So we went bowling last Saturday night as part of a couple’s enhancement exercise that is turning out to be a lot of fun. Having not picked up a bowling ball in quite a while like most of the people there, my scores was dismal to begin with. As you know I love to tout my skills as every good man worth his salt. After all it’s no fun if you can’t toot your own horn and I happen to be better at tooting than any other thing. Now I am not the best at any one sport but I am blessed to be able to keep myself from absolute embarrassment in anything so far. My favorite sport (cricket) is not played here in Louisiana, although I have heard it is played in some parts of the States. I do tend to hang on to the other stuff even if I am not good at card games and find them boring.

Now the greatest blessing of writing this vignette every week is the feedback from the folks who read it. Surprisingly I don’t really get a lot, mainly because it is always about the things which interest me and my thoughts at the time. I don’t tend to write on the basis of great in-depth study and reference, just my thoughts. So it is expected that my readers may conclude, “that just his opinion” and leave me to my folly. Of course the vain possibility is that my readers find the thoughts so insightful they just agree with me and write amen at the bottom of the page. More likely they just don’t read the bulletin or log on for the online version. However I did get feedback on my article last week. For those of you who don’t remember what this one was about let me refresh your memory.

I try at times to go easy on him, so I will often play him with my right hand which is my weaker hand. It’s something I love to do, let people beat me on my weaker hand, that way they feel good about themselves and I secretly feel better. Well I guess the cats out the bag now.

Anyway I was playing Modecai with my right hand when he started playing really well. Now just because you are trying to help out the guy does not mean he will cut you some slack. So just like that I am five points down in front of everybody and he's trying run me off the table. Suddenly my pride got a little bruised and I forgot he was only seven; his lip will sometimes do that to you. So for a brief moment I decided to play him like a grown man, thinking to myself I better change hands before he embarrassed me in front of everybody.

The pressure to win and the ego subsided and I started to enjoy the game for his sake as well as for mine. That’s when my game went into orbit, you see when I play with my right hand I have to follow the steps to victory to the letter. I just keep it on the table. There are fewer temptations to spike the ball or become impatient or fancy. The weakness of my right hand makes me strong because it forces me to depend on external factors not my individual skill. I simple have to keep it on the table. It is what is meant by God’s strength being made perfect in our weakness.

Well as you might imagine the feedback came from his Mama and company, as I walked back from a particularly terrible shot last Saturday night. As I said before I was not playing well so the folks who were “throwing down” two lanes over started taunting me.  “Bishop you bowling with the wrong hand, try the other hand.” Not everybody taunting and laughing knew what was in the thought at the time but Mama bear knew. Some were mocking just because I am left handed. Now of course you know I kept my cool and came out with a pretty good score but it could have gotten ugly. I could have taken it the wrong way, not everybody can take as well as they give.  But it does remind me of the old saying, “be careful what you wish for, you might just get it.” After all it could have been pay back but it was just feedback, the thing I said I wanted most of all. “It’s just a thought!”
Holla at yuh Boy and Happy Birthday RMI

EF

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