The Game of Life: When We Don’t Get Picked

The Game of Life: When = We Don’t Get Picked

Psalms 22:1-2a, 102:6-7

Our theme for the month of October is “The Game = of Life.” We’re righ= t in the middle of football season, after all; and like life itself, the games don’t always go our way—sorry to bring up a sore subject, but that’s just the way it is, right?

So, here’s what I’m attempting to do for t= hese four Sundays. We’ll be looking at a few of the Psalms, but doing so through the lens of sports, and life too, of course—but primarily the sport of football, because…well…“’tis the season!”

Some folks get pretty serious about their football! This appeared on a church sign in = Arkansas just pr= ior to the big game against their neighbors to the south: “Football is only a game.&nb= sp; Spiritual things are eternal. Nevertheless, beat Tex= as!” This is why we keep our church sign locked up!

Well, our topic today is one that can relate to almost= any season of our lives, from childhood right on through our senior years. It’s the problem of how we f= eel “when we don’t get picked.”

Do you remember how it was when at recess or after sch= ool in the neighborhood, when the kids would (IMAGE) choose up sides to play—kickball, baseball, football, basketball,= or whatever—do you remember the tension you felt until somebody “p= icked you.”

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These feelings are universal, I think, because even th= e most athletically gifted among us was once the youngest or smallest or the newest kid in the group. For others,= this has been more of a life-long experience; for some reason, they never got pi= cked at all, so the scars go very deep.

(IMAGE) Walt = Garrison, who, after a college career at Oklahoma State, went on to play fullback for= the Dallas Cowboys, tells this story: “I asked Darrell Royal, the coach of the Texas Longhorns, why he didn’t recruit me; and he said, ‘We= ll, Walt, we took a look at you…and you weren’t any good.’= 221;

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I guess he got better—but the point is, if this = can happen to a player of Walt Garrison’s caliber, it can happen to anybody. Whether it’s o= n the playground as a child, or awaiting the NFL draft; or it could be in an enti= rely different setting, say when pursuing a promotion at the office, or in our attempts to be included in what we see as the “in” group: somet= imes we just don’t get picked—and it’s painful.

This morning, I want to key in on just one aspect of t= he hurt that results from not getting picked: it’s “loneliness.” When everyone has been chosen but = you, it can result in a very lonely feeling.

The problem of loneliness is addressed in the Bible. This shouldn’t surprise us—we have a Heavenly Father who is concerned about all our needs—so it’s in there.

We’re focusing on the book of Psalms for this se= ries, and one of the most poignant examples of loneliness is found in the 22^=
nd Psalm. You’ll recall th= at that Jesus quoted it from the cross.

The Psalm begins: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?&nbs= p; Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning? O my God, I cry out= by day, but you do not answer… (Psalm 22:1-2a). Have you ever felt that lonely?

We also hear the pain of loneliness in this passage: “Turn to me and be gracious to= me, for I am lonely and afflicted. The troubles of my heart have multiplied; free me from my anguish.” (Psalm 25: 16-17)

One more example: “I am like a desert owl, like a= n owl among the ruins. I lie awake;= I have become like a bird alone on a roof.” (Psalm 102:6-7)

The famous author, Thomas Wolfe, called loneliness ̶= 0;the central and inevitable fact of human existence.” He admitted to being a bit o= f a loner personally, and often feeling lonely.

One of the great gifts that we who are in the body of = Christ can give to those on the outside is community, the blessing of a fellowship= of believers who truly care for one another.&= nbsp; Too often, however, we are so caught up in making sure our that own = need for companionship is met we neglect the newcomer in our midst; and in so do= ing, we only add to his or her loneliness.

Gary Collins<= /b>, the Christian counselor, defines the problem like this: “Loneliness is the painful awareness that we lack meaningful contact with others. It invol= ves a feeling of inner emptiness which can be accompanied by sadness, discouragem= ent, a sense of isolation, restlessness, anxiety, and an intense desire to be wa= nted and needed by someone.”

The (IMAGE) B= eatles were on to something back in the 1960’s when they asked, “All t= he lonely people, where do they all come from? All the lonely people, where do th= ey all belong?” Perhaps we all= have a bit of Eleanor Rigby inside us somewhere.

In the New Testament, we find a man who was almost cer= tainly lonely. You know his story. His name was Zacchaeus. You might say that Zacchaeus’= ; loneliness was a self-inflicted wound. <= /p>

Nobody liked him.&nbs= p; No one trusted him. Zacchaeus was a tax collector in a system where you couldn’t g= et a tax job without selling out to the enemy.&= nbsp; He evidently decided that wealth was more important to him than frie= nds, so he went for the money.

OR, as I reflected on his story this week, I couldn= 217;t help but wonder if it was not really the other way around. Lacking any friends, and feeling v= ery lonely already, perhaps Zacchaeus decided that going for the money could somehow fill that lonely place in his soul—that lonely ache that nobo= dy else was attempting to touch. Do you hear what I’m saying?

Tax collectors were not popular people in Jericho—they were despised in fact—but perhaps Zacchaeus would have never agreed to do the job in t= he first place if he had really had any friends to lose over it. Isn’t this what seems to lea= d so many people to make desperate choices?

However it happened, Zacchaeus’ financial succes= s came with a big price tag. His gre= ed destroyed any opportunity for meaningful relationships. He was isolated from others and lonely--and probably bitter as well. Deep down, it’s very likely that not even Zacchaeus liked Zacchaeus.

As the children’s song says, Zacchaeus was indeed “a wee little man.” Nobody else was big enough—in the sense of being loving or concerned enough--to help him be anything else. He felt so small and lonely.

