2:49 PM Posted by Justin Manny

The Greatest Church Softball Game Ever

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So, last night was the annual meeting of the two Mt Carmel church softball teams.  It is always an epic struggle of perennial power house programs.  The the one side we have the black team, head by Tim Dunn.  The other is the red team, headed by Kevin Haynes.  I happen to play on the red, and awesomer team, I might add.  This was a hard fought game and after 6 of 7 innings played the black team held a slim one run lead.  So with our game on the line, we come to bat in the top of the 7th.  Two batters are quickly retired.  We are one out away from shear humiliation at the hands of our bitter rivals.  


But suddenly, we have life.  A runner gets on with a single.  Then another single.  We have a legitimate 2 out rally.  With runners on 1st and 3rd, our cleanup hitter, Josh Tysinger, who has been mired in a hitting slump this season come to the plate.  In an extremely controversial decision, Tim Dunn intentionally walks Josh, to get to me. 

Now I played baseball as a kid, but never was I in such a position of high pressure.  Fear began to grip my body.  My palms, blistered and cut by a hard day of scooping Italian Ice, began to get a little sweaty.  Bases loaded, two outs, tying run on third, I could be the hero.

Now I don't knows if everyone knows this, but Tim throws a wicked 12 foot arch.  He had been striking people out, jamming hitters, we had had a hard time getting anything of him.  As I stand there, the first pitch comes, BALL 2! (For those who may not know we start with 1 ball and 1 strike) Now I'm ready, Ball 3!  I'm not gonna swing at this no mater what, STRIKE 2!  Now the pressure is mounting.  I thought back to a game I had been to early last week, where Adam Dunn, (no relation to Tim Dunn), came to bat with the bases loaded and two outs with the Reds losing to the Cardinals, and he never swung the bat the whole at bat, striking out and ruining the Reds chance to win the game.  I was not going to let that happen.

Tim gets the sign for catcher Alex Kocher, and he goes into his wind up and delivers.  It felt like the ball took forever to get to home plate.  Ready to swing, I waited.  But the ball seemed to be trailing off toward the other batters box.  As I lean in, at the last possible moment I decide not to swing, and begin to head towards first, hoping and praying that the umpire would not ring me up.  To my joy, and the joy of all my teammates, it was a ball and I had just got the game tying RBI!!

Doug Early then got a 2 run go ahead single on the very next pitch, and the Red Team continues it's domination of Mt Carmel Black!  Heart broken, Tim came into the office today, saying that it took guts for me not to swing because the ball was close to a strike, but nay, that ball was short of the plate and outside by at least 3 inches.

GO ROCKETS!!!  

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8:04 AM Posted by Justin Manny

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So last week I made a trip, spontaneous to Jacksonville, for my little sisters graduation.  I totally surprised her, it was awesome.  Then when I got home I had graduation parties, which are also awesome.  I guess this time of year is about transitions.  Moving on to the next part of life.


So I was thinking about service.  It shouldn't be something we do once a year and forget about it until next year.  Service should be a full year lifestyle.  When so many people around us need things, that we can very easily help with, and get rid of their needs, but we don't have a culture that pushes people to do that.  Let stop being distracted about going to church and start focusing on being the church, because what is really more important?  Sitting in a seat or solving a problem?  I truly want people to understand that church is not Sunday, not Wednesday, not what you can be taught.  Church is when you stop worrying about yourself and start extending grace to others, just as Christ extended it to you.

Let's extend grace to a world and community who desperately need it.

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