Eye on the Ball

Behind our apartment is a neighborhood park with a large open field, a gazebo, a baseball backstop, a basketball court, and a tennis court. Next to the park is an elementary school, and since the weather has warmed up, I get to enjoy the sounds of young children being directed by their P.E. coach everyday as they play games and fitness activities in the field. This past week, the coach has introduced baseball to the children (actually, he's using a wiffle ball and bat, but he's still teaching the basics of baseball). Everyday, the coach starts out repeating the phrase, "Keep your eye on the ball" to the children.

Coach: "Keep your eye on the ball! Keep your eye on the ball! Keep your what?"

Kids: "Eye on the ball!"

Coach: "Keep what?"

Kids: "Your eye on the ball!"

Coach: "Very good, don't forget it!"

The coach then demonstrates to the kids before letting them take turns hitting what happens when you take your eye off the ball. As he swings without looking at the ball, he inevitably hits a weak grounder that fails to go very far. But when he tells the kids, "Now see what happens when I keep my eye on the ball," he hits the small wiffle ball into the outfield, where the kids then scream and chase after it.

Keep your eye on the ball is a baseball principle that I remember learning in my Little League days. It's an important lesson because it's true: when you don't look at the ball, your chances at getting a hit aren't very good. If you're in the field and trying to catch the ball, the results can be quite ugly when you don't keep your eye on the ball. But when you focus on the ball, getting a hit is easier, your hits go farther, and even if you don't catch the ball in the field, you'll probably at least block it with your glove.

Keeping your eye on the ball is not as easy as it sounds. I remember frequently losing focus on the ball in Little League, even when I knew it was what I should be doing, and then feeling terrible about striking out or missing an easy catch. Even the professionals struggle to keep their eye on the ball...one can quickly find blooper clips where outfielders miss an easy pop-up because they lost focus on the ball, and sluggers mired in hitting slumps frequently chalk it up to not being able to focus on the ball at the plate.

It's the same way with life. As a student right now, keeping my eye on the ball translates to maintaining a focus on finishing my semester strong and not getting distracted from my studies. Again, that's usually easier said than done. In my Christian faith, keeping my eye on the ball translates to keeping my eye on the "prize" as the Apostle Paul wrote, not wavering from my faith or allowing the sin that so easily entangles to distract me in my relationship with God. But it's easier said than done...thank God for His grace, mercy, forgiveness, and sanctification!

So as I enjoy listening to kids repeating the phrase, "Keep your eye on the ball," back to their Coach, I will remember that it's a lesson that I should be repeating to myself as well. Keep your eye on the ball!