Belief like Baseball: Parallels Between the Diamond and Devotion 

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How is belief like baseball? Well, If your life was a baseball game, would you be a Christian who is perfectly happy in a passive role, just happy to have made the team, or would you be eager to play and put your faith into action?  

I’m not an athlete by any stretch of the imagination.  I words, “Put me in, Coach,” never cross my lips. In gym class, I was usually among the last kids picked for any team sport. But Dad urged me to join the Ridgeview Peanuts, the girls’ baseball team at my elementary school. My resistance faded when I discovered I’d get a purple team shirt with Charlie Brown emblazoned across it. I related to Charlie Brown. I never caught the ball, and if I owned a kite, it would likely be stuck in a tree.  

On the first day, the Peanuts’ coach tested us in different positions to see where we best fit. He assigned my best friend to first base and the remaining students to various positions. I stood alone. He reluctantly told me I could be the rover. The rover, I discovered, was the baseball player on the field least likely to ever have to catch the ball. That was fine with me, as long as I still got my shirt.  

Years later, I fell into the same role when I became a Christian: A Christian rover. God didn’t assign that to me; it was just what I was used to. I replaced my purple shirt with a Bible so church members would know I was part of His team, but I wasn’t active in my faith.  I was content in my safe place, watching others live their belief. 

Belief—Like Baseball—Requires Getting in the Game 

Even though I was happy in my rover role in elementary school, when I realized my passive faith was unproductive, I knew I needed to make changes. God wanted me to be an active participant, not a bench warmer. Here are some tips I learned. 

Know the Playbook  

In my early years as a Christian, my Bible was pristine, without dog-eared pages or highlighted passages. I’d obviously not been studying God’s playbook. Psalm 119:105 teaches that His Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. Just as coaches use a playbook to help their players develop skills on the baseball diamond, God has provided His Word for us to live by.  

If you’re on the baseball diamond and a ball heads your way, there’s no time to get out your playbook. You need to know what you’re going to do when you get the ball. Psalm 119:11 instructs us to store up His Word in our hearts. Instead of counting sheep, focus on the verses you have memorized as you lie in bed, replacing worrisome thoughts with words of faith.  

Trust Your Coach 

Proverbs 3:5 advises you to trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. God wrote the playbook. His infinite wisdom has given you all the knowledge you need. 

Put into Action What You’ve Learned 

James 1:22 tells you to be doers of the Word and not hearers only. The batter has hit a ball in your direction. Don’t freeze. You’ve got this. You have stored His Word in your heart and know what to do. Act on it. If you never get into the game, how will anyone know you’re really a part of the team. Belief, like baseball, requires action. 

Don’t Take Your Eye Off the Ball 

1 King 8:61 counsels us to let our hearts be fully devoted to the LORD our God. To walk in His statutes and to keep His commandments. Don’t waver. This tip is true both on offense and defense in baseball. Keeping your eye on God’s Word helps you walk worthy of your calling. Watching the ball into your glove means you won’t stumble when temptations come your way. 

Listen now to a short segment of this meditation from Abide based on James 1:22. Let God speak to your heart about how belief, like baseball, takes getting in the game, not just sitting in the dugout.

In belief, like baseball, God does not leave us alone to figure things out. Let God see your readiness to live your beliefs and let Him challenge you to take your next step of faith. So, choose to be active in your faith. By following His Word and trusting in Him, you will no longer roam the field aimlessly as a rover. You will play the position God built you for.

Let Abide be your daily companion as you seek to understand how to participate in your belief like baseball players participate in the game. Our more than 1500 biblical meditations, like the one above, all exist to help you put your belief into action. Download the app and start a premium subscription. This gains you access to our entire library of content. Use this link for 25% off.

Kristy Dewberry is a contributing writer to Guideposts and other faith-based publications. She feels blessed to share the experiences she’s had in her Christian walk as well as learn from the observations of others.