February 1 Do You Prefer Souvenir Jerseys or Balls?

As a leader, the team you lead might have significant moments or milestones that happen. We want the recipients of our value proposal to celebrate and be raving fans. We want our interaction with our team and clients to be souvenir worthy.

As leader, are your team members collecting souvenirs of your leadership? The prized possession from a professional baseball game is a home run ball that one of the home team players hit. But if you are not in the outfield seats, that is unlikely to happen.

The concessions stand and gift shop will be sure to make you an offer though. If sitting behind the dugout, by chance, you might get a foul ball as well. You do not have to leave the stadium without a souvenir.

But what are we doing for our team and our clients to remind them of the value we deliver? Is our value important enough that we should consider being intentional about remembering its value and finding a way to symbolize it?

If we allow our value to be remembered by chance, it is likely that our members will not get that foul ball, let alone a home run ball. What is worse, is being in the stands and having the ball hit you on the head. Leaders, I call out “batter up.” What can you do to celebrate this week?

As brothers and sisters in Christ, where are our souvenirs that remind us of the most important person in our life, Jesus Christ? Do we have reminders of our significant moments with Christ that shape us and give value and meaning to our lives?

Do we remember them with as much emphasis as we put on the treasured home run or foul ball? The odds that Christ will make a positive impact on your life are one hundred percent if you follow him and participate in his events. In Matthew 21, we read about Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey.

It says that most of the crowd put their garments on the ground and others laid palm branches down. Would you have put down your garment for the donkey to walk over? That would probably be a garm ent worth remembering but Jesus would want us to do more than just to remember.

He has asked that we put on the garment and go to do his work. I ask us to consider, are we ready to do his work this year or are we busy looking at mantels of souvenirs of the things of this world? Where can you grab that cloak that Jesus rode in on and use it this week?

Let us pray, Heavenly Father, there is nothing more important in our lives than your love for us. We often move away from your love though. It is easy to get distracted by the people, places and events, which we might call the souvenirs of this world.

We ask today that you send us your Holy Spirit to move among us to focus on you. May our mantels be more concerned with displaying our Lord Jesus Christ than with foul balls.

May we remember his gifts of service, his lessons as written in the Bible, and his miracles that he shared with the crowds and the disciples. Let us remember, but more importantly, help us to live out his calling and mission. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen,