Sitting on the Bench

It is softball season again. As a senior, this will be my daughter's last year to play on her high school team. Now, Megan is not one of those naturally gifted athletes but she is still a pretty good softball player. She worked extremely hard off season in the hopes that she could land the starting catcher position on the team. She received much encouragement from her coaches and from some of the things that were said to her she thought she would start the first game of the season. However, the start went to the athletically talented sophomore catcher and Megan found herself sitting on the bench.

Obviously, this was extremely disappointing and Megan was crushed. She held herself together for the game, yelled encouragement to her teammates and congratulated them when they did well. After the game, she left quickly so she could be alone with her churning emotions. She talked her situation over with friends and family and ultimately came to this realization: She had done everything she could possibly do to earn the starting catcher position. The final decision was not up to her but her coaches and that was out of her control. The only thing that was in her control was how she handled the situation. She could be bitter and angry and sulk or she could continue to work hard, think positively and look for ways that she could be an asset to the team.

This is such a parallel to real life. Many times, we work so hard to earn something. It might be a good grade, new job, or someone's approval. If we don't get it does this mean we are a failure? Absolutely not! The Bible tells us in Colossians 3:23,24 that "whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving."  When we try our best we must remember that we are not doing it for ourselves or for someone else but for God. We do not need to earn God's approval. That is the wonderful thing about God's salvation. There is nothing we need to do, except believe and accept it. Ephesians 2:8 says "for it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast."

I am happy to say that Megan made the right choice. She chose to keep a positive outlook and support the team the best way that she could, even if it meant sitting on the bench. In her case, some unfortunate things happened to the other catcher and Megan has been doing most of the catching for the games. Thankfully, because she had continued to work hard to improve her skills she was ready when she was needed to take the catcher responsibilities. I think this is a good lesson for all of us. While we are sitting on the bench are we preparing our minds and bodies to be ready when the Lord asks us to answer a call that he gives to us.

Mary Lehman