My son and I both love baseball, but my son especially loves the game – to play it, to watch it, to read about it. Everything. And so, when the local high-school team made it to the state championship game, it was really a no-brainer that we would go.
It was the first time that our towns team had made it to the state championship, and they were going up against another local team, a catholic high-school who was a powerhouse in baseball and had been to the championship many times before. It was truly a game between the two best teams in the state, and we were excited to watch it.
As we made it to our seats in the baseball stadium downtown, we watched both teams go through pregame warmups and then it was just time to sit and wait for the pregame introductions and the first pitch. And so we had a few minutes where both teams were in their respective dugouts waiting.
All of a sudden, all the members of our hometown team leave their dugout and jog together, in one group, into the outfield and then turn and stop in the right-field corner. Together, they all circle around a couple young men in the center, presumably the captains, and then they do something I did not expect – they all take a knee and bow their heads. They do this for a couple minutes.
In this day and age, I was a bit surprised to see such a public display of prayer, of religious devotion, especially with a group of young men from a public high-school. Now I don’t know what the other team, the Catholic high-school did in the privacy of their locker room, but what I saw from our team was a powerful statement.
It was powerful in seeing how bound they were as a team, and how God truly was in the forefront. And it was powerful because they made this statement in front of the community, and in front of young kids, namely my son. He got to see that yes, you can mix prayer with sports or with anything in life, and that if you keep God in the forefront of your life, and surround yourself with like-minded people, it’s ok.
And he saw that it’s especially ok to do this as a young man in the world today, that if you keep God in the forefront, and don’t lose sight of the fact that everything is due to Him, and that our talents and gifts and blessings and even the struggle are all through Him, that life perhaps can be more balanced and that good things will happen more often than not.
Otherwise, we’re all individuals, walking around aimlessly, looking for the nearest shepherd to guide us, and sometimes, that shepherd might not be a good one.
Our team did go on to win that night in a thrilling game, and I’m not saying that their simple prayer that night in the outfield did the trick, because the other team probably said their own prayers as well. But this was also presumably not a one-time thing for our team, and from the looks of it, this act, and this devotion was a constant throughout their season and helped put them in a position to be the champions that they are.
They are truly many parts, but one body in Christ.
They are a flock led by a Shepherd, the One Shepherd, and they do it together, as a team, not individually. I’m so grateful to God that my son got to see this example, and the community who was there saw this, and I am greatly inspired as a result.
It has further inspired me to seek my One True Shepherd in life, surrounding myself with like-minded people, seeking the same thing.
But here’s the other thing. We have a responsibility to not only turn to Christ as our shepherd and let Him guide us, but we also have the responsibility to shepherd people to Him by our own actions – what we say, and what we do – the example we set.
I thank God for the example I saw that night, the example that my son saw. Had our team lost, it still would have been a winning night seeing the example they set and the lesson that my son learned as he begins to grow out in this world. I thank God for His example, for sending us His Son and His Spirit to be our shepherd in life, and I thank Him for the opportunity to shepherd others and be His example out in the world, hopefully leading others to Him.
I never dreamed I would see and learn this at a high-school baseball game, but the simple act of humility and devotion we witnessed I know has inspired many others to seek Him. Keeping God in the forefront, being thankful for all he has blessed us, remaining humble and always trying to give the glory to Him – these are all ways with which we let Him guide us.
Eventually, the balance and discipline and patience leads us and those we shepherd to something special, and as we look to God as our guide – we’re all champions.
