CurveBalls
Life’s “curve balls” seem to put us down and we forget that many of what we call ‘curve balls’ were not ‘curve balls’ ages ago.
Just think: the term curveball did not come into existence until the 1900’s, in the age of baseball. An earlier version of this would have been “Hard row to hoe”, “rock and a hard place” and one that speaks on Christianity “a heavy cross to bear”. Think of the first person who used this saying…
All the challenges we go through, and now this day-and-age, life throws a curve ball. For my curve ball this month, I have seen 3 cars wrecked/broken down in my family with each having a way to borrow someone else’s vehicle or get a ride. It ended with the third vehicle being my own with a power steering line busting on my way home from church.
I think of the teenage and 20s me who would have broken down, thrown a fit, or even thought about hurting myself. This all shows us that we grow, and it is these past lessons that teach us for our future. Looking at life now, as a Christian and follower of Jesus, who shows us perfection, I see that these “curve balls” are not what we think. They are reminders that God has all types of plans for us. What we want to do or the actions and events that happen, show us the path and growth that we have gone through. We should not respond with anger or think we are suffering.
What did God say to His people who did not trust His path? Let me remind you what He told Israel during the events of exile: “For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile” (Jeremiah 29:10-14 ESV).
Although we are not in exile or facing the issues Israel did, we face issues that evolved from a baseline that started at the beginning of what we call “time”. We can let our environment affect us and we can act irrationally on it, but just as I ask myself and those around me now, what will this anger and the actions you propose do to you and those around you? God wants us to be the beacon of hope and an example when it comes to Christianity. We are to be useful and show our lights. Remember that: “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:13-16 ESV). Our situations do not change us, but it is our character and the actions we take that move us and others. How will you use the “curve balls” in your life to shine your light?
