i'm like a little kid today...

Softball season starts tonight!!!! It's one of the days I look forward to most in the Spring. Sure it's just recreational softball, but for a born competitor like me, it's my chance to rekindle the competitive flame of days gone by. I love to win. In fact, if there were no score, I wouldn't play. Whether it's a round of Jeopardy with my bro-in-law Philip or the championship game of the state high school baseball tournament, I have to win. But over the last three years of my life, softball in Quincy with the church guys has been more than just winning (although we are the defending champions this year-OH YEAH!). It's been about being a presence of hope in a community where hope seems lost. It's been about being a smiling face to kids that come across the street from government housing. It's been about restoring the connection with the black community. Tuesday and Thursday nights at the softball complex has been so much more than softball, and it will be that way again starting tonight. It's our chance to establish relationships with those in our community who may be far from God. I love to win. I love to play softball. I love to build relationships with my community. I may be giddy like a little kid today, but only part of that has to do with the game of softball. I'm excited because on for six weeks in the Spring, the Kingdom can advance and the name of Jesus Christ will be glorified during seven innings of old men playing softball.