A Baseball Story, Or Is It?  

When Wade Boggs played for the Boston Red Sox, he hated going to play the New York Yankees in Yankee Stadium--not because of the intense rivalry between the two teams, but because of a fan. This guy had a seat close to the field and when the Red Sox were in town, he would torment Boggs by shouting obscenities and insults. One day Boggs decided he'd had enough. He walked directly over to the man and said, "Hey fella, are you the guy who's always yelling at me?" The man replied, "Yeah, it's me. What are you going to do about it?"

Boggs took a new baseball out of his pocket, autographed it, tossed it to the man, and went back to the field to continue his pre-game routine. The man never yelled at Boggs again; in fact, he began to cheer for Boggs whenever he played at Yankee Stadium.

You may find yourself in Boggs' shoes someday. For no apparent reason someone may criticize you or not like you. Our natural inclination is to fight back. But there is a better way to deal with our critics or enemies:

"Do not repay anyone evil for evil.If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good" (Romans 12:17, 18, 21).

--via Gulf Shores Church of Christ, Ft. Myers, Florida

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