Fear will always tell you to hold the ball. Faith tells you to throw it. Don’t let the yips steal the joy of simply playing the game God has called you to play.

The yips.

The word itself can strike fear into the heart of even the greatest athlete. The yips is a phenomenon where a talented player forgets the basic fundamentals of their job. They know what to do. Their muscles know exactly what to do. Yet when they go to do it, there is a mental block. Something prevents them from executing.

I played baseball from the time I was four all the way through high school, and before the Lord called me into ministry, my goal was to play in college. Based on my best estimate, as an active player who played league ball, travel ball, fall ball, high school ball, and attended multiple camps, I have probably thrown a baseball between two and three million times.

In high school, I caught the yips. I played third base and had a rocket of an arm. I could make throws across the 103-foot diamond off my back foot. I had quick reflexes. On bunt plays, I could slide on my knees and throw the ball with pretty good accuracy. Yet I still caught the yips in the most embarrassing way.

In baseball there is a routine during warmups and after a strikeout where you throw the ball around the horn. The catcher throws to the third baseman, who throws to the second baseman, then to the shortstop, and finally back to the pitcher. On one occasion, I slipped up and threw the ball way out into right field. I was terrified from then on. Every time I caught the ball, fear washed over me.

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