Balls and Strikes — and the Importance of Truth

“Every word of God proves true.” - Proverbs 30:5, NLT

“In a time of deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” - George Orwell

2 + 2 = 4. Na + CI (sodium + chloride) = common table salt. Three strikes in baseball, and you're out.

These are all true. Always, without derivation.

Truth. We depend on it for order. We depend on order for our well-being. We depend on our well-being for the thriving and survival of humanity.

Take away truth and there is disorder, debilitation, and death. No one in their right mind wants that.

Truth is not for sale. It doesn't yield to the whims and opinions of the experts, nor does it conform to the pleadings of the masses. Truth is. Truth is what you run into when you're wrong. Counter it and suffer the consequences.

I grew up playing ball, no matter the season. As the saying goes, "I ate, drank, and slept it." Many a day when my mom would call out to me, as the sun had run its course for the day, "Come in out of the dark. Supper's ready." I would reluctantly comply, though truth be told, I would rather have played ball than eat (I wish that were true now.).

One thing I learned about sports is that hard-and-fast rules govern the games, and those rules must be adhered to if the games are going to be played fairly and sensibly. Without rules, there is chaos. And chaos, after a while, is no fun.

Whatever the contest, none of us would tune in for very long if the rules were suspended and every player did what he or she felt like doing. It would be absolute madness and ultimately incomprehensible.

Imagine attending a baseball game with no umpires, foul lines, or a set number of outs or innings to be played. We can't imagine that. It's just too ridiculous to even consider. We must have rules. Three strikes must always — always — mean the batter is out; otherwise, it ceases to be worth participating in or watching. Truth must prevail.

We know this about sports. We also know it about life, yet, we have allowed those with "credentials" and "power" to tell us otherwise. But we must hold fast and stand against this assault on the Truth. As surely as "three strikes equal an out," the Word of God is the standard for Truth. It contains the rules/commands that guide and regulate our lives. It provides for order, well-being, and the flourishing of mankind. After all, every word of God proves true.

Truth in baseball; Truth in life. Taking our cue from Orwell, in these days of obfuscation and deceit, let's be revolutionary Truth-tellers, because "the Truth will stand when the world is on fire."

In the Book of John, Jesus, in praying for his disciples, asked the Father to "sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth" (17:17).

May we cling to this in a world of chaos.

A fellow beggar along the Way,

Greg Tinker