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Play Ball!

I am a huge baseball fan. To me, the strategy of the game is just as fun to watch as the game itself. The Dodgers are my team. I have been a fan for as long as I can remember. Vin Scully's voice is permanently etched in my brain. I can still remember the names and numbers of those who played when I was a kid. So many great and magic moments happened for me either at the ballpark or in front of a radio listening to the game. 

Foul Ball

I remember watching a close game that was very important for us to win. The season was hanging on the outcome. If we won, we went to the playoffs, if we lost we stayed home. 

It was near the end of the game and we were losing. Reggie Smith, one of our power hitters got up with a couple of men on base. He had a chance to win the game with one swing. He hit a towering fly ball down the left field line. There was not question, it was deep enough, but at the last moment, it curved foul. On the next pitch, he struck out and ended the rally. We ended up losing the game.

I was young enough to not really understand the rules and so I spent the next couple of days cursing them. My young mind, could not understand why a hard hit ball like that could be deemed worthless. How could we call it a foul? He hit it a long way. I remember telling my brother that the rule was stupid.

The Power of Obedience

My dad overheard the conversation and a couple of days later, he asked me to imagine the game of baseball without any rules. He gave me a couple of days and then simply said, "it wouldn't be much of game would it."

To be honest, I had no idea what he was talking about, but his words stuck with me. Every once in a while I would think about it, but it wasn't until I grew up a bit before I saw his point.

The rules of the game are there to establish order. Without them, there would be no game, only chaos. It just wouldn't work. Sometimes, we see the rules as restrictive, but in reality, they make the enjoyment we get from the game possible.

Back in the day, our society was much more conscious about keeping and obeying rules. Sure, there were people who broke the rules, but the overwhelming behavior was to keep them. I am not sure where we went wrong, but we seem to now be living in a world where the prevailing behavior is to cheat and break the rules.

The interesting part about this switch in behavior is that we are seeing the results of it unfold right before our eyes. Everywhere we look, there are champions, politicians, business leaders, church leaders, and regular men and women paying the price for cheating. It is sad to watch. Some of these people have been real heros to us. Maybe they thought they were above the rules, but in the end, they are paying the price just like everybody else.

Obedience seems to be an old-fashioned word, but it is the pillar upon which all success is predicated. In order to achieve success, however you define it, we must be willing to obey the laws of success. They cannot be circumvented. We can try, but sooner or later it will catch up to us.

Play Ball!

I don't know why the rules are what they are, I just know they are real. Whether we are playing ball, business or life, they must be obeyed. Personally, I feel the strength and the safety that comes from obeying the rules. I use to to be frustrated by the traffic lights in our town until the day a powerful windstorm knocked the power out. It took me nearly an hour to get through an intersection that normally takes moments. I was very thankful when the power was restored.

Being obedient, like stopping for a traffic light, can seem inconvenient and limiting. But, when we step back and look at the big picture, it is easy to see that true power, the kind that brings good to our lives, comes from being obedient. That is because obedience gives us greater control over our lives. It creates the capacity to work and create without penalty. We never need to worry about being caught in a scandal. Of course we will face difficulties, but we will always survive them with our dignity in tact.

Please take a moment to review your behavior. Think about the areas in which you are being obedient:

How are things working in those areas of your life?

Are those areas the ones that bring you the greatest satisfaction?

How do you feel about the successes that you achieve when you play by the rules? Are they more or less meaningful to you?

I am happiest, when I am being obedient. It is definitely not the easy way and it can be frustrating to watch someone seem to succeed without obeying the rules. My clear conscious is worth more to me than achieving a dishonest success. 

The great part about obedience is that it provides a measure of how we are doing. The ability to enjoy life, even in the face of trials, is a result of obedience. In a way, it is the fountain of peace.

Live Today! Love Today!

Andrew Thorn

760-559-3548

Tags: Andrew Thorn, Authenticity, Game of Life, Heart Might Mind & Strength, Leader Behaviors, Life Leadership Harmony, Love Today, Personal Best Leadership, Spiritual Intelligence, The Authentic Me, The battle between good and evil, The Telios Experience

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 17th, 2009 at 6:16 pm and is filed under Accountability, Authentic Behavior, Personal Best Leadership. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.