You Have the Chance to Make a Powerful Comeback
What to Do When You Encounter Setbacks
George “Babe” Ruth is one of the most famous baseball players of all time. He was a star pitcher for the Red Sox, but soon became celebrated as a home run slugger. In fact, he was so good that a couple of his records still stand today, which is saying a lot considering his final season was in 1935!
For as good as Ruth was at hitting the ball over the fence (he had 714 career home runs!), he was also known as the King of Strikeouts. He had an all-or-nothing batting style that led him to lead the American League in strikeouts five times, accumulating 1,330 of them in his career!
Yet, for all those strikeouts, Babe Ruth was still committed to smacking that ball across Yankee Stadium. That tenacious attitude gave him the nicknames The Great Bambino and The Sultan of Swat. By the time he finished his career, he was by far one of the greatest celebrated home run hitters of all time.
Ruth is credited for saying, “Every strike brings me closer to the next home run.” Think about the significance of that statement for a moment. He didn’t allow his setbacks to keep him from having a comeback. This reminds me of the Apostle Peter in the Bible. Peter is known for putting his foot in his mouth over and over again. Out of all the dysfunctional disciples, Peter is the most famous for his blunders. After all, he’s the one who denied that he even knew Jesus during Jesus’ greatest hour of need. Yet, for all Peter’s imperfections, he never gave up… and the Lord never gave up on him!
This is an important idea for all of us. God saw the potential in Peter, and He sees the potential in you too. He sees what you can become if you keep moving forward. No matter how many setbacks you have, you always have the opportunity to choose not to stay back.
Yes, Peter is known for a lot of his mistakes, but he’s also known for being the one disciple who walked on water, and the one Jesus renamed “Rock”, and the one who led the beginning of the church with an impromptu sermon that led thousands to Christ. God didn’t give up on Peter and Peter didn’t give up on God.
As a Christian Counselor who has come alongside numerous people over the years, I have had the privilege of seeing hopeless people embrace hope, hurting people become healed, and hateful people become compassionate. I have seen dysfunctional relationships become healthy, suicidal teenagers have their eyes opened to life-giving grace, and desperate parents equipped to move forward. There is always hope, my friend! If you need someone to come alongside you during this season of your life I am here for you!