Winning and Losing
On the last day of September, 2024, Peter Rose died. As a Pirates' fan back in the 1970s, a feeling of dread arose whenever "Charlie Hustle" (as he was nicknamed) entered the batter's box. Everyone knew he would give everything he had to win the game for his Cincinnati Reds. He was an integral part of The Big Red Machine. The Pirates and the Reds often vied for the National League pennant. The Pirates beat the Reds in 1979 and went on to win the World Series, but the Reds beat the Pirates in 1970, 1972, and 1975.
The names of the four men who have had the most hits during a baseball career are well-known by those who once followed the sport. Stan "the Man" Musial is in 4th place with 3,630 hits. Hank Aaron edged him out and remains in 3rd place with 3,771. Ty Cobb (the "Georgia Peach," whose career ended in 1928) accumulated an amazing 4,189 hits, but Pete Rose still tops the list nearly 40 years after his career ended at 4,256.
Sadly, his career came to a halt because it was discovered that he was gambling—not just on sporting events in general—but on baseball games. He was banned from baseball in 1989. The amount of hurt this caused him must have been incredible since Cincinnati baseball was, pretty much, his whole life. In 1968 Richard Harris (who would later play Dumbledore in the first two Harry Potter films) recorded a song by Jimmy Webb (who also wrote "Galveston" and "Wichita Lineman") titled "MacArthur Park." There are two lines in the song that were not—but could have been written—about Pete Rose.
I will take my life into my hands and I will use it.
I will win the worship in their eyes and I will lose it.
There are two points to consider from Pete Rose's life. One is that gambling is a powerful addiction. Those who would never engage in such an activity—and it is better never to begin—will not understand the attraction, but those who have the "fever" may lose their wealth, their families, and their careers. The second principle is: "Don't throw away what you have worked for all your life." Especially ought this truth to be applied to preachers, elders, and deacons—some of whom have fallen. Usually involved is a sin of a sexual nature. As with gambling, the desire is so powerful that a person's good judgment is overruled, since he is trading an eternity of genuine happiness for a few years of fleshly satisfaction. How sad to devote one's life to the spreading of the gospel only to lose the respect of everyone. One can repent, of course, and be forgiven by both God and man, but that may not erase all the damage that has been done. We cannot let anything deter us from the faith.