Always Hope

There is a passage toward the end of 1st Thessalonians 5, in which Paul is offering a "lightning
round," sort of speak of brief, yet powerful, principles that can strengthen us in our Christian walk. I want to pick up with verse 18:
18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
19 Do not quench the Spirit.
20 Do not despise prophecies.
21 Test all things; hold fast what is good.
22 Abstain from every form of evil.

God wants us, no doubt, to possess thankful hearts.  We give Him the praise in the good times we experience, as well as the midst of the trouble we encounter, knowing that even in the trials we may be facing, God is there with us and will use those difficulties to produce in us fruit for His glory. And, even in those hard times, if we listen and trust, we can gain a sense of His message to us and release His peace into our hearts and minds.  God is with us - at all times - we have to learn to listen to Him as He directs and as He comforts.

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In Psalm 106, the Psalmist reminds us that there is much for which to give God praise:
1 Praise the Lord! Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.
2 Who can utter the mighty acts of the Lord? Who can declare all His praise?
3 Blessed are those who keep justice, And he who does righteousness at all times!
4 Remember me, O Lord, with the favor You have toward Your people; Oh, visit me with Your salvation,
5 That I may see the benefit of Your chosen ones, That I may rejoice in the gladness of Your nation, That I may glory with Your inheritance.

Baseball's regular season has now concluded, and what has been for most teams a 162-game marathon has now been boiled down to 10 teams who are vying for the title of World Series champion.  Unfortunately, last year's champion, the Kansas City Royals, aren't in the mix, but the champions two years ago, the San Francisco Giants, are back, continuing their every-other-year success.  In the National League, the Cubs are the winningest team, while over in the American, the Texas Rangers have the best record.

And, the New York Mets, last year's representative from the NL, are back in the postseason.  By the way, they have a prospect in their instructional league - maybe you've heard of him?  That's right, the former Heisman Trophy and National Championship-winning quarterback, and SEC studio analyst, Tim Tebow.  Did you hear about this?  His very first pitch as a professional baseball player...a home run.  USA Today reports that Tebow said: “It was fun. I just wanted to have the approach that I was going to be aggressive,” adding, “That’s something that we’ve been talking about here every day and practicing it.”

This took place in Florida, Tebow's home state and where he played college ball at the University of Florida.  Meanwhile, a little further down the coast, Tom Sileo tells the story of a moment that took place in Miami at Marlins Park.  This article appeared at TheStream.org.  He wrote:

Jose Fernandez, the brilliant 24-year-old Marlins ace who fled Cuba to pitch in a land of freedom, was killed in a boating accident early Sunday morning. The two-time All-Star’s death stunned baseball and sports fans around the world, especially in Miami’s heavily Cuban-American community.

After a full Sunday of pain and disbelief, Fernandez’s Miami teammates somehow took the field on Monday night against the New York Mets. Every single one of them wore Fernandez’s jersey, which will never be worn again by a Marlins player. The pregame ceremonies were moving and pitch perfect, particularly considering the emotional duress under which they were planned.

Sileo told of a dramatic moment in the bottom of the first:

To lead off the bottom of the first, second baseman Dee Gordon, a left-handed hitter, stepped into the right-handed batter’s box wearing his late friend’s batting helmet. He took the first pitch to honor Fernandez as the crowd clapped and cheered. After composing himself, Gordon switched helmets and got into the correct batter’s box.

Two pitches later, Gordon hit a fly ball to deep right field. Incredibly, the ball carried all the way to the right field seats. It was Gordon’s first home run of the entire 2016 season.

By the time he made it around the bases, Gordon and many Marlins players and fans were crying. Even though the opposing team is in the middle of a playoff race, several New York Mets players couldn’t hide their emotions, either.

The headline described the Gordon homer as a "Monday Night Miracle." Gordon is quoted as saying, "If y’all don’t believe in God, you might as well start."  Sileo described what he saw as "divine."  It was certainly amazing, in light of the Fernandez story - the story of a young man who had saved his mom from drowning as they fled Cuba.  A player who inspired the writer of the article with his "love for liberty."

Moments - life is comprised of them.  And the moments of the past can give us hope for the future.

Tebow and Gordon hit dramatic homers at opportune times.  But, how about the "homers" that have come for you at opportune, perhaps even miraculous or strategic times in our own lives.  We can think about the messages that God has sent to or through us in our own personal moments. Perhaps we have rejoiced in a personal achievement or the success of another person - in those times of triumph, we can offer thanks to God.  Maybe in dark hours of your life, in the midst of trouble, God has sent His message to you, telling you to keep going, that He is with you, maybe through another person or through that still, small voice, speaking encouragement to your spirit.

You see, God is walking with us, and we do well to identify the evidence of His hand, how He has shown up in our lives.  If we are dedicated to following Christ and walking with Him with a pure heart, then we can possess an expectation of how He will work - that will help us to quickly attribute what we see occur to Him and to give thanks to the Lord, exalting Him that He loves us so much that He wishes to be active in our lives.  To use a baseball analogy, some of those incidences will be "home runs," but in the everyday, we might see Him in small ways, the "singles" of life, or the "fielder's choices," that help us advance in the Christian life.