. They simply have to live out their faith in highly visible and often stressful circumstances.

Their visibility allows us to look at memorable moments in their lives and see how they handled success, pressure and disappointment.

In 1996, the same year Smoltz won the Cy Young Award, the Braves played the New York Yankees in the World Series. I was blessed that a friend gave me an extra ticket to Game 5.

Smoltz pitched that night, and he was amazing. He threw eight innings, struck out ten batters and allowed only one unearned run. Unfortunately, Yankees pitcher Andy Pettitte was just a little better. He didn’t allow any runs, and the Yankees won 1-0. They went on to win the World Series. Smoltz had given one of the finest performances of his career, but even his best wasn’t enough to win.

In that 2005 interview, he said, “Someone might think my conversion is why I had my Cy Young season in 1996, but it’s not. However, it is why I was able to handle my Cy Young season.”

That distinction is important.

Paul wasn’t saying in Philippians 4:13 that Christians can accomplish anything they decide to attempt. He was explaining that Christ gave him the strength to remain faithful through every circumstance. Paul knew what it was like to have plenty, and he knew what it was like to have almost nothing. He had experienced both mountaintops and valleys, and Christ strengthened him through all of them.

Christians and non-Christians alike will reach life’s mountaintops—our Cy Young moments. We’ll also experience life’s valleys—our World Series Game 5 moments, when even our best isn’t good enough.

The question is whether we will face those moments alone and how we will handle both victory and defeat.

Christ does not promise that every great effort will result in victory. He does not promise that we will avoid injury, disappointment or unexpected changes. He promises to remain with us and give us the strength to be faithful through whatever life places before us.

With Christ, we can endure loss without being destroyed by it. We can experience success without being defined by it. We can face the familiar role or the one we never expected to fill.

The Lord will bring us all manner of opportunities to grow, and He wants us to experience them with Him—not struggle through them alone as though He were merely a spectator in the stands.

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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.