A Lesson From the Atlanta Braves

The joke used to go something like this, "What do the outfielders of the Atlanta Braves and Michael Jackson have in common?" The answer, "They both wear one glove for no apparent reason." Or what about the bumper sticker seen in the 1980's "Go Falcons! and take the Braves with you." The Braves used to take alot of flack for their lack-luster play and their dissappointing seasons. That all ended in the early nineties and they have been in the playoffs ever since. That is until this yearThe inevitable had to happen. They are not going to win their division this year. That is unless a miracle no less in scope than the parting of the Red Sea occurs. And how are Braves fans reacting? They are talking about scrapping the entire line-up and starting over. They want to start at the owner and go all the way to the bat boy. Not all Braves fans are acting this way but enough to get an insight into human nature. Our question is often "What have you done for me lately?" Believe me I know this all about this mind-set. Recently I heard someone say to me, "I don't know how your going to top that sermon Pastor." You know for that person I'll bet the next message was a little dissappointing. I had a preacher say to me one time that any minister's greatest enemy is last week's sermon. He was right. As I met with my Creative Worship Team recently we discussed upcoming series of messages I was preparing for and we talked about how God has been using the creative use of visuals and stories to reach people with the Gospel. The temptation is to try and top what you did last time. Then someone suggested that not every message had to be accompanied with a visual. The message should be enough and that the break would cause the hearers to pay better attention when we do use another object in the message. I was glad to hear that. I needed to be reminded, "I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation..." (Romans 1:16) That is a comforting thought. It is really God and not me. However, I am wondering how that pastor from California got a motor-cross motorcycle on the platform and had it jump over his head while he preached. Cool! Don't tell my wife. She'll thank I'm serious. Hmmm.