Tale of two stories Today I read one and watched another of stories about professional athletes. The first story is one I read was about on AJ Griffin who is leaving the NBA and a possible 17 million to go into full time ministry as he is hearing Gods calling on his life. The other story is one that I watched titled “Doc & Darryl” . This was an up and down story which I knew quite well since I was one of the biggest fans for them as a kid. Darryl Strawberry was my first real fav ball player. He had an effortless swing and made the game look easy. Dwight Gooden aka Doc was my fav pitcher until Greg Maddux took his spot. His stuff was electric and as a pitcher myself I was in awe of his skills. Great fastball and a curve that broke like crazy. Both had the skills to be Hall of Famers and were on their way until substance abuse took control. Neither was the same playing ever since. Both been in and out of prison and rehabs. Strawberry became clean in 2010 and has been clean since and now is a pastor , has recovery clinics in his name and preaches in prisons. Gooden took a bit longer but has since gotten clean in 2019 and speaking now at schools about substance abuse. I share this that all 3 stories had different journeys. AJ story is shorter as he heard the calling and followed right away and sharing his story. Darryl’s was a bit longer and now sharing his story. Doc was even longer than that and now sharing his story. Each story shows the importance of having God in our life and surrounding ourselves with positive influences is crucial to one’s walk. The enemy tries to put people around that can lure us in one direction or the other and away from the road God put before us. But by surrounding ourselves with the right group of people will propel us closer to Christ. All 3 have different stories but all 3 are powerful on its own and on how God has worked in and through each person. Amen and amen When we meet people within our ministries; the stories of the people God puts before us is extremely important to get to know and learn so we can see their journey. It’s really cool to see how God did, has, is and will work through them. When we learn one’s story we learn more about that person and become a real friend, real brother/sister, and a real family member that we can share more of the love of Christ . It is beyond amazing that we get to do all this through a ball and a hoop, a bat and a field , a paddle and a ball, an exercise machine and a class …. Let’s keep being a part of peoples STORY!!!! (If you have a story you can and able to share of someone’s journey through your ministry; it would be great to hear and could be motivating to others as well)

Posted by Don Weyrick at 2024-10-01 02:59:35 UTC