Rudy Meoli was an average baseball player at best

CONCLUSION: Let me close by telling you a true story. It will illustrate that whatever God gives to us we can develop and use for His glory. 

Rudy Meoli was an average baseball player at best. His career batting average was just over 200. Rudy was not known for his batting average or his fielding. In 1973 he made 27 fielding errors. In spite of his mediocre abilities Rudy played an important major role in baseball history.

It all happened on May 15th, 1973. Rudy, as usual, was hustling and working hard to play his best. On that particular day, Rudy and his teammates faced a team that would wind up winning the division. This was an important game. 

Rudy played well that day, but what happened in the eighth inning allowed Rudy to make the most important play of his career. His team was up 3-0. It was the bottom of the eighth inning. Their new young pitcher had not allowed any hits so far. A veteran pinch hitter by the name of Gail Hopkins was called on to face the young pitcher that inning. The pitcher threw a pitch that Hopkins got just a piece of and hit a little looping ball into shallow left field. Rudy Meoli turned his back toward home plate and ran as hard as he could into shallow left field. Rudy pulled off an unbelievable over the shoulder catch. What he did was what he was supposed to do. That was what he was trained to do. But, that’s not the end of the story.

That was the closest the Kansas City Royals came that day to having a hit against the California Angels. Their young pitcher was Nolan Ryan. Rudy Meoli’s amazing catch in the 8th inning sealed Nolan Ryan’s very first Major League No-hitter. Ryan, one of the all time great pitchers, wound up with a total of 7 no-hit games -- a baseball record that has yet to be broken. He also still holds a major league record of 5,714 strikeouts.

Without Rudy Meoli, Nolan Ryan would still have had a successful career, but he would not hold the record for the most no-hit games. 

God will use us too, if we are humbly pursuing a passion to glorify Him.
“To be living without aim or purpose beyond that of keeping up your position is to be a wicked and slothful servant, condemned already. While meditating upon this subject may we