Baseballs, Brats, And Bangs!

July 1, 2021

Baseballs, Brats, And Bangs!

I walked by the baseball fields west of the hospital earlier this week.  I noticed that every ball diamond was full of young children and students as well as crowds of family and friends.  I heard shouts of encouragement from coaches as well as coaching from parents and excited fans.  It all made me so happy!

I have also been catching a bit of the College World Series baseball games in Omaha.  The teams playing in the series are so good.  The coaches know how to develop young players.  The players are fully committed to doing their best.  And winning for the team is more important than being the person that gets all the attention.  It leaves me so inspired!

Baseball is one of those sports that feels “All American.”  Add some things like apple pie and ice cream, grilling burgers and brats with friends, and watching fireworks on Independence Day and my heart is filled with gratitude.  I give thanks to God that I live in America!

Baseballs, brats, and the bangs of fireworks are simple things that make me grateful for the freedom I know in America.  So on Independence Day, I will give thanks to Jesus that our country still dreams of peace and justice and compassion for every person. 

I give thanks to God because I still believe that people who love Jesus can be the kind of family or school or city or nation that becomes more and more like the Kingdom of God.  Psalm 146:5 describes what happens when we look to the Lord God for help. 

The Psalmists writes; “Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God.”  Joy comes to those who place their faith in the Lord God.  Maybe the reason we are occasionally or even frequently unhappy is because we are placing our faith in something or someone other than Jesus. 

Faith in Jesus is what brings hope and releases joy in a person, in a family, and in a nation.  The Psalmist goes on to describe the character of the Lord God in whom we place our hope. 

In Psalm 146:7-10 the Psalmist says that the Lord is the one…who executes justice for the oppressed; who gives food to the hungry.  The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.  The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous.  The Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.  The Lord will reign forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations.  Praise the Lord!”

That sounds like the King of Kings!  That sounds like the Kingdom of God!  That sounds like the nation we pray our nation becomes! 

People need hope that what they are experiencing today is not all that the Lord intended our lives to be; there is more!  In “The Lord’s Prayer” we ask our Heavenly Father to bring the Kingdom of God now.  We pray; “…thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  We pray for a taste of heaven on earth today.  We pray for the Kingdom of God to come on earth today. 

Whenever we pray “The Lord’s Prayer” we are praying that the Lord will reign on earth so there is peace and justice and compassion for every person.  This is my prayer for our nation and our world on this Independence Day.

I know that when we catch a glimpse of the Kingdom of God, our hearts and minds and souls are filled with delight in what the Lord is doing.  May your delight in the Lord fill your heart on Independence Day.

Take Delight In The Lord!

Doug