Day #18
Larry Trotter
Words
of Love
41 “Martha,
Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or
indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away
from her.” Luke 10:41-42 NIV
Overcoming the Barrier
I’ve never been
much of an athlete. I played the “big three” (football, baseball, and basketball—no
soccer when I was a kid) because that’s what you did with your friends, and I
enjoyed it even if I wasn’t very good. Baseball was particularly a struggle
because of all the down time between pitches and batters. You see, I think I’ve
always had focus issues. There was no clinical diagnosis for ADHD when I was a
kid; but I remember hearing “pay attention” a lot. During one
memorable-for-all-the-wrong-reasons game I was out in left field, both
literally and figuratively. That’s where the more distracted – less skilled
kids wound up. I was on the Lion’s Club team and we were playing the team
sponsored by the American Legion post. The coaches didn’t like each other so we
were archrivals. We didn’t know why, we just had our coach’s back. Late in the
game we were ahead by two runs with the American Legion boys at bat with
runners at second and third. Their best hitter stepped up to the plate and our
coach yelled for me to “look alive” because their kid usually hit it into the
outfield. I should point out that the baseball fields were almost adjacent to
A. J. King Lumber Company where, more significantly, A. J. King had an airstrip
and kept his Beechcraft Bonanza. He had recently given me my first plane ride
and I had fallen hopelessly in love with anything that flew. In a twist of fate
that would scar me forever Mr. King had planned a flight that afternoon. When
the batter stepped into the box I heard the 185 horsepower Continental engine
roar to life just beyond the trees. My head snapped in the direction of the
airstrip as the pitcher threw the fist pitch by the batter for a strike. The
coach, again, yelled for me to “look alive.” I looked toward the plate in time
for the next pitch to smack into the catcher’s mitt for another strike. The
batter stepped out, adjusted his batting helmet, and retook his place in the
batter’s box. Then, disaster struck. Just as our pitcher wound up for the next
pitch A. J. King’s Bonanza roared down the grass strip and I turned immeditely
to watch the gleaming silver and blue plane climb up over the trees. Suddenly,
the spell was broken by my coach and most of my teammates screaming “Trotter!”
and pointing behind me where the well-hit ball was rolling deeper into left
field. By the time I could track it down and throw toward home plate they had
scored the winning runs and the game was over. I blinked back tears all the way
home, threw my glove in the bottom of my closet, and settled on my bed with a
Flying magazine. I kept thinking I could have caught it, if I had only seen it.
Sometimes failure
is not so much because of something we can’t do as much as it is something we
just didn’t do because something else came up. The story of Jesus’ dear
friends, Mary and Martha, often sparks debate over who did the right thing.
Task oriented people tend to side with Martha for taking care of their
houseguest. Other folks lean toward Mary’s “my house was clean yesterday too
bad you missed it” attitude. While I’m sure Jesus appreciated Martha’s
hospitality, there was something much bigger at stake. Jesus’ time was limited
and he wanted to make sure his friends understood the kingdom he was ushering
into existence. Jesus wasn’t criticizing Martha as much as he was saying, “look
alive, and don’t miss what’s most important.” He says that to you and me, as
well. We are very busy people doing very important things that can distract us
from the most important things. When we skip devotional time to carve out 15
more minutes for work or other activities, we risk needed time with Jesus going
right over our heads. When people give financial advice they often say we
should pay ourselves first, meaning be sure to save some money. When we take
time to listen to Jesus we are paying ourselves, first. To lose sight of him in
the midst the distractions of life is a failure to keep our eye on the ball. He'll give us abundant life if we’ll just look alive.
Prayer
Dear Jesus, I know you should come first,
but sometimes other concerns come so fast I focus on them and loose sight of
you. Call me back to you when I am loosing you in the confusion of life. In
your name, amen.
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