Third Base

Although I was never a big fan of football coach Barry Switzer, there is one quote from him that I really like. He once said, "Some people are born on third base and go through life thinking they hit a triple." I'm not sure why a football coach is making a baseball analogy, but that's beside the point. There is a truth within those words that calls us to humility.

Our culture celebrates the independent spirit and the "self-made" individual. But is anyone truly self-made? Can we really attribute our successes, however we define them, to nothing more than our own efforts? None of us experience life in a vacuum, unaffected by others and untouched by circumstances. And while we are certainly responsible for the choices we make, we cannot ignore the impact of influences and opportunities we did not create or control. The fact is, I've had a lot of help along the way. Humility calls us to remember, and be grateful for, the people and opportunities that have shaped us.

I want and need to improve my memory. May I always be aware that:

• I am here, not because of what I deserve, but through the love and grace of God. And God loves everyone else just as much as He loves me.


• I have been helped and blessed by people who have loved me and invested in my life. I would not be what I am without their influence.


• I have been given resources and opportunities that others have not. That is not a reason for pride, but a call to humble gratitude.

There is certainly nothing wrong with recognizing hard work, and true humility does not ask us to belittle the gifts and abilities God has given us. We find it easy, though, to cross the line into self-sufficiency, believing that we have earned by our own merit all that we have and are somehow more deserving than others. But at the very heart of the gospel stands the idea of redemption, restoring that which cannot restore itself. If this is indeed the great need of humanity, then I must also accept the reality that no one is self-made, and the gifts that have been given to me are exactly that - gifts. I am where I am, not because of my own ability, but by the grace of God extended to me in countless ways throughout my life.

Just because I'm standing on third base doesn't mean I hit a triple.