By Maury Wood

Special to the Tribune

And He said to them all, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me." Luke 9:23

When Brighton was born in 2008, I began thinking ahead to the future. I thought of things I would be doing with him. I tried to picture teaching him to ride a bike, making repairs around the house with him, and just doing all the "Daddy-Son" things you get to enjoy when a child comes into your life.

Well, this past April we began preparations for T-ball and Brighton began his career as an outfielder and I began my second baseball career, except this time as manager of the team. I'll be honest, I am very competitive but this year has been a blast and I have done my best to quell my competitiveness. We actually play our last game tonight and hopefully will end our season with the best record in boy's T-ball.

Just like in any other sports, the road to our win and loss record has seen its hiccups. In the course of the season, we have had a couple of close calls in games. As the manager, I have noticed one underlying factor in those games. The one thing each of those weeks had in common was the fact we failed to practice during the break between games. We had broken up the routine of playing as a team and gotten rusty on our fundamental skills. It reminded me of a twist on an old saying, "Perfect practice makes perfect." When we practice, we are good. When we get out of the habit, we aren't that consistent. Are our Christian walks so different?

Today's verse is quoted many times in churches all over the world. We must take up our cross as Christians and follow after Christ. However, I like this verse in Luke because it adds a very important adverb...daily.

When my kids had those bad games, it was because they had gotten out of their routine. Baseball had been the furthest thing from their minds since the last game. They are after all four, five, and six-year-olds. They still perform well, but not at their highest potential.

Number one, habits are not necessarily always a bad thing. I have the habit of always telling my wife and kids that I love them before I leave the house. I always call my parents when I arrive somewhere after a long trip assuring them I have arrived safely. Have hitting practice before baseball games is a good habit. Habits can help us.

What are some Christian habits you sometimes slack on? Do you read your Bible as much as you should? I finally read my Bible all the way through in 2012. It is sad that it took 35 years before I did it. How is your prayer time? Do you pray to God before you eat? Do you pray before you go to bed? Do you speak to Him while you are waking up in the morning? These are fundamental skills of Christians just like hitting off a tee in T-ball is fundamental in teaching little ones to hit straight. These are little things we need to do on a regular basis to stay strong in our Christian faiths. In this day and age, you can't forget to pray or read your Bible.

I love my smart phone. I have a Bible app called YouVersion. I use it for my devotional and daily Bible reading. It will send me messages if it thinks I am about to forget to read the day's passage. I also have a calendar on my phone that I can put in reminders to pray for certain things. I think sometimes smart phones can be bad, but it can also be used to strengthen your Christian fundamentals.

Number two, not playing together as a team on regular basis makes us forget our jobs and our impact on the team. Sometimes, we try kids in different positions to see how they would do in game time situations. really would rather not wait until the actual game time situation to try it. We have to practice to find out what we can do as a team. I have one kid on my team right now that I believe I could put him anywhere. I found that out at practice, not in a game.

Church attendance is so important. Sunday school sometimes gets second fiddle because it is not "worship." Sunday school is like God's greenhouse. It is a place where those young Christians can raise their hand and ask questions, just like practice. Have you ever seen someone raise their hand during worship to ask the pastor a question? Usually, that doesn't happen. It doesn't happen on the ball field during games that much either. During practice however, I can stop, go over, and answer any questions a child has. Whatever your church, you are a member of a team and when you are not there, the team suffers. It is missing the part that you play. I challenge you to find a church, get involved, and see the wonders that God will unveil to you.

Our Father in heaven only wants what is best for you. I know at times it seems like God is sitting in heaven looking down at us and doing nothing. A preacher once told me that if someone feels like God is further away than He used to be, someone had to have moved ... and it wasn't God.

I challenge you this week to get into the habit of a relationship with God. Speak to Him daily. Read His word daily. Love Him daily. I guarantee you, He will bless you ... daily.