Baseball and Church

Ok, I am officially tired of baseball. I get so frustrated. I am sick about it. Don't get me wrong I love the game. There is just something so cool about something with so much history and so much fun. A day at a real ballpark with your family while costly is very relaxing.

What I don't understand though is the refusal to go to instant replay. In tonight's game six of the NLCS a batter was hit by a pitch but the umpire called it a wild pitch which means the guy on third base could run home. If it was called a hit batter then the batter would go to first, but the runner could not come home. On replay, he was clearly hit. Major League Baseball has forgotten the purpose of the umpire -- to get the calls right. In their stubbornness they hold on to being "pure" and refuse to use instant replay which would arguably speed the game up not slow it down. I don't suggest they use replay or computers to make every call but something has to change. No one can argue that instant replay would get more calls wrong or that it would hurt the umpires in fulfilling their purpose.

It reminds me of something we do in church. So many of our congregations forget our purpose -- to help non Christians come to know Christ and to help us all grow closer, to each other and to God. Sometimes we get so caught up in tradition that we refuse to change and to do things will help us become more welcoming to outsiders. We have to be willing to look at how we do what we do and decide if there is a way to do it that will help us connect to non-churched people. The function of church, -its purpose- needs to be a constant steady thing over time. The form of church- how we do the function- needs to be fluid and moving so that we can fulfill our mission. I have spoken to members of churches that say, "we do it this way because it is what we like. Doing it the other way isn't sinful and might help us reach people, but we don't really like it." The congregations have forgotten their purpose.

I'll still watch baseball. I'll still be in church Sunday Morning. I love baseball. I love my church.

God, Please help me be open and fluid to your will in my life. Help me keep my eyes and heart focused on you and let your love flow through me to the world.