What is the best way to handle failure in baseball that happens in the fall? I recommend that you humble yourself and ask for help. To humble yourself is to not think less than of yourself. It is thinking of others more.
I struggle with being humble. I do my best job of being humble when I remember that being prideful is the opposite of humility. The Bible says that pride comes before the fall. I also believe that thinking highly of yourself is a bad thing when it is not based off reality and it does not help others.
This fall, several amateur hitters are failing and, in a lot of cases, it is because they are not as good as they thought they were. In turn, they will not humble themselves to ask for help.
2 Corinthians 12:9-11 speaks to how in our state of weakness, we can gain strength in Christ. Those verses can preach. Preaching is about causing someone to take action based on what they have heard. When something is broken, it must be fixed. When someone is weak, they need to be helped. Do you struggle to humble yourself to the point of recognizing when you are weak so that you can ask for and receive help?
Several years ago when I was becoming a new member of Elizabeth Baptist Church, I learned a new prayer method that I use when I am asking someone for help. It is called the A.C.T.S. Method:
A — Acknowledgement
Hurting people hurt people, so make sure you are receiving help from someone who is not also weak, at least in that season of his or her life. It is important you are clear about what you are struggling with and, to the best of your ability, explain how you arrived at this point—especially if it is because of your own doing.
C — Confession
Confession is not just the admission of wrongdoing. It also can be the admission that you do not know how to do something, and you are experiencing a moment of weakness and need help. If you need to confess that a bad decision got you to the point of weakness, confess it to the person you are giving permission to help you, so that he or she can get to the root cause of your problem.
T — Thanksgiving
Thanking people for taking the time to hear your heart before you ask them for something is a good thing. But flattery can be the enemy of thanksgiving when you are excessive. Acknowledgement followed by confession of wrongdoing, and thanksgiving of the person’s time and energy that you are with, sets you up to ask with humility.
S — Supplication
Supplication is when you ask for something with a humble heart. Are you struggling at the plate right now and in need of help?
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C.J. Stewart has built a reputation as one of the leading professional hitting instructors in the country. He is a former professional baseball player in the Chicago Cubs organization and has also served as an associate scout for the Cincinnati Reds. As founder and CEO of Diamond Directors Player Development, C.J. has more than 22 years of player development experience and has built an impressive list of clients, including some of the top young prospects in baseball today. If your desire is to change your game for the better, C.J. Stewart has a proven system of development and a track record of success that can work for you.
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