Willie Mays

I learned yesterday that Willie Mays had passed away. It saddened my heart to know he was gone. You might ask, why does a guy who writes about spiritual things talk about a baseball player? Let me explain.

Just before I turned eight years old, we moved from the wilderness of Washington state to Alameda, California. From our apartment if you crossed Shoreline Drive, you could see Candlestick Park across the bay. It was 1963 and the San Francisco Giants were the most amazing thing I had ever seen in sports. They were great! But it was Willie Mays who captured my attention from the first moment I saw him.

The way he played baseball could be called a tenacious joy. There was surprise in all that he did. And you never knew what was coming next. Maybe it was on the bases or his next at bat. And I think he could have played the outfield entirely by himself. He was that fast and that good. I have watched some of the best in their sport play their game above the rest of all the others. But Willie Mays, Man that was something else!

I played a lot of sports over my years. Some of them I was really good at and some not so much. But as I played, the memory of Willie’s enthusiasm, joy, and expertise would come into view, and he would up my game.

Now transferring that into my Christian Walk, do I approach my relationship with God with the same enthusiasm, joy, and expertise that Willie played ball with? Willie never took a day off. Willie never gave a half-hearted effort. And I never saw Willie without a smile on his face. Do I run my race with the same zeal?

Do you?