It's Atmosphere, Baby!

I love the ballpark! There's nothing like it. It's atmosphere sucks me in...the crack of the bat; the smell of hot dogs; perfectly groomed grass (completely unlike my yard); the 7th inning stretch; fans scrambling for foul balls; the rising roar when a batter has two strikes; the collective breath taken when a hit has the potential to be a home run and the eruption when it is.

This picture is from this past weekend in Boston at the king of ballparks, Fenway Park. My wife and I gave my boys tickets to a Red Sox game for Christmas. (Of course there was a ticket for me too...somebody has to drive them up there! And that's our friend Jared in the picture with us. He lives just North of Boston and let us sleep at his place for two nights. Thanks, Jared!)

Everything about our experience at Fenway lived up to my expectations. The weather was perfect. It was a night game in which you could feel baseball in the air. Our favorite pitcher, Curt Schilling, pitched. The Red Sox won and their star slugger, David Ortiz, had a game winning, three run double. To top it all off, my youngest son got two baseballs, but that's another blog on another day.

If you've read the gospels, you may have noticed the atmosphere around Jesus was always different than anywhere else. Yes it was swirling with commotion, sometimes swarming with people looking for a miracle for themselves or just to see one for someone else. There was controversy with the religious establishment. But to me, there is one major difference beyond all that. That difference was peace. Winds of commotion and controversy, but Jesus was the eye in the storm.

I believe that peace in the daily storm of life is available to his followers if they are willing to learn how to live life the way Jesus lived it. He didn't just live for His Father or under His Father, He lived life with His Father. By Father, I mean Heavenly Father, of course.

I think most people want to live with peace. We want to see life clearly and make decisions that are good for us and those around us. We want to help others. Yet, we have to admit that life just keeps coming at us. It doesn't seem to let up. But I know we can learn to "do life" with Jesus. With His Spirit's help, we can practice His presence with us and we can transform our thinking with His truth. Peace, joy and goodness can grow in our lives. If we cooperate with His presence in our lives, Jesus has the power to transform the atmosphere of our lives from chaos to calm.

Sometimes I wish I could bring the atmosphere of a pro baseball game to one of my little league games. I'm thinking that is not going to happen, but it would be cool. Jesus, however, invites all of us to live life with Him and when we accept His invitation, He brings His "eye of the storm" atmosphere with Him.