May 18 - Proverbs 19:3

People ruin their lives

by their own foolishness and

then are angry at the Lord.

Proverbs 19:3

On the sports shows last night, I heard a commentator discuss a talented young pitcher.

He’s a fire-baller. Unfortunately his temper is as heated as his fastball. Though one of the most talented pitchers in the game, he’d just lost a game. It’s inevitable. But he was class-less in his loss, blaming the rest of the team for the loss.

The commentator contrasted that to another talented pitcher that night. He’d pitched a masterpiece, but when he came out, the relief pitchers blew the game. This pitcher was much more classy. He didn’t blame others for the loss. He said essentially, “We play as a team. Sometimes I pitch well, and we lose as a team. Sometimes I pitch poorly, and my team picks me up. Win-or-lose, we’re a team.”

We know class and class-less-ness when we see it. Sometimes however it’s harder to see in ourselves. We live in a culture of victimization. Too many want to take bows for their successes, but too few want to take responsibility for their mistakes. It’s become standard to blame someone else.

Sports – done right – can teach us gracious winning and losing.

So can the Proverbs.

It’s a world-wide epidemic to go our own way … go our own way … go our own way … and then blame God when we get broken, human, or unintended results.

We live in a world of victimization. The solution is to follow His way … follow His way … follow His way … and then be thankful for whatever the results … trusting that good results are a blessing from the Lord … and realizing that challenges may lead to perseverance and perseverance may lead to character and character may lead to greater faith and sustaining hope.

In Christ’s Love,

a non-victim