Character Still Matters

 

“Character may be manifested in the great moments, 

but it is made in the small ones.” Phillips Brooks

   I wonder if A. Bartlett Giamatti is spinning in his grave. Giamatti, one time Commissioner of Major League Baseball, will be forever remembered as the man who banned baseball legend, Pete Rose for life after it was discovered Rose was gambling on baseball games, including those of his own team, the Cincinnati Reds. A chapter in the book of the baseball writings of Giamatti, A Great and Glorious Game, unpacks the intense struggle Giamatti had before determining Rose should be banned for life. 

  What a contrast to another former commissioner of baseball, Faye Vincent, who recently stated that “character” should be removed as an issue for the election of individuals to the hall of fame. In other words, in an argument that we’ve heard ad nauseam in recent decades, character doesn’t matter. But in our heart we all know that it does. While Vincent was willing to give PED users a pass, at least he held the line that Rose should be permanently banned. 

  When it comes to American politics, particularly presidential politics, character issues have continually entered into the national debate, whether it was Bill Clinton in the 1990s or Donald Trump in the present. When Trump was running for president and his debauchery was well-known, even some Christians sought to rationalize it away with “I’m voting for a president, not a pastor” (not that most of the other choices were individuals of sterling character).

  In spite of our blusters we all know that character matters…and in our day to day lives, we live that way. For example, if you knew that your financial consultant had been convicted of embezzling, would character matter? If you learned that your cardiologist had lost several malpractice lawsuits, would character matter? Or, if you learned that your favorite restaurant had continual health code violations, would character matter?

  Currently, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is in the hot seat with his political future in jeopardy. Recently, Boris Johnson addressed Parliament to defend his continuation as Prime Minister because of a report with 500 pages of evidence and more than 300 photographs of Johnson and his staff flouting his own COVID lockdown rules. He required, with police power, the citizens of the U.K. to obey those rules, while he and his own staff flaunted those very same rules. Sadly, the flouting of rules by the rule makers is an all too common occurrence during this pandemic.

  Please understand, character is NOT sinlessness. The only person to live a sinless life was the Lord Jesus. Though Christians will struggle with their sin nature until they get to heaven and receive their perfected and glorified bodies, by God’s grace, we must strive to sin less. We must seek to be individuals of godly character because God is all about character.

  What is character? Evangelist D.L Moody had this to say about character: “Character is what you are in the dark” and “True character is what we are when nobody’s looking, in the secret chambers of the heart.”

  Character is more than talk. Anyone can say they have integrity but their behavior is the true indicator. James 2:18, “But someone will say, ‘You have faith, and I have works.’ Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” One of the first places character flaws show up is in our language patterns. When we are “in integrity,” we speak from a place of honesty and wholeness. Words match actions. As Dr. Seuss put it, “We say what we mean and we mean what we say.” When we break from this pattern and say things we don’t really mean, we jettison godly character, moving out of integrity. “Your walk talks and your talk talks but your walk talks louder than your talk talks.”

  Talent is a gift, character is a choice. There are many things in our life that we have no control over. We don’t get to pick our parents, our upbringing, our talents, our IQ, but each of us can choose our character. We create character every time we make choices.

  Maybe that’s part of our attraction to superheroes. These very talented individuals are so unlike what we commonly think of as celebrities. They really are the good guys.

  It’s certainly why a Tim Tebow is loved and admired. Despite all of the mocking and Tebowing memes, no one seriously questions his character. At one point he had the world watching him, waiting for him to crack under the pressure of being a self-proclaimed role model. To his credit he never did. The only thing that Tebow has devoted his life to more than football, is helping others. He’s gone to Africa countless times as a missionary and has helped countless children through his “Tim Tebow Foundation.” He isn’t just a great athlete to look up to, Tebow is a great person of character to aspire to be. 

  A lack of character carries a high price. Other than the most avid sports fans, once an athlete’s abilities wane, if they’re not a person of character and because of it were admired outside the game, the memory of them soon drops into the dustbin of history. Even in our personal lives the teachers, neighbors or former bosses we remember were often men and women of character. Character is what made them stand out and adhere to the pages of our memory. They went the extra mile to do the right thing and often did the right thing when others did not or when it was unpopular.

  God’s intent is that each of us develop character throughout our lives as Jesus did, “Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man” (Luke 2:52). God values character and so must we. Too often in our homes and churches we focus on the passing standards of a dying world and place character on a backburner. Yet, it is godly character that pleases God and wears well when talent and other abilities are long gone.

  A man took his daughter to the carnival, and she immediately ran over to a booth and asked for cotton candy. As the attendant handed her a huge ball of it, her Dad asked, “Sweetheart, are you sure you can eat all of that?” “Don’t worry,” she answered, “I’m a lot bigger on the inside than on the outside.” That’s what real character is – being bigger on the inside. 

  As an old German Proverb says: “When wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health is lost, something is lost; when character is lost, all is lost.”

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address. 

Take me out to the...church!

 “A hot dog at the ballgame beats roast beef at the Ritz.” 

