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Previous Challenge Entry (Level 3 - Advanced)
Topic: SHIFT (05/27/21)
The explosion of information has impacted nearly every area of our lives and the sports world is no exception. Baseball has long been enamored with statistics, but the most recent years have seen a stark increase that has changed the character of the game in important ways. One of the most obvious changes has been the increasing use of a defensive managerial strategy referred to as a shift which uses data from past games to determine the most likely places that a batter will hit a ball and placing fielders in those places rather than the standard locations they normally are aligned. The idea is to anticipate the hitter’s tendencies and take advantage of them to more successfully get the batter out more often. This strategy has one obvious weakness. It can be relatively easily beaten if the hitter is willing to change his approach. In actual fact though, the vast majority of batters will choose to stubbornly attempt to beat the shift rather than give in. This reflects a level of pride that most people have inherently. Famously, a well known great hitter of the past explained that he would just hit over the shift rather than give in. While his very high level of talent enabled him to do this successfully, most are not able to do so.

The Bible has much to say about the indwelling sin that affects all of us as we seek to live as God desires us to. At the core of all rebellion against our creator is pride which chooses to act according to personal desire rather than be directed by the loving hand of God. Pride too often causes us to act unwisely and rashly because all we are focused on is our own self-determination and we generally care little for the consequences of our actions. The manner in which hitters respond to a shift being played against them is a clear example of pride driving behavior rather than wisdom. Altering behavior in the face of changing circumstances requires that we set our pride aside and be willing to admit that we are not all-powerful. It is just this attitude that Jesus referred to when he said that all who came to him must do so as little children if they would be right in the sight of God. Small children have little or no power and must depend on the strength and wisdom of others in order to live well. Humility is the exact opposite of pride and the humble person alone will do what is necessary to allow God to be strong in his or her life and lead the way to eternal life.

Life is filled with examples that help us to understand the best way to relate to God and to be all that he created us to be. Jesus was an expert at taking from what was around him and using these examples to teach ultimate truth to those with ears to hear. Hitters in the sport of baseball currently provide all of us with a stark example of the choice each of us is faced with. We can stubbornly choose to continue to act in ways that are inconsistent with changing circumstances convinced that our way is best or we can choose to tap into wisdom from other sources in order to humbly make choices that will allow us to be the best we can be. Stubbornness will lead to frustration and struggle as the shift keeps us from succeeding while humility will enable us to adapt and have the abundant life that Jesus promises us if we will follow him. Like so many things in life, the choice is up to each of us and the consequences are truly eternal.
The opinions expressed by authors may not necessarily reflect the opinion of FaithWriters.com.
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This article has been read 301 times
Member Comments
Member
Date
Stephen Kimball
06/05/21
You speak the truth, but I don’t love the analogy. My guess is, people who don’t know baseball will not make it to your second paragraph - to the point. And the analogy is weak if the “shift” can be overcome, in our own power (as your baseball star was able to do).
Avigail David
06/08/21
Thank you for the lesson I learned through the analogy. I can clearly see and understand the point and perspective of 'walking closer with God in obedience' in our 'field of battle' and winning here on earth-- with God, our focus and Coach as we go through life. Micah 6:8 came to my mind. Thank you!

I learned that limiting our paragraphs to two or/to three sentences is a good style to do in our writing. Easy to follow and read.

Thank you.

Penny Neimiller 
06/12/21
Well written and I think maybe the only problem with your article is that most of it's readers and judges here are woman...If it had been presented before a dominantly male audience, you most likely would be in the top of the ratings.
DON'T STOP or get discouraged if you haven't already detected this here at Faith Writers. We need more Christian male writers and talent like you exhibit not just here at FW, but out there in the world. Thank you.