Perfect
From The Mountaintop to the Valley
Perfect
While searching for our beloved Cleveland Indians on TV not long ago, my wife and I happened upon a rebroadcast of the “perfect game” pitched by Len Barker May 15, 1981. We had a few chuckles at the uniforms and watching a youthful Mike Hargrove go through his interminable batters-box ritual. There is no dispute that this was quite a feat, one duplicated only 16 times in major league history. I wondered, though, how perfect is perfect?
Barker threw 103 pitches in that game, 84 of them strikes. Some quick math reveals 19 pitches were balls, so I guess perfection in baseball is relative.
On the other hand, God’s perfection is absolute. He’s all powerful, all knowing, all sufficient and eternally existent. Scripture uses phrases like, “He is the rock, His ways are perfect”, “As for God, His way is perfect”, “perfect in beauty, God shines forth”. How can we with our sinful nature hope to have a relationship with such perfection?
The writer of Hebrews put it this way in chapter 12:2-3. “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”
Now that is quite a feat. Accomplished only once; and for all.
Brian
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Perfect
While searching for our beloved Cleveland Indians on TV not long ago, my wife and I happened upon a rebroadcast of the “perfect game” pitched by Len Barker May 15, 1981. We had a few chuckles at the uniforms and watching a youthful Mike Hargrove go through his interminable batters-box ritual. There is no dispute that this was quite a feat, one duplicated only 16 times in major league history. I wondered, though, how perfect is perfect?
Barker threw 103 pitches in that game, 84 of them strikes. Some quick math reveals 19 pitches were balls, so I guess perfection in baseball is relative.
On the other hand, God’s perfection is absolute. He’s all powerful, all knowing, all sufficient and eternally existent. Scripture uses phrases like, “He is the rock, His ways are perfect”, “As for God, His way is perfect”, “perfect in beauty, God shines forth”. How can we with our sinful nature hope to have a relationship with such perfection?
The writer of Hebrews put it this way in chapter 12:2-3. “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”
Now that is quite a feat. Accomplished only once; and for all.
Brian
<><
posted by Brian Keel @ 12:23 PM
4 comments
4 Comments:
Nicely done.
Here's more stats for your edification:
The rarest feat in baseball is the unassisted triple play, which occurs once every 19,000 games.
The rest of the "rarest" list:
Player hits 4 HR in a game: 1 every 14,000 games
Perfect game: 1 every 11,000
No-hitter: 1 every 800
Player hits for the cycle: 1 every 800
Player hits 3 HR: 1 every 450
Triple play: 1 every 275
Grand slam HR: 1 every 35
Your article got me thinking about just how rare a "perfect" game is...
Interesting stuff... I think there are roughly 2,600 games in a given season so you can see how many seasons it would take to do some of these....
Next time there is a unassisted triple play I'll have to go with a "rarity" theme for the week...
Funny...I was watching the same telecast as well...it's rather ironic that during a rain delay for the 06' Tribe, they re-aired the "human-delay" in good ole' Grover. How amusing (or not)do you think it would be if everyone in the choir/ band would do something like this before each song?
It would be like waiting for the guitars to retune after each song, dusting the piano during prayers and letting the sopranos (and tenors) fix their 'do.
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