                                                  Humphrey Bogart

 

It's as American as apple pie, hot dogs, and Uncle Sam. Baseball prides itself in curses, superstitions, and strange rituals. Baseball helps boys and girls pass the time in the heat and magic of summer. They can meet in dusty neighborhood ballparks to play a game or two, or watch their home team play. Some of my fondest childhood memories are of playing a game of ball in the front yard of my home in Atlanta. 

  One hundred sixty-two games a season. Nine innings per game. Three outs to end half an inning. Three strikes and you’re out. Four balls a walk. Eight playoff teams. One championship. Baseball is known for its confusing and often laborious statistics on nearly everything that goes on in the game. ERA, RBI, OPS, batting averages, home runs, steals, wins, strikeouts, saves, shutouts, walks, and hits. The complexity that comes from this simple, slow-paced game is what makes baseball beautiful. Families bond through the traditions of going to see a game, the seven-inning stretch, and the ceremonial first pitch. 

  So I have a Major League Baseball confession to make. When I attend a baseball game, I feel kind of like I do when I go to church. A perfectly manicured ballpark has to be one of the most beautiful works of art to be found in our world. Late baseball commissioner, Bart Giamatti, was fond of talking about the unusual symmetry and beauty of the game and its parks. The simple enjoyment of taking in the confident uniqueness and beauty of a well-worn and well-kept ballpark is enough to savor. And I’ve always appreciated the fact that baseball fans are not simply drawn to the atmosphere of the event like many football fans are (for many tailgating is the main event and the game is anticlimactic). Generally, baseball fans love the game with all of its quirky nuances. This love for the game rarely begins in the abstract. There’s often a particular time, place, and person. 

  Have you ever noticed when baseball players are asked about the origination of their love of the game, often their first words are, “my dad” or at some point “there was this little park in my hometown,” catch with Dad, countless conversations, or the soil of a particular baseball diamond. 

  When you arrive at the ballpark of your favorite team, often a couple of hours early (after all, infield and batting practice possess a beauty all their own) the other people you see are ethnically, socioeconomically and culturally diverse, yet many essentially have the same story; playing catch and a sandlot in their hometown. A time, a place, and a person provide a wonderful rootedness in a transient rootless culture. It also explains why people who sit beside each other at baseball games nearly always chat. They talk about the game they’re watching and their general love of the game. No matter how different their socio-economic background they often possess a common metanarrative related to their love of the great game. 

  Yet, as much as I appreciate the inherent beauty of an empty ballpark and its idiosyncratic design, it was built for a game to be played and for stands to be filled. No other day in sports possesses the excitement and hopefulness of an opening day. Baseball season doesn’t just begin; it’s celebrated, from tiny, dusty, rural diamonds to Yankee Stadium. Unlike any other sport, the beginning of a new baseball season births a newness and hopefulness that this just may be the year for your favorite team (perhaps with the exception of Cubs fans). 

  There’s a sense, as Thomas Boswell wrote, that “time begins on Opening Day.” This hopefulness is warranted because baseball depends as much on the intangibles as it does 40-yard dash times and bench press maxes. A baseball equivalent of the NFL combine would be essentially worthless. 

  You really can measure what made Babe Ruth a great player. A baseball team’s success depends a lot on clubhouse chemistry. As you drive to the park or turn on the TV to watch your favorite team, you’re right to be full of hope…this just might be their year. 

  Personally, I love the rhythm of baseball. The uninitiated see the length of the season as a knock against baseball, but it’s that very element that makes the game such a powerful metaphor for life. A sport where one loss ruins an entire season and perfection is an attainable goal is at odds with the managed failure of our actual lives. The 2011 World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals lost 72 games that season – 45% of the regular season. 

  Babe Ruth had a .342 batting average. That means his failure average was .658. Managed failure in the pursuit, not of perfection, but greater consistency. It’s something that resonates with my own Christian walk. 

  Yet, as much as I love and enjoy baseball, it pales when compared to my love and enjoyment of the gathered church. One of my favorite moments every Sunday is walking in to our church and seeing the eternally hope-filled faces of people from different ethnic, socioeconomic, and cultural backgrounds. Ordinary people involved in extraordinary work. A group of people who’d never have gotten together if not for the fact they possess a common metanarrative as it relates to the cross and the saving love of Jesus Christ. Their stories are all different and yet at their core they’re all the same. No one begins to follow Christ in the abstract. There was a time, a place and a person when they heard the Good News and believed. Even though they may not have been cognizant of it (who remembers their natural birth?), the new birth took place. Now their lives are forever rooted in His grace. As they gather for a worship service to celebrate the resurrected Christ, they’ve struggled all week and often failed. But their goal is not perfection (their Savior was the perfect substitute in their place) just simply greater consistency. Worship is a precious gift built into the rhythm of our lives. Every weekend is full of newness and hope through faith in Jesus Christ no matter our failure. 

  Baseball isn’t heaven. It’s certainly not church, which is a glorious taste and window of heaven on earth. But I do confess, baseball reminds me of church and for that, I’m glad and say with renewed gusto, “Play ball!”

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address.