Today’s Scripture Reading (July 26,
2013): Psalm 116 & 117
It
is the time of year for sports fans of preparation. While Major League Baseball
gets ready to enter the second half of the season, in North America the
National Football, Basketball and Hockey Leagues have turned their focus to the
season that will start in the next few months. And while hope reigns supreme
for the fans, this tends to be the most selfish time of the year for the
players. It is the period of free agency and of the signing of that next
contract – a time when players argue about what their worth.
I
recently read a story of a young Russian Hockey player that had been drafted
into the National Hockey League who stated that he might come to North America
to play hockey if things did not work out in Russia. And the question that hit
me as I read the article was – what does that exactly mean. I totally
understand sports players who want to play out their careers in their native
countries - with the teams that they have been fans of all the way through
their lives – but that is seldom an “if things don’t work out” situation. I am
convinced that we are the ones that are in control of what does or does not
work out. The closing statement of the article was the players comment that if
he did come to play in North America, he would prove to the North American fans
how good Russian players are. I love the confidence, but the truth is that
North American sports leagues are filled with players who continually trying to
show people how good they are. And they are laboring hard on losing teams –
and I think there might just be a connection. Team sports are rarely about just
the abilities of the individual players.
Championships
in Team Sports usually seem to go to the team that works together the best. This
is the reason why there are sometimes blue collar teams that seem to lack the
star power of their rivals, and yet it is these teams that win the
championships. (In the recently completed Hockey season, here enters the
Pittsburgh Penguins, or in Basketball the Los Angeles Lakers, both of whom
seemed on paper to be better teams than the eventual outcomes revealed.) Star power is seldom enough to win championships.
So, to return to the case of the young Russian Hockey player, if I was a fan of
the team that drafted him my question would not be are you good enough – but
rather will you fit in with the team dynamics and make the team better. Because
in the end, as a fan I really don’t care how good you are – I want to know
whether you are going to be able to bring the coveted championship to my home
city.
The
Psalmist knows that he and the nation have been delivered from something. In
sports terminology, he realizes that the contract has been offered and signed.
He is now playing for the home team. But he also realizes that the contract has
not been signed because he is good enough. It has been signed with the
understanding that he will “walk before the Lord.” This command would seem to
indicate that he will be willing to be obedient to the God that had lifted him
out of his distress and work hard in the direction of that God’s purpose. But
the command does not stop there – he is expected to do it in the land of the
living – or in the company and community of others. God’s expectation is that he
will be part of the team that will complete the will of God on earth – ultimately
making this world a better place and metaphorically bringing the championship
home.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Psalm
118
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