From the Pastor’s Desk – September 2023
Sacrifice is not a word we use much these days, is it? When was the last time you used it or thought about it in terms of your own life? When was the last time you sacrificed anything for anybody? Come to think about it, there’s only one sport as far as I know where the term is actually used. Do you know which sport
that is? You can almost hear Harry Carey announcing it over the radio, “And there it goes, a long fly ball to left; back to the warning track, caught, runner on third tags up and trots home. Sacrifice fly.”
What a great idea — you’re out, but you helped someone else score a run. Baseball is one of the few sports where you lose but the team still gains. Comedian George Carlin spelled it out in his routine about the contrast between the hardness of football and the softness of baseball. He said: In football you Tackle! In baseball, you “catch flies…” In football you Punt! In baseball you “bunt…” Football is played on a Gridiron! Baseball is played on a “field…” In football you Score! In baseball you “go home…” In football you Kill! In baseball you “sacrifice…”
Baseball may be the only sport where you actually can hear this word. It’s one of the few places anywhere that you hear it in a self-centered, take-care-of-yourself, don’t-worry-about-anybody-else society. In contrast to football, sacrifice may sound like a sign of weakness but I remember, for a time, how the Cardinals mastered the art of “small ball.” Even I, as a Cub’s fan have to admit, it was fun to watch.
Baseball’s one thing; life is quite another. Who sacrifices anything anymore in a time like ours? Who really denies themselves and takes up crosses anymore? Actually, sacrifice can lead to bitterness, especially when you thought you were trusting God’s plan for your life and suddenly you realize that you have to sacrifice all your greatest hopes and dreams as burnt offerings on the high altar of the providence of God.
Are we up for it?
As always, I welcome your comments,
Pastor Cory