Eli’s Story: The Power of Christian Sports

By John Re

As a new kid in the neighborhood, I was not sure how easy it would be to make friends. My name is Eli and my parents and I moved here from another state when my dad’s company moved their offices. To be honest, I was against the move but being only twelve years old, I did not have much say.

So, there I was in a new town; no friends and nothing to do because I did not know anyone. I have always been generally outgoing and friendly but sometimes opening up has been a struggle. I usually made friends through baseball. Just one problem — the only league I found in this new town was a church baseball league. I had never even come close to setting foot in a church my entire life, so I had no clue what to expect. But I thought, baseball is baseball — so, let’s play ball!

The morning after discovering the church league, I woke up and went to the kitchen for breakfast.

“What do you have planned for today?” Mom asked.

“I am going to the baseball fields to see if I can find a team to play on.”

“I know how much you like to play so good luck.”

I headed to the nearest baseball diamond and started looking. As soon as I got there, I noticed a team practicing. Every position on the field was taken. I thought, this could be harder than I was hoping it would be. I drummed up courage to walk up to the coach.

“Excuse me, Coach. My name is Eli. Do you, by any chance, have room for one more?”

The coach turned to me and said, “Good morning, Eli. I’m Coach Jacob and we always have room for one more. Why don’t you take second base and catch some balls.”

I was so happy, I rushed onto the field.

“Hey, Eli,” Coach said. “I think it might help if you had your glove, don’t you?”

“Yes, Coach.” When I went back and grabbed my glove, everyone was laughing but being supportive, saying, “It’s okay, Eli. We’ve all done it!”

Everyone was so welcoming that I made friends much faster than I expected. As we practiced, all the team members introduced themselves, which allowed me to relax. After practice, we gathered around the pitcher’s mound for a team meeting. The coach encouraged us, letting us know how much he appreciated our hard work. Then he asked us to bow our heads for a quick prayer before we went home. Coach said he would let me know when the next practice was being held.

On the way home, my teammate, Robbie, introduced himself.

“Where did you move here from?” he asked.

“Georgia. My Dad got transferred here.”

“Well, I think you’ll like it here. This is a very quiet town.”

I was thinking about how different this would be from my last town. It was so busy there it was like living on a highway. People were always on the go. I told Robbie how crazy my old town was.

“I could never live like that,” Robbie said. “I’m thankful God brought me here.”

A New Perspective

When I woke up the next morning, my mother was eager to hear more about my day. “How did it go yesterday?”

“It went great!”

“I knew you would be fine. But, what’s that look on your face?? I thought everything went great.”

“One of the kids I met said God brought him to this town and I didn’t understand what that means.”

My mom smiled. “There are people in the world that follow God in their everyday activities and lives. There is a book called the Holy Bible and they say it has answers to all of life’s questions and problems. We don’t generally believe in that but I do read the Bible.”

I paused for a few moments and thought about what it all meant. “Mom, can I read your Bible and see if I can figure out what it means?” She was very happy to give it to me.

I started reading the Bible but, honestly, the wording was a little hard for me to understand. I put the Bible in my bag and went to play baseball. I asked Robbie if he understood the Bible when he read it. He told me some things were easier to make sense of than others. When he had questions, he asked Coach – also the head pastor of the local church. I decided to follow his lead.

After practice, I asked Coach if he had a few minutes.

“Always,” he said. “What’s up?”

“Well, I was reading the Bible and had some trouble understanding what I was reading.”

“Interesting.” I could tell Coach was thinking hard about how to answer my question. Finally he looked down and said, “Do you have plans tonight at 6:00 p.m.?”

“No.”

“Come to church and I will help you in any way I can.”

When I arrived that evening, about eight others were there with their Bibles in hand. Apparently, I’d been invited to join a Bible study. The people were so accepting. Like me, they had questions about the Bible. The more I attended Bible studies, baseball practices and games, the easier it became for me to understand what I was reading in Scripture. I found myself surrounded by friends who helped me make the transition into the person I wanted to be. God also showed me how he works in our lives and why His presence is important. I learned to trust God in all things, to live in a way that honors Him and to strive to be a friend to others every day of my life.