Daily Diary - February 3rd 2016

No Strikeouts

(Parable of Choices)

Baseball is a great sport and like any aspect of life the foundation of God’s word is the foundation for success and failure.

I had a dream about standing in the batter’s box. In this dream I remember being afraid that I might strike out. The reason that I am afraid is that I realize I already have two strikes on me when I am approaching the plate. 

Being a part of baseball my entire life, I have looked at the success of hitters with different counts. The highest batting average or chance of success is when the count is three balls and no strikes or three balls and one strike. The lowest chance of success comes when the count is no balls and two strikes. These statistics are true from Little League to the major leagues.

With 2 strikes I would always be more tense at the plate and hunker down in a defensive mode just trying not to strikeout.

The part of this dream that became a revelation to me is the count that I am batting with. I asked the question, “Why do I always have two strikes on me when I get in the batter’s box?” The answer was revealed to me. I had been going through life swinging at bad pitches and making bad decisions when the enemy would tempt me.

Question:  Do you feel like your going through life with 2 strikes?

I realized at this point that the enemy is like a crafty left-hander on the mound. He has been pitching the game for a long time and knows the Word of God. He is able to deceive us with tough pitches, especially when we are unable to realize the difference between good and bad decisions or “pitches” that we face.

Whenever he would throw me a curve ball that looked good to my flesh, I would swing at it and miss the pitch and that would be strike one, a decision that would represent what a bad choice might be getting angry and flying off the handle or some might party all night and decide to drive their vehicle while drinking. If you have lived life long enough you will realize that one bad choice often leads to another.

Question of the day:  What are some of the bad pitches in life that you swing at?

When we don’t know the “voice of truth” that comes from the Holy Spirit of God and His word, we are only capable of listening to the voice of the enemy. He is the only one talking – the one who is leading us into the lies that put us in a zero balls and two strike count in life. The enemy is the author of lies and deception. The Word tells us that we perish by lack of knowledge.

John 10:10The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

We must be committed to listening to the truth of God’s Word and be obedient to it. When we do, we will recognize which decisions the enemy is throwing at us that are bad pitches at which to swing. These are the pitches that we are unable to hit. They put us in the batter’s box one pitch from striking out. When we swing at the enemy’s tricks we will walk through life in fear of the next pitch and carry with us the past bad decisions that we have made to put us in that situation.  We become paranoid that the next pitch is going to strike us out in life. This is not the way God intended our lives to be.

When we have knowledge of the truth of God’s Word, we stop swinging at the enemy’s junk. We start taking all those bad pitches as balls and go through life with a three ball and zero strike count. With this three and zero count, we are walking through life unafraid of what the enemy throws at us because we are not swinging. We become effective at making good decisions and wait for the fast pitches down the middle that we can hit out of the park. We have joy and peace and others can learn from us how to get in the box against an enemy that can’t strike us out.

The bottom line is that we need to teach the Word of God and help others understand the difference between the enemy’s plan and God’s plan. When we grow in knowledge of the Word, we start to make better decisions. Once you understand the truth, it will set you free, just as it says in the Word. Once you begin to operate in this freedom, you want more and more. It begins to work in your life and you hunger for the truth. That hunger continues to grow and you will desire to have more.

Father, we thank you for your Word.  I pray we begin to know you more and understand the pitches that the enemy is throwing at us.  Give us clear wisdom of the choices that we face so we can determine when not to swing in Jesus Name! Amen.