Life Is Like A Baseball Game

After a couple of hours, however, a policeman approached the cell door and opened it. He escorted her back to the booking desk where the arresting officer was waiting with her personal effects.

As he handed her possessions to her, he said, "I’m very sorry for this mistake. You see, I pulled up behind your car while you were blowing your horn, flipping off the guy in front of you, and cussing a blue streak at him.

“I noticed the ’Choose Life’ license plate holder, the ’What Would Jesus Do’ bumper sticker, the ’Follow Me to Sunday School’ bumper sticker and the chrome-plated Christian fish emblem on the trunk. Naturally I assumed you had stolen the car."

Luke 6:46 “Why do you call me, Lord, Lord, and do not do what I say?” We have a couch and we need to listen to Him and do what He says.

III. WE MAY GET HURT. SO WHAT? PLAY ANYWAY

ILL.- Some of you may remember that baseball player Lou Gehrig is called the "iron man of baseball" for a very good reason. For 15 years in the 1920’s and 30’s he played first base for the New York Yankees. He played 2130 consecutive games. And after he retired they X-rayed both of his hands and found that every finger had been broken at least one time, YET HE NEVER MISSED A GAME! He played even though he was hurt. That says something about his character.

Obviously, we have to go on living the Christian life even though we’ve been hurt. And it’s a guaranteed thing we will be hurt in this life. We will experience hurt and pain in some form or another and for one reason or another: because of the devil, sin, or perhaps just because we live in an imperfect world where imperfect things happen all the time.

The apostle Paul was a great player in the game of life. He endured much hardship in life.

I Cor. 4:11-13 “To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer kindly. Up to this moment we have become the scum of the earth, the refuse of the world.”

These words don’t sound like Paul was having a fun day or a fun time in life! Not many of us would have wanted to trade places with him. We don’t want to go hungry or be thirsty. We don’t want to wear rags for clothing. We don’t want to be treated badly or brutally. We don’t want to be homeless.

Matthew 8:20 Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head." Jesus suffered homelessness while in the flesh. And He suffered even more than that.

Matthew 10:24 “A student is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master.” Since Jesus suffered in the flesh should we not also expect to suffer somewhat in this life?

II Tim. 2:3 “Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.”

Since we are soldiers of the cross and/or we are playing the game of life we must expect a certain amount of hardship and pain, BUT WE MUST ENDURE! And endure, we can!