Proverbs 16:2-3All a person's ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord. Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.

Recently someone spoke to me of home runs. He seemed to speak with amazement and wonder. But I wonder if it is really something to marvel at. Please bear with my labored sports metaphor.

Whether we contemplate the greatest hitters of all time or the average hitter, certain things are a given in the game. When we walk to the plate, many variables are out of our control and each attempt is a once in a lifetime situation. Whether it is a pitcher we have never faced or simply the uncertainty of what pitch will be thrown next, we struggle to predict what will come next. Even on days when we are on our home field where we have practiced and we are facing our best known opponents, we still don't control the wind, the brightness of the sun, or the noise and distraction of the crowd. And what about when the bat shatters?

Then there is the uncertainty of traveling to an unfamiliar ballpark. Every field has a different distance to the fence. Some ballparks are famous for unforgiving conditions like swirling winds. Fenway park even has the Green Monster at 37 feet 2 inches in height. No player, no matter how great or how many home runs he has hit in the past, controls whether he hits a homerun on a given pitch or even on a specific day. If a person could do that, then he or she would hit a home run at every at bat when the reality is that the best of the best get on base one out of three times. Home runs are so rare that the best of the best hit a homer one percent of the time.

As humans competing against humans, we don't control the field or the fence. We don't control the other players. We don't control the weather. So it all comes down to how we play the game.

I'm going to propose something a shocking. What if we play the game as if there is no fence? Instead of aiming for the fence, what if we listen to Jesus and realize the fence isn't the point of the game? What if we play the game so that every hit is a home run not because we view ourselves as the star, but because God guides our effort. What if we spend our time taking down the fence or at least placing it where the person we are facing can hit a home run too.

God's love is universal. It is infinite. It is a home run every time at bat. It knows no fence or boundary of any kind. I think I will live in a world where God built my ball field.

Prayer

Let us go to the Lord in prayer, as the organ plays, as we step to the plate, may Your plan be what guides us. May we persevere when we strike out. May we give the glory to you, Lord, when we hit the proverbial home run. Teach us how to lower the fence for those that need our help. Let us all play ball together in the name of the one who built the ball park, Amen.

This devotional was written by Jill Pope and read by Susan Daves.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

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