“Believers Are Never Failures”
August 11th, 2015
Greetings Dear Saints,
Today, I would like to share an encouraging word with you!
For many years I have enjoyed really good movies, especially the “true stories”, they are by far the best! They always seem to have some life lesson attached that brings about a necessary change, a thought process or attitude in us. And if done properly, these movies, these true inspiring stories will have the fingerprints of God upon them.
Must admit I feel a bit guilty in saying that I have watched portions of one such movie probably three or four times. The movie is called “Money Ball”. While the name may not be particularly appealing, the movie is good with layers of honorable principals.
You may have even seen this movie as I did the first few times and still manage to miss what I consider to be the best part toward the ending. We all face fear in some fashion and the fear of failure is most probably the greatest of all fears. Therefore, it is a comfort to travel old familiar roads without regard to their success. So we keep doing the same things over and over all the while expecting a different result.
The storyline is about the manager of the Oakland Athletics; his name is Billy Beane played by (I know ladies) Brad Pitt. Billy is a great General Manager but since Oakland has a smaller market share meaning the number of local supporting fans, the team is not well funded. Other teams such as the NY Yankees have the most fans and therefore financially able to hire the best players.
Finally after a roundtable discussion with his other coaches, Billy comes to the conclusion that the team simply cannot compete with the other teams. So why keep trying to do things the same way and expect a different result? Why continue to play by the established rules of management in the same manner as rest of the baseball world?
Billy hires a young Ivy League guy, Peter Brand who has developed a systematic way of hiring baseball players. This system is designed to get certain accomplishments out of players based solely upon attainting a law of numbers and averages from each player.
While the Oakland A’s were nearly in last place for a short time, then they began winning and they win 20 games in a row. This was a feat unheard of in all of baseball history even from the beloved Yankees.
Billy is offered a GM position with Boston Red Sox and a very lucrative salary. The Boston Red Sox owner states the following, “this new model of baseball will change the game forever”. In short, Billy turns down the position and remains in Oakland. Two years later the Boston Red Sox win the World Series using Billy and Peter’s system.
While Billy and Oakland do extremely well and even win 20 games in a row, they still lose the series that year and he feels depressed in spite of the success they had accomplished. Despite all the work and the obvious benefits to the team, they had still lost the last game of the season and in Billy’s mind, that was the most important part of the season.
Here is the best part of the movie that applies to the Church.
Peter (the guy who developed the system) asks Billy to come into the film-room; he wanted to show Billy a clip of film. Peter sees the downcast attitude of Billy and believes the short clip will change his perspective on their new approach to baseball.
Peter begins running a short film of a guy on anther team who always managed a base hit in nearly every game, in other words the guy always got on first base. The only issue was, he never went for second base, always playing it safe. His thought was, “just get on base”, never take a risk”!
The film continues and this player hits one. He starts running to first base and something in him finally says to go for it. Here is a man who has always played it safe so just acquiring the courage to go for it is a major step forward in his character.
So he begins to round first base, slips and falls into the dirt in front of 60,000 plus fans. Now he is frantically just trying to crawl his way back to first base before being called out. But then when he finally reaches back to first base and is lying there in what appears to be a most embarrassing position in the dirt, he observes something. All of his coaches and fellow players are giving him the signal to get up and run, not just for second or even third but run for home plate.
It is then that this player realizes he has just hit a home run!
There are many Believers who just like this player, always played by the rules, never took a chance, never risked everything to win home. Settling for just “some” success was enough.
And there came a time when they finally went for it, they slipped and fell and went down. And all appeared to be an abject failure and terrible humiliation before many and they realized they had not failed at all but had hit a home run!
Dear Saint, there are two separate but connecting issues here!
First, stepping out of your comfort zone and saying you will not live your life the world’s way.
Secondly, “in this moment, your homeruns may not be apparent”.
You may still have regrets that never seem to pass away or be healed but know this; you are more than any winner of any event!
There is coming a time without end, and you will hear “well done my good and faithful servant, My son enter into your eternal reward”.
Sorrow for the moment but Joy comes in the Morning!
in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night,
but joy cometh in the morning. Psalm 30:5b
The lesson is this, just like Billy the GM, who thought he has missed it with doing it a different way; he had changed baseball. Fact is Billy had re-invented the game of baseball and its model for player management.
Dear Saint, it is easy to view yourself and your failures as a deterrent.
Our mind will bow to the enemy if we allow it. Certainly others will give you cause to bring further confusion and feelings of defeat. And while the enemy of our souls are constantly pointing out our short comings, how does God view us?
Therefore the redeemed of the Lord shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy shall be upon their head: they shall obtain gladness and joy; and sorrow and mourning shall flee away. Isaiah51:11
Saint, we will not truly have understanding of the impact of our lives, even in our darkest moments and times of greatest failures, we will be viewed through the lens of eternity with amazing success!
Remembering…
You did not call Him but He called you and He chose you!
There is no higher honor than that of being a Believer in the Lord Jesus.
There is no gift you will ever receive that has such incredible worth.
There is nothing else that will supersede the test of time and eternity.
Knowing you are loved and accepted unconditionally.
And your future is secure!
These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace.
In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer;
I have overcome the world. John 16:33
Blessings to you and your house,
Steve Grable