| On August 20, 1981, that dream and hundreds of games from Little League to high school, college and then the minors, I finally made it.
I'll never forget that day. In my first major league game with the Atlanta Braves I got a hit, scored a run, and drove in the winning run. There I was after the game surrounded by a throng of reporters all wanting to talk to me.
This was it. I had made it to the top. After all the excitement was over, I went back to my room, and do you know what I did? I cried. To tell you the truth, I felt terribly empty inside. I thought baseball would make me happy. It didn't. It didn't fulfill my deepest needs.
Something was missing in my life ?
That "something" is God. Years before I had come to know God, personally. But instead of following Him, I put God in my back pocket and I made baseball my god.
But baseball couldn't give my life ultimate meaning. Over the years, I've realized that only God can truly make life worth living. That's why, today, I never want to leave Him.
You may ask, "Can God help me?"
Yes, He can.
A few years ago, during the offseason, I was playing racquetball and got hit in the face. My glasses shattered, and my right eye bled out of control. I wound up in a hospital bed for six days with both eyes patched.
During that entire time I felt incredibly peaceful inside. My friends Steve and Sandy Bartkowski called and said, "We're praying that your right eye is going to be better than it was before."
Later I had my eyes tested. I could actually see better out of my right eye after the accident, than before. I give God all the credit. God can help you in so many ways. He can help you overcome obstacles in life. He'll give you what you desire if you give your life to Him.
Today, I still make mistakes. I don't always do what God would want me to do. But God is always faithful. He is always there for me to turn to.
Would you like to experience real meaning and peace in your life? You can, by saying "yes" to God, and Jesus Christ, His Son.
Before you go to bed, tonight, think about these words: First, if you were to die tonight would you be sure you would go to Heaven? Second, if not, God's promise is that you will go to Heaven if you ask Him into your life (Rev. 3:20). Third, my hope is that you will turn to God and accept all He has to give you in Jesus Christ. When He's the most important thing in your life, you can't lose.
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