More than Meets the Eye

In case you haven’t noticed the Sox have been playing very well lately, one player in particular fueling that success. The player is Adrian Gonzalez, the sweet swinging, errorless, first baseman. Currently Gonzalez is hitting .352 with 15 HR and 62 RBI’s. Gonzalez’s career average is .290 so I guess saying Fenway is a good park to hit in is a bit of an understatement, the highest he has hit before this year was .304 in 2006 for the Texas Rangers. While Gonzalez has shown he is very impressive with a bat in his hands, this post is not just about his hitting. As far as hitting goes Gonzalez is living proof (like Ted Williams) that an intimate knowledge of hitting coupled with a love for the game produces great results. While Gonzo may be no Teddy Ballgame, Dan Shaughnessy was wrong to say the two aren’t similar. Even more impressive than his hitting ability is Gonzo’s faith, something I was pleasantly surprised the hear about. Gonzalez took part in an interview and professed a faith that was strong, heartfelt, and more important than baseball. I used to think that to live in the service of God I had to be a monk or something similar. I had to be a missionary or sit at home reading my Bible all day. While those may be the right choices for someone else, Gonzalez has shown that to him, baseball is a way for him to worship God and share the Gospel. Gonzalez talked about how while hitting is good for him; it’s what’s done for Christ that really matters. As I read further into Don’t Waste Your Life by John Piper, and more of my Bible, I’ve begun to see that a life fulfilled is one where what we do revolves around God, not me.