Book: Baseball Faith
Author: Rob Maaddi
Publisher: Shiloh Run Press
Publishing Date: March 1, 2017
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing and am under no obligation to post a review.
My interest in this book: My husband and son are huge--I mean play it, talk it, watch it "huge"--fans of baseball. My 10 year old son can list you a ton of baseball facts and stats but when it comes to reciting a bible verse? That's a little more complicated to get him excited about. Until now.
Type of book: Devotional/Christian Life
Main ideas / Message: Each page starts with a scripture quote and is followed by a player's definition of why that scripture is important to him. Each page can be read in less than 2 minutes. The following two pages are devoted to some of the player's stats and an interesting fact; like "Matz is the only pitcher and the 26th player in the last century to collect at least four RBIs in his major league debut"; "The average annual value of Kershaw's contract, $30.7 million, is the largest ever for a baseball player."
Favorite moments: To be honest, I didn't even have to read any of the internal content before falling in love with this book. From the cover design to the page set ups to the back cover copy: "Baseball Faith will inspire you in your faith journey as 52 MLB players--past and present--share their stories and how they are chasing the success that only comes from being God's man and following His plan. These men are committed to living their lives with eternity in mind. Empowered by God, they are looking beyond the competition to a larger goal: following God's game plan for their lives as team players, husband, fathers, sons and then using their influence to point others toward Him." And these are not just "devotions." These are real men, successful men, who are showing my son the Way.
Overall: I LOVE this book! I am so glad Barbour/Shiloh Run published Rob Maddi's collection. It's a quick read that will entice even the least avid reader to take a peek; the stats are interesting; it's writing is easy to read for my 10 year old and still interesting for my husband. This book is very relational and I feel that's how lives are changed. Not by teaching, not by dictating, but by relationship. It's why Jesus taught by storytelling. He made the information relatable to the hearers. Rob has done exactly that and I couldn't be more excited to have this book in our home. THIS is the type of man I want my son to become; from the players to the author, all are examples of what you can do with your love of God and baseball. I really can't stop gushing about how pleased I am with this book! Well done Barbour and Rob Maaddi.
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