Foul Ball!

Ask anyone in my family a fun fact about me and they would say, “Kristen thinks sporting events are really social events that just involve a ball.” It’s true. I’d rather converse than compete and since athletics involves people, I like to socialize. I drive my competitive counterpart crazy and he’s always elbowing me to watch an exciting play or if one of our kids has the ball!

We took advantage of a beautiful Saturday afternoon recently to attend a championship game for our local high school girls’ softball team. Chad and I unfolded our bleacher seats and settled in – him to watch the game and me to chat with a friend next to me. Suddenly, the sound of the bat smacking loudly against the ball snapped my attention back to home plate. The crowd groaned, and a few people yelled, “heads up!” I squinted my eyes toward the blue sky and saw the bright yellow ball sailing through the air like Haley’s comet and the path of its trajectory was heading right towards me!

I had a few seconds to determine my next move. Do I get up, grab onto the shoulders of those in front of me and quickly make my way down the bleachers? Do I elbow my friend to scoot down, so the ball can hit and bounce off? Do I cover my head and duck? All these thoughts were running through my head as the ball was coming closer! What did I do? I froze! I couldn’t decide when suddenly Chad stood up, reached out his hands and caught the ball! The crowd cheered as if he made the game-winning catch and I let out a huge sigh of relief!

We were reliving the moment in the car on the way home. I admitted I was a little frightened because I knew if the ball hit me, it would hurt and then I asked, “What were you thinking?” He just chuckled and said, “I got this.” I shook my head. I should have known that’s what he would say. One, because he’s more athletic than me and hard balls screeching through the air don’t scare him and, two, because we respond to most situations differently.

Marriage is a relationship made up of two very different people… and that’s a good thing! We have different strengths that are meant to complement, not compete, with one another. Imagine if both of us just sat frozen in the bleachers! Imagine if both of us stood and fought to catch the ball! Marriage is a team sport where both husband and wife have unique skills and strengths that will be needed at various times. Next time a foul ball comes your way, there’s no reason to freeze in fear or fight in anger, simply rely on your teammate’s strength and that’s how you’ll win the game!

“Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, ‘My gracious favor is all you need. My power works best in your weakness’.” 2 Corinthians 12:9