Disappointments can shape life in a manner that no other thing can and such was the case of my brother.
It was his junior year in high school and Paul had come off two very hot seasons as the starting point guard, playmaker and shooter for our high school’s freshman and junior varsity basketball teams. Did I mention he was a hustler on defense as well?
Three years his younger, I loved going to see my hero’s creative skills and his unique manner of leading his team to a lot of happy endings.
He had the knack of leadership mixed with athletic skill and always seemed to be at the right spot at the right time.
The smaller gyms were louder and the crowds were literally on the edge of the court so that every game provided a front row seat. It was exciting and I vicariously drank in Paul’s every move to the hoop or his pull-up jumper or his steals or just basking in his stats that regularly reached over 20-points a game.
When it finally came time for his big role on the varsity team in his junior year, nepotism kicked in with a vengeance and he never really played again. After a tortuous year on the bench, he would simply leave the team to the disappointment of the teammates that he had previously led.
It was heartbreaking.
Then, out of nowhere, a drama teacher reached out to him and gave him a leading role in the senior play. He was a star again. God used an out-of-the-blue “coach” to put him back in the game.
Paul never let the experience spoil his enthusiasm for hoops and he played competitive ball well into his forties where no favoritism can reign -in leagues and pick-up games where you either put-up or shut-up. I grew up and played with him and I can tell you he put-up and made others shut-up; still as the star.
PORTAL TO HEAVEN: God-as-our-advocate in specific situations is a great portal to heaven. It is much more sweet than it is vengeful. When Jesus walked the earth, he would know who was oppressed and treated unfairly and step in and turn disappointments into something that we still read and learn from 2,000 years later. Can you remember some times where He stepped in and rewrote the drama in your life?
For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison…He saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them…Jesus said to him, "I will come and heal him."
2 Corinthians 4:7 NASB, Matthew 14:14 NASB, Matthew 8:7 NASB