The Official Scorer

A person with his job description attends every Major League Baseball game, but he doesn’t have to pay for a ticket.

He pays careful attention to every play on the field, but few pay attention to him.

He doesn’t wear a uniform, and his name doesn’t appear in the game’s box score, but the box score wouldn’t exist without his efforts.

He knows the rules backward and forward, but he’s neither a player nor an umpire. Even the most knowledgeable baseball fans couldn’t name three people who do his job.

Such is the behind-the-scenes role of the official scorer. You have heard about great hitters like Babe Ruth and Mickey Mantle, but can you name the official scorer for the New York Yankees?

The official scorer must be unbiased because he makes judgment calls that affect both teams. He needs to have thick skin because his decisions cause anger, relief, or consternation. He can singlehandedly raise or lower a player’s batting average or fielding percentage. With a stroke of his pen, he can ruin a pitcher’s no-hitter or end a batter’s hitting streak. One sports columnist noted, “Hell hath no fury like a ballplayer scored out of a base hit he feels he deserves or charged with an error he feels he doesn’t deserve.”

Keeping Score of Others’ Wrongs

The Bible says, “Love keeps no record of wrongs” (1 Corinthians 13:5, New International Version). Ah, but we do.

We like to keep score. Our minds are file cabinets filled with folders labeled “Grudges,” “Hurts,” “Resentments,” and “Wounds.” We notice misdeeds and take them to heart. We keep mental scorecards filled with others’ errors. We remember the times when friends slighted us. We jealously recall the special treatment a coworker received. A spouse or another family member’s harsh words and selfish deeds remain there in the scorebook, recorded with indelible ink. “To err is human,” and to forgive is … well, uncommon and unnatural.

In Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, the character Shylock expresses his thirst for revenge by exclaiming, “I will feed fat the ancient grudge I bear him. Cursed be my tribe, if I forgive him.” But when we feed our grudges, resentment doesn’t just consume our enemies; it consumes us.

Choosing to Forgive and Let Go of Resentment

Scripture says, “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you have a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you” (Colossians 3:13). What does it take to do that?

It takes a heart shaped by God’s grace.

It requires viewing each day as a fresh chance to honor the Lord and demonstrate his grace, not to rehash yesterday’s failures.

It means relinquishing resentment and refusing to seek revenge or repay “evil for evil” (Romans 12:17-21), instead recognizing that God is the final arbiter and judge.

Louis Armstrong said, “If you have to ask what jazz is, you’ll never know.” And so it is, I suspect, with forgiveness. It’s one of God’s greatest blessings, providing peace not only for the one who receives it but also for the one who gives it.

In the game of life, the Lord himself is the official scorer. The scorecard that matters most is to have our names written in the Lamb’s book of life.

A version of this article by David Faust first appeared in The Lookout magazine on July 26, 2009. Hundreds of Dave’s articles are now available, searchable by topic and Scripture reference, on the new website www.DaveFaustWrites.com.

Author: David Faust

David Faust serves as contributing editor of Christian Standard and senior associate minister with East 91st Street Christian Church in Indianapolis, Indiana. He is the author of Not Too Old: Turning Your Later Years into Greater Years.