The young man playing third base for the Washington Nationals was interviewed after winning the World Series in 2019. The announcer commented that the player’s resting heartbeat must be about four and jump to twelve when excited. He asked, “How are you able to project such peace and calm through intense competition?” Anthony Rendon responded, “I understand there are bigger things going on in this world. My Savior is Jesus the Christ and He gave me patience and that slow heart rate.”
Oswald Chambers, author of My Utmost for His Highest, has said, “Seeing is never believing; we interpret what we see in the light of what we believe.” Believing in God provides a lens through which the world is viewed – God is sovereign over all things. Believing in self provides an opposing lens through which to view the world – Man is sovereign over all things. In The Great Divorce, C.S. Lewis writes, “There are two types of people in the world – Those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, ‘Okay, thy will be done.’”
“Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand. … Who shut up the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb, when I made the clouds its garment and wrapped it in thick darkness, when I fixed limits for it and set its doors and bars in place, when I said, ‘This far you may come and no farther; here is where your proud waves halt’?” … Then Job answered the Lord: “I am unworthy – how can I reply to You?” – Job 38:4, 8-11; 40:3-4. Job’s worldview got rocked when God removed His hedge of protection around Job and allowed the devil to tempt him. While he did not understand why these calamities had come upon him, he refused to curse God. In this passage, Job was reminded that in the midst of suffering physical pain and the loss of loved ones, God is still sovereign. And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him. – Romans 8:28. A worldview that embraces God as sovereign with eyes fixed on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith (Heb.12:2) gives a dad the grounding needed to coach his kids through the body blows life deals teenagers – the first broken heart, puberty, friends not acting like friends, the first failing grade, getting cut during tryouts and pressure to perform to name a few. The charge is for dads and moms to keep the home grounded in a Christian worldview.
During the interview, Anthony went on to say that playing baseball “is better than taking bullets for your country on the other side of the world. This (game) should be a breeze for us.” Anthony had a passion for baseball from a very young age. At some point, he developed a passion for his faith, a personal relationship with his Savior and Lord Jesus. Walking in a worldview with Jesus at the center projects peace and calm. As dads embrace a Christian worldview, a peace and calm will be projected for the kids to catch.
Prayer guide: Lord, I thank You for Your Word and Your sovereignty in this world. I confess that I was the one I believed in as an ‘overcomer’ in this world. That secular worldview did not produce peace and calm in our home. Forgive me. By Your grace, I began to embrace a Christian worldview that helped me navigate through the noise of this world grounded in a relationship with You. Help me coach my family in a Christian worldview that projects peace and calm in my marriage and home. That is the dad You call me to be and that’s the dad the next generation needs. Amen.
A faithful father coaches his family in a Christian worldview.
The young man playing third base for the Washington Nationals was interviewed after winning the World Series in 2019. The announcer commented that the player’s resting heartbeat must be about four and jump to twelve when excited. He asked, “How are you able to project such peace and calm through intense competition?” Anthony Rendon responded, “I understand there are bigger things going on in this world. My Savior is Jesus the Christ and He gave me patience and that slow heart rate.”
