Springtime...it is such a beautiful time of year! New blooms are sprouting, the weather is perfect, and there is excitement in the air. It is BASEBALL season! Folks around town are talking about the Rays, and you can't drive down 9th Street in Bradenton, because the Pirates are playing spring ball. The thrill of the game. You never know what is going to happen next. Will the pitcher throw a fastball, a changeup...or a curveball??
Life is like baseball. You never know what is going to happen next. We can go along with one fast pitch after another, it can almost seem routine...and then we are thrown the unexpected curveball. Something happens out of left field, and it changes the game. It changes our lives. What was the Pitcher thinking? Why would this happen to me? What am I going to do?
Sometimes the game is changed because of a poor decision that we have made. We have perhaps gotten into a slump, and decided that we didn't need the Playbook anymore; we can play the game of life however we want to. That usually causes problems, and can alter the sport not only for us, but for other people on our 'team'.
What do we do, when life throws us a curveball? First...take a 'time out'. Breathe...regroup. Then pay attention to the Coach...God. He will guide you in the direction that you should go. Pick up the Playbook...the Bible. It has solutions for anything that may come flying at you. Whether the curveball has been thrown because of something you have done, or someone else, or maybe no one's fault at all, God is there for you. He wants you to turn to Him for the answers. He has promised in His Word that He will help you with all of your burdens. And God cannot lie. Matthew 11:28
In the Playbook, there are chapters and verses for all of life's situations:
When you are in sorrow: John 14
When someone fails you: Psalm 27
When you have sinned: Psalm 51
When you are worried: Matthew 6: 19-34
When God seems far away: Psalm 139
When your faith is weak Hebrews 11
When you are lonely and afraid: Psalm 23
When you feel down and out: Romans 8:31
When people are unkind: John 15
When your purse is empty: Psalm 37
When you lose confidence in people: 1 Corinthians 13
When you are depressed: Psalm 27
When you are afraid: Psalm 34:7
When you need assurance: Mark 8:35
When you are insecure: Psalm 121:3
Many times after being thrown a curveball, we can become fearful. The world can be a scary place. We need not be frightened. I have heard that it tells us 365 times in the Bible to "do not fear". It's as if God knew we would have to be reminded every day not to be afraid. He is with us.
So take the fast pitches of life as they come. Anticipate the curve balls, but know that with God, we can learn to knock them out of the park and produce a home run!
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