In But Not Of the World   

It was October 22 (just four weeks ago), the last game of the National League Championship Series between the Chicago Cubs and the Los Angeles Dodgers. The winner would go on to play in the World Series for the championship. Anthony Rizzo, the Cubs’ first baseman, came to the plate for the second time in the game. In his first at-bat, umpire Angel Hernandez (not especially liked by all, but that’s irrelevant to this story) made a call that Rizzo did not like. As typical for ballplayers, Rizzo made it quite clear how he felt about the call (this tends to happen a lot with this particular umpire, which I guess explains his unpopularity).
But then Rizzo came to bat the second time, and before stepping into the box, he did something ballplayers rarely do. He apologized to Hernandez for arguing with him during his first at-bat. Hernandez was wearing a microphone that night to pick up on the “Sounds of the Game,” so we all got to hear the conversation.
Rizzo told the umpire, “My fault on that.” Hernandez (in one of his better moments) responded, “Your fault for what, brother? Come on, you’re good, bro. You’re awesome with us. No, no worries. You’re competing. I understand. Don’t worry. You know what’s best about it? You come back and tell me that. That’s how good of a guy you are.”
Brett Petrillo, a minister in Denver, Colorado, recently wrote about this event. He said: “Rizzo could have just let the situation sit as it was. He also could have come back out for round 2 of their argument. Instead, he decided to do what he could to clear the air. This showed a lot about his true character. And, as a result, his actions really stood out above the rest. This was best play of the game by far.”
As Christians, it’s often challenging to find the balance between living in this world but not being like the world (Romans 12:1-2). But when we do it right, people in the world notice. When we treat others better than they treat us, when we turn away from sin and worldliness, and when we apologize when we’re wrong, we are doing what God has called us to do, and people notice.
Peter also once wrote about the importance of what others see in us. He said, “Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation” (1 Peter 2:12).
We need to stand out from the crowd. And when people of the world see our “excellent behavior,” they too might decide to glorify God and follow after Him.

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