December 3, 2009

Andrew Playing Basketball

My two-year old Andrew loves playing basketball. He can’t get enough. Each time I lift him up to the hoop, he tosses it in he hangs on the rim as long as his little arms can stand. Then he drops into my arms, we pick up the ball, and we do it all over again, and again, and again. Yes, my arms feel like noodles.

On his own, he can barely throw the ball higher than his head, but when he relies completely on me to lift him up, he can make a basket that’s many times his height. I love seeing the joy on his face when he victoriously makes a basket, and I love how it feels to be the one he depends on, the one he needs.

Playing basketball like this with my son gives me insight into what Christ meant when He said, “apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5) and what Paul meant when he said, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

Biblical Christianity is not about trying really, really hard to do the right thing or be a better person. That leads to frustration and failure. The reason we as believers have the indwelling of the Spirit of Christ is so we can allow His “arms” to do the heavy lifting.

I think Father enjoys when we rely on him, when we let Him pick us up over and over again to make the shot, do the job He’s called us to, and give Him the credit for the victory.

This article was also posted on the Lifetime Blog