Yelling.
Yelling of all types.
The coach: What do ya say, kid? Keep your form. Don't chase.
The teammates: You got this. Head up. You know what to do.
The opposing team: Be ready.
The parents in the stands watching the baseball game: You got it, guys.
I observe this as I sit among the parents, only 40 feet away from first base. Every parent is cheering for the kids on either side. It's Jr. High baseball - low stakes. Well, we say it's low stakes, but see what the next batter is after.
Some parents' voices carry over the distance, loud, piercing. At times funny and at times urgent.
I observe their kid in the dugout or in the batter's box. How do they pay attention amid all the voices? They dial in.
Some kids have been at this for a while, and some are just starting, like my kid. Some are happy, and some are frustrated with the game or their season, just not getting hits or making plays.
In what would be an average at-bat, the wind stirs, the defense gets in its posture, and the pitcher delivers. One of our kids hits it, and cheers fill the field and echo into the woods, especially his dad's.
A race to the first base bag! He makes it. Dust flies. Teammates are happy. The runner dusts himself off and dabs his fists with his coach. The next play resumes as the runner looks into the stands, seeing his dad smile, giving him a thumbs up.
More than the hit, the boy wanted the smile of pleasure from his dad.
Trinity Sunday & Why It Sticks
There is something sneakily profound happening at Jesus' baptism. With John is a large group of strangers supporting each other. It's one thing to be there, look around, and see your sibling, school friends, or neighbors.
What a relief to be able to fix your eyes on a familiar face in such a crowd. Kind of like how kids look for their families' faces in the school concert. You'd tiptoe into the water, and they'd smile. John would speak to you about the meaning of this baptism, and they'd nod. You'd go under, come up, and you'd see what happiness for you looked like.
Imagine yourself there. Imagine the face you'd want to look for.
Now comes Jesus. Familiar to John, but unknown by so many in that crowd. No neighbors calling his name from the bank. No childhood friends leaning forward in the reeds. He goes down into the water as a stranger.
Then he comes up.
And the affirmation comes, but not from the crowds.
A voice from heaven says: You are my beloved Son. In you I am well pleased.
The voice comes, the Spirit descends. What is happening is not just a public announcement; it is the eternal relationship of the Trinity being made visible.
In our baptism and through the grace of God, we are united to Christ, and we join in the circle of delight. What God says to Jesus, God says to us. What the Spirit confirms in Jesus, the Spirit confirms in us. And our life, our worship is just that, reflecting back to God what we have received: love, benevolence, and other-centeredness.
As we work, worship, and live our lives, may we sense the full brightness of God's smile upon us.
Bible Verses about Jesus' Love
The love of Jesus is not a sentiment. It is the most active, the most costly, and the most transformative force in human history: the love that sought the lost, touched the untouchable, ate with the excluded, wept with the bereaved, and ultimately went to the cross for the people who had abandoned him. Understanding the love of Jesus is the beginning of everything . . . [Read More]
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For Your Sunday
This Sunday, the lectionary places two kinds of calling side by side. Abram leaves everything on the strength of a promise. Matthew gets up from his tax table at a single word. In both cases, God moves first. {Continue to Liturgy}
May this liturgy bless you and your congregation.
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