Do you know who the last major league player was to hit over .400 for the season? It was Ted Williams in 1941. He wrote his autobiography in 1969 entitled, "My Turn at Bat." In the book he said, "It was the center of my heart, hitting a baseball. Eddie Collins used to say I lived for my next at bat, and that's the way it was. If there was ever a man born to be a hitter it was me."
I read a good story about Ted Williams. The Boston Red Sox came to the final games of the season with a double-header. Ted Williams was batting just over .400. The manager for the Red Sox, Joe Cronin, offered to let Williams sit on the bench for both games. If he did this, he would be guaranteed to keep his .400 average. Ted Williams said no. He said that if he couldn't hit .400 all the way, he didn't deserve it at all. Guess what happened in the double-header? He got six hits in eight times at bat and ended up the season with a .406 average.
We sometimes face decisions like that. There are times that we can "sit one out" by not taking a stand or refusing to get involved. It is easy to sit on the bench and not take a chance. Nothing is risked if we play it safe.
May God forgive us for the times that we have made a calculated choice of sitting on the bench because we did not want to take a risk, of playing it safe. May it be our prayer today to get involved and at least try. Today with the help of Christ, let’s get in the game!
You are invited to worship at First Methodist: Sundays, 9:00 & 11:00 AM Corner of Broad and Kirkman www.fumclc.org