Nobody helped, that is, until Jesus came to town. But here with Zacchaeus, just as H= e did on other occasions with other lonely people, Jesus demonstrated for us the miracle of acceptance, and the grace of community.

It’s a remarkable story. Zacchaeus was not a football playe= r, of course. Instead, he was into = the ancient sport of tree-climbing. He was good at it too. All the g= reed and guilt and loneliness in his life had him way up a tree.

In our texts for today, the Psalmist cried out to the = Lord in the midst of his loneliness. Zacchaeus didn’t know to do that yet, but Jesus was about to t= each him. Everything in his life c= hanged for the better that day because of Jesus.

This is a picture of grace, friends—being accept= ed when we don’t deserve to be. This is what Jesus did for Zacchaeus. He knew he was unworthy of the hon= or when Jesus told him to come down from that tree, that He was going home with him that day.

Nothing like this had ever happened in Zacchaeus’ life, especially since he took the tax job. And there were folks in Jericho who didn&#= 8217;t like the fact that Jesus did this. Of course, it was not unusual for Jesus to be criticized for the com= pany he kept.

You remember how He was asked on one occasion: “= Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus replied, “It’s s= ick people who need a doctor—right?”

Jesus was a friend of sinners. He still is. He seeks them out. He seeks us out. He takes the initiative in the relationship and surprises us with His acceptance and love.

And this is what changes people, friends. When we talk about conversion, new birth, salvation—this is the catalyst that brings about transformed hearts and minds. There is finally someone in our li= ves who accepts us unconditionally, who loves us in spite of our habits, hang-u= ps, and histories.

Listen: there would be far fewer lonely people in this= world if we would only follow Jesus’ lead.= Instead, though, we first want to see some change. If he or she or they will just be a little bit more like I want them to be, then maybe I’ll think they’re okay. Maybe I’ll befriend them then.

It was the opposite with Jesus. He loves people as they are. He accepts them “at face value.” Change is not His condition for acceptance. Instead, with Jesus, acceptance be= comes the motivation for change. And this actually works—at least, sometimes it does. This is one of the lessons that Je= sus tried to teach us--a lesson that many of us are still struggling to learn.<= /p>

Just how far do you think Jesus would have gotten with Zacchaeus if he had said to him, “Hey, Zach, if you’ll agree to change your ways, to quit your tax collector’s job, to pay back all t= he money you’ve defrauded people out of, then I’ll be your friend.= ” Think that would have gotten him d= own from that tree?

I don’t think so. He would have resented it. He would have felt judged, condemned, looked down upon. His defenses would have been forti= fied, and he would have tried to climb even higher up that tree if possible. Any chance at a meaningful relatio= nship with Jesus would have ended then and there.

But Jesus simply invited him to come down, and He aske= d if he could join him for lunch at his house that day. If Zacchaeus had been a praying ma= n, this would have been an answer to his prayers. Being a lonely man, however, what = Jesus did would soon become the real answer to his need.

Jesus has sho= wn us how to reach out to people, how to take the initiative in overcoming isolat= ion and loneliness. If we’re doing this, we don’t have time to focus on our own loneliness, or= , in other words, we don’t have time to worry so much about who’s not picking us.

How much hurt and loneliness could be averted in this = world if we would just be a bit more sensitive to each other. Lee Iacocca, before his time with Chrysler, was President of Ford Motor Company. That didn’t go so well, and = he was fired.

In his autobiography, (Image) Iacocca says that the greatest surprise of his career wasn’t the firi= ng, but what happened afterward. = He wrote: “I was hurting pretty bad.&nb= sp; I could have used a phone call from someone who said, ‘letR= 17;s have coffee.’ But most = of my friends deserted me. It was t= he greatest shock of my life.”

“All the lonely people, where do they all come from?” Well, I think we= know; and we all have it within our power and sphere of influence to do something about it.

We can have the kind of love for people that we see in Jesus: a love that is willing to accept them where they are and then invite them to come down from whatever tree they’re up—be it guilt, fe= ar, insecurity, addiction, or isolation of whatever kind.

There are lot= s of people who would be blessed if someone like you or me simply noticed them a= nd cared for them with an unconditional love. It just might change their lives forever.

That’s what happened to Zacchaeus. Talk about a life that was transformed! Befriended by Je= sus, Zacchaeus’ life changed from greedy to grateful. He sold half of what he had and ga= ve it to the poor. He sought to make things right with everyone he’d cheated.

The people of Jericho were amazed. They thought Zac= chaeus needed to be condemned and ostracized.&nbs= p; Jesus, on the other hand, knew he needed to be loved, forgiven, and befriended.

Let me leave you with this thought today. Jesus was right there in the flesh= for Zacchaeus. When Jesus loved h= im, accepted him, and befriended him, He was right there with him physically.

Today, Jesus has the same desire and purpose to do for others what He did for Zacchaeus; but His approach is different now. By His Spirit, He sets up shop in us. He dwells in the lives of= His people. And He loves and acce= pts and befriends “all the lonely people” through us—through Christ in us.

Remember this the next time you encounter someone who = never gets picked, but only picked on. Remember this the next time you see someone sitting alone in your Su= nday School class or at the church fellowship—lest we be guilty of making someone even lonelier.

If you’= re a follower of Jesus Christ, you’ve already been picked, and loved and accepted and forgiven and filled with a desire to make friends for Jesus—until everyone knows that they’ve been picked too by this loving, gracious Savior.

They won’t know it, though, and they will surely= never believe it, until they see this in us.&nbs= p; So pick somebody. For Christ’s sake, pick every person you possibly can. Jesus Christ just might change the= ir lives forever through you!