If you are like my family and find yourself at the ballpark on Sundays instead of church, try sharing a quick devotion with your team or with your family! Here is one I wrote for this week. Please feel free to use it as you see fit.
Baseball Devotion – Resilience: Walking in Faith
Who knows what the word “resilience” means?
(Pause and let them answer).
Resilience is the ability to stand strong or recover quickly from difficulties.
There’s a Division 1 college baseball player named Parker Byrd who lost part of his leg in a boating accident about two years ago. Have you heard of him?
(Pause and let them answer)
After his accident, Parker went through 22 surgeries, battled an infection from the lake water, and ended up losing the lower part of his leg. He thought he may never play baseball again. But, his mom had her eyes fixed on Jesus. She encouraged him to do the same, and never give up. Parker understood that God had a plan. When he finally got to go home from the hospital, do you know he did? He went to the batting cages. In his wheelchair, he worked on timing pitches. Parker continued working hard after that, and on February 16 of this year, with his prosthetic leg, he stepped back into the batter’s box in a college game as a pinch-hitter for his team. The crowd went nuts.
That’s resilience. Parker trusted in God, and never gave up.
Does anyone remember the story from the Bible where Jesus and Peter walked on water? What happened?
(Pause and let them answer).
When Peter stepped out of the boat, he walked on water toward Jesus! But then, he started to look around and noticed all the scary things around him- the wind, the waves, and he began to sink. Then he cried out to Jesus, “Lord, save me!” and Jesus immediately reached out and caught him.
(Matthew 14:22-32).
When Parker Byrd was training to play baseball again after his accident, he could have looked around at his impossible circumstances and started to sink like Peter. Instead, he trusted that God had a plan and never gave up, fixing his eyes on Him. During a team Bible study, a teammate told Parker,
“God already knows what’s going to happen every time we step into the batter’s box. So why should we worry?”
You can do the same. You can be confident in the place where God has led you so far, and trust your training to that point. Even when things aren’t going your way, you can remember that God has a plan, and choose to never give up.
Romans 8:28 says, “and we know in all things God works for the good of those who love Him and have been called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28 NIV)
All things. So you can trust that God already knows about every strikeout, every walk, and every home run. Your Heavenly Father knows when you are sad, tired, angry, or happy. You can choose to fix your eyes on Him and keep fighting when things get hard. And, like with Peter, Jesus is waiting for you to trust in Him. Peter later denied knowing Jesus three times and Jesus forgave him and reminded Peter he loved him three times. Jesus loves you too. He took the punishment for our sins on the cross and was resurrected three days later; so if we believe and trust in Him as our Savior we can have eternal life with Him! That is the BEST news ever!
Jesus,
Thank you for the opportunity to play baseball today. Thank you for reminding us to keep our eyes fixed on You, and that You always have a plan that is better than we could imagine. Even when things don’t go our way, show us how to be resilient. Our strength comes from You.
In Your Mighty Name,
Amen
For more about Parker Byrd:
S2 EP06: Walking in faith amidst life’s detours with Parker and Jeff B – Cleerely Stated
https://www.mlb.com/news/parker-byrd-plays-in-college-game-with-prosthetic-leg
Pinestraw Mountain 