I Love Spring!

Genesis 1:11

Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so.

I love spring. I love warmer weather and budding plants. The fact that baseball season starts in the spring helps for sure. Go Orioles! Go Nationals! Go Insert your favorite team’s name!

Warmer weather means more outside activities and of course more sunshine for longer hours and that extra vitamin D helps most of us. I love cutting grass and springtime is a great time for that as the grass grows quickly in the warm days and cool nights. I’ll be making my third cut this week or early next.

What is your favorite time of the year? What are your favorite springtime activities? I love getting outside and doing chores that have mounted through the winter. My siding needs cleaned. My yard needs picked up. My wood needs cut and stacked for next winter. Some leaves are still around and some sticks and branches have fallen through the winter. I want to get outside and walk more and of course – playing golf in the spring is my second favorite season (I like fall golf the most).

Always Be Prepared

1 Peter 3:15

But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.

Before we get into today’s devotional – just an update on the poll we took a few days ago. So far 24 people have responded and 23 of them said they are following the Orioles! Only one voted otherwise – and that was a vote for – I don’t follow baseball. No one voted for another team – which is surprising to some degree. On a side note but still on the subject of baseball and the Orioles – I had to upgrade my Xfinity TV package to their ultimate package in order to get MASN sports – and I’m not happy about it.

On with the devotional thought. I often encourage us to witness our faith. We are called to be ambassadors of Christ to the world around us – 2 Corinthians 5:20 – We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. We are also called to a royal priesthood – 1 Peter 2:9 – But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

Never Be Lacking in Zeal

Romans 12:11

Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.

Baseball season is only 8-9 days away. Carolyn and I had a wonderful time attending three spring training games for the Orioles earlier this month. The team is young and exciting to watch. They won 101 games last year and we have high hopes for them to win 95+ again this year. The fans at spring training were excited and cheering for their team. A man next to us in the stands one game was really friendly and excited for the upcoming season. NO ONE had to pump up the fans – they were excited and had loads of zeal.

Gone are the days (at least for a few seasons) when we might worry about losing 100 games or even coming in last place in our division. The future looks bright and we have a lot to be thankful for in the coming years. For three straight years – we have had the #1 minor league player and might have a 4th year next year. Let’s fill Oriole Park at Camden Yards this year. With new ownership and an increased gate – we might even be able to sign some of our young players to a second contract to keep them around!

Spring Time – Has It Arrived Yet!

Genesis 1:11

Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so.

I love the springtime. I love warmer weather and budding plants. The fact that baseball season starts in the spring helps for sure. Go Orioles! Go Nationals! Today I will be watching the Orioles opening game that starts around 2 pm.

Warmer weather means more outside activities and of course more sunshine for longer hours and that extra vitamin D helps most of us. I love cutting grass and springtime is a great time for that as the grass grows quickly in the warm days and cool nights. I’ve already cut my yard once and it will need a second cut this weekend or next week.

What is your favorite time of the year? What are your favorite springtime activities? I love getting outside and doing chores that have mounted through the winter. My siding needs cleaned. My yard needs picked up. Usually – my wood needs cut and stacked for next winter (this year that will be a minor task because I have plenty from a mild winter). Some leaves are still around and some sticks and branches have fallen through the winter. I want to get outside and walk more and of course – playing golf in the spring is my second favorite season (I like fall golf the most).

One Week Till Opening Day

OK – enough theology – how about some fun?  How the Orioles do this year? I don’t care is not an acceptable answer.

Orioles Questions:

Who will be in the starting rotation? Which of these makes it – Kyle Bradish – Kyle Gibson – Cole Irvin – Dean Kremer – Grayson Rodriguez – DL Hall – Tyler Wells – Keegan Akin – Austin Voth – or Spenser Watkins? And what happens when John Means is ready to play? Of those who don’t make the starting 5 – which ones will be put in triple A and which will become bullpen pieces? Will anyone in that group be traded?

Will Gunnar Henderson win ROY (Rookie of the Year)? Will Adley Rutschman win the MVP (Most Valuable Player)? Will John Means have a successful return from Tommy John’s surgery?

Who will be traded before the season begins? Houston has a need at 2nd base – will one of our players be traded to them for another piece for our team (we have so many middle infielders in the system)? Who will be traded at the trade deadline?

Will Jorge Mateo and Cedric Mullins go 1-2 in stolen bases again this year? How many will they steal (40-50-60)? Which players will be our bench players? Of course James McCann will backup Adley. Who else will make the bench? Who will be in the bullpen? How will that change after the first month?

Make some predictions now and see how the season goes. Will the Orioles continue to improve or regress? Will they win 70-80-90 games this year? Will they make a run at the playoffs? Will they make the playoffs?

Who will lead the Orioles in homers? Gunnar Henderson? Ryan Mountcastle? Adley Rutschman? Anthony Santander? Kyle Stowers? Who will lead the team in saves? Who will lead the team in wins? Who has the lowest ERA (earned run average) among the qualified starters? Will Félix Bautista continue his development as a closer? Will the bullpen be as good or better or worse than last year?

Who is likely to be a trade deadline trade – or even earlier? Adam Frazier? James McCann? Jorge Mateo? Ramón Urías? Terrin Vavra? Austin Hayes? Who are your untouchables? Adley? Gunnar? Grayson? Joey Ortiz? Jackson Holliday? Connor Norby? Jordan Westburg? Heston Kjerstad? Of course – they can’t all be untouchable – because there aren’t enough positions to play on the Major League Team.

Fill in some of the answers and ask some questions of your own.

Let’s have some fun and see how many baseball fans there are out there!