Baseball has been very very good to me...

Lately, I have found myself retreating to the sanctuary of my 12-year-old son's baseball games. It's a great two-hour escape! "Let's see...constitution and by-laws committee meeting?...or baseball? Hmmmmm....BASEBALL!!!" I'm not much of a "meeting-kind-of-guy". I'm not intellectually challenged by debating how old one should be before being allowed to vote in a church business meeting. I weary of debating the intricate nuances of joining the church by letter versus by statement. I would rather watch my son steal second! I am "honored" to chair our state convention's executive board. The title comes with its fair share of meetings. How easy it is to let my mind wander out into the green pastures of left field as we discuss disengaging pastors and their disengaged churches. Tomorrow I will meet for lunch with other pastors in our association. In the midst of our meeting, I'm sure that I will find a way to share of the pounding that my son's team gave to the Johnstown Riders tonight. I will passionately share of his 4 for 4 night at the plate while trying to show interest in the stories that others will tell of stewardship campaigns and parish politics. Even now the smile on my face has turned to despair as I have realized that I have unintentionally allowed a wedding to be scheduled in the midst of the Longmont Tournament this weekend. Perhaps, I'll phone my wife at the baseball field during the wedding's musical interludes in order to keep up with the game's highlights. Yep, I'll be able to make it for the second game if I don't take the time to change first. I'll be the one in the stands in a black suit sporting a lovely red carnation on my jacket's left lapel. Yes indeed...baseball is a wonderful escape! Earlier today, I met with one of our college students from Hawaii who was led to Christ in a campus Bible study by another one of our college students. We talked about the life-changing salvation that Jesus has brought, about the symbol of baptism, and how this student should invite as many friends as possible to come witness the baptism that will take place on Sunday morning. The college student who led this person to Christ will have the honor of conducting the baptism. Funny thing is....I didn't think of baseball even once...