As this year’s baseball season dawns, allow me to share with you a modern day baseball/church parable that has circulated for years.  I am unaware of the source, but may it challenge us to be in church on Sunday ready to field our position.

Behold a ball team went forth to play a game of ball.

Just as the umpire was saying “Batter Up,” the catcher for the home team arrived and took his place. The center fielder and the second baseman didn’t arrive until the middle of the second inning. The first baseman didn’t come at all, but later sent his regrets and said that he had to go to a family reunion. The third baseman likewise failed to show up, having been up late the night before watching television, and preferred to spend the rest of the day in bed. The left fielder was away attending another ball game across town. The shortstop was present, but left his glove at home.

Verily when the pitcher stepped onto the mound, he looked around to see his teammates, and lo, his heart was heavy when he saw many empty places in the lineup. The game had been announced, and visitors were already in the stands to see the game. There was nothing left for him to do but go ahead and pitch and hope for the best.

So the pitcher tightened his belt, stepped to the mound and did his level best to put it over the plate. But for some strange reason he just couldn’t find the groove. Some of his teammates began to ride him for wild pitching and booed him all through the game.

At the close of the game, his home team was mercilessly beaten. The game produced a considerable amount of discussion and when the rest of the team heard about the disgraceful defeat, everyone decided that the reasons should be found. They finally came to a unanimous decision: it must have been the pitcher’s poor pitching that lost the game.

Behold, a sunny Sunday morning, a preacher stood up to preach . . . but that’s another story.

May God help us all to be team players who contribute faithfully to the work He wants to do in our churches.