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Begin by reading Mark 11:12-26
I’m an avid baseball fan and am looking forward to the upcoming season. You know, I really love a game that comes down to the wire. It’s during these games that strategy becomes important, and we often see managerial moves that otherwise wouldn’t occur. One of those moves is bringing in a pinch hitter. This is someone who is not in the starting lineup who replaces a batter. Managers will do this to throw off the opposing pitcher from what he was expecting. Sometimes he will do this if the regular batter doesn’t fair well against the pitcher and in the situation. Or sometimes the manager just wants to try his luck. There’s nothing more exciting than a pinch hitter coming through with a clutch hit to extend or win the game. Well, as long as he’s on the team you’re routing for.
Being a servant of God, sometimes we’re called to be a pinch hitter. Take a look at the gifts that are listed in Romans 12:6-8 – prophesying, serving, teaching, encouraging, giving, leading, showing mercy. What do you notice? Well, hopefully, you’re doing these to some extent or another. You may not be gifted at giving, but if everyone used that as an excuse not to give, we would be in a pretty sad state. Likewise, you may not have the gift of encouragement, but we are all still called to encourage each other.
It may help to think of it in terms of a baseball team. You might not be the starting player or the captain when it comes to teaching, but that doesn’t mean that you’re off the hook. You never know when the Coach will call upon you to teach. Maybe it won’t be a sermon, but it might be a one-on-one situation.
In today’s reading, we find what might seem an unreasonable Lord. How can a fig tree be expected to produce fruit out of season? Well, Jesus was teaching us a lesson and used a tree to make the point. We are sometimes out of season. Maybe we aren’t prepared, maybe we’re not in playoff form, or maybe we’re not gifted in an area. But the Lord still expects us to produce. While it’s important to know your calling and focus in that area, don’t let that become an excuse for not serving when needs arise.
I think here the phrase living sacrifice is especially fitting. Often times, a manager will bring in a pinch hitter who is good at laying down a bunt. This player is expected to put the ball gently in play, and his role is to advance the other player. It is a near certainty that the batter will get thrown out in the play, but this is why it’s called a sacrifice. Sometimes, God may call on us to serve in areas and situations where we may not feel best suited. Maybe we just flat out don’t want to do something. These are the moments we need to remember our primary calling. We are living sacrifices. This is where we need to say, “Not my will, but Thine be done.”
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