← Focus on the Family with Jim Daly
Focus on the Family with Jim Daly
John Smoltz: A Story of Triumph and Unexpected Turns (Part 2 of 2)
00:27:20
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- [00:01]
Jim Daly
God is at work and he's calling his people to rise in truth. Truth Rising is a powerful new documentary from Focus on the Family and the Colson Center. See how ordinary Christians choose courage in a culture that needs truth. Watch Truth Rising today and find out how you can become an agent of restoration and hope. Visit truthrising.com today. That's truthrising.com.
- [00:33]
John Smoltz
I've just learned my journey is an incredible journey. I've learned a lot and I'm glad that I've learned grace through my children, grace through other things. I'm glad that I can have a better balance and not be stuck in my knee jerk reaction to go right to truth. And I'm still learning like I don't think we ever arrive. And I think that's a good thing because he, he wants us to stay dependent upon him.
- [01:00]
John Fuller
Insights from hall of Fame pitcher John Smoltz as he shares about his need to balance grace and truth in his life as he continued maturing in his walk with Christ. We're coming back for a second day of conversation with John and more of his inspiring story on Focus on the Family with Jim Daly and I'm John Fuller.
- [01:19]
Jim Daly
Last time John Smoltz gave us a look into his childhood and how he set out to become a professional baseball player. I thought it was funny. Last time he said he sized up the positions and realized if he became a pitcher, he only had to work every four or five days. And that's a great young man's thought, right? Wow, how little can I do. But also that drive with perfection. I mean, I saw it when I played golf with him. I mean, he works hard at the art of doing athletics and you could see that even in his golf game. It was very determined, I would say. And I admire that determination to want to be the best. And it certainly led to a great 20th, 21 year career in Major League Baseball. Now he's the lead baseball analyst for Fox Sports covering the World Series that gets underway tonight. So you can go listen and watch that on Fox Sports. He told us he was raised in a family that went to church and he tried to do good and avoid many of the traps that ball players fall into. But it was a team chaplain and some Christian teammates who caused him to think about his relationship with God more deeply. And that's what led him to, to give his life to Christ. Go back and hear that first day. If you missed it, download the Focus app so you can get all the great content at your fingertips.
- [02:41]
John Fuller
Yeah. And as we get into the rest of the story today, John shares about lessons God has taught him along the way in his faith journey. We left off last time as he was talking about how God was teaching him more and more about the need for grace and not just truth. And that's where, Jim, you picked up the conversation in front of a group of about 60 men in Wisconsin. And let's go ahead and listen in on today's Focus on the Family with Jim Daly.
- [03:11]
Jim Daly
With that, though, there's a lot of dads in the room right now. And when you're the truth, truth, truth, dad kids can feel like they've never heard grace from your lips.
- [03:22]
John Smoltz
That's right.
- [03:22]
Jim Daly
And we miss it as dads and we tend to lean into that area. We're the ones wait till your father gets home, then the hammer's coming down. You want to talk about truth, he's going to put it right on your backside. That's right. So how, how did you again, how did you move from this truth, truth, truth orientation to your kids feeling like daddy loves me?
- [03:46]
John Smoltz
Yeah. So that transition I think about all the time. What happens to fill in the blank, the person when you're shocked by something or you didn't see it coming, how do you react? Where do you go like when you didn't see it coming? And there was a lot of things in my life that I didn't see coming and they were coming, as I look back now, pretty full throttle. And to experience grace and to show grace, it started with my children. I had to learn a lot with some of my children and grace and it progressed into loving them unconditionally instead of trying to change them.
- [04:27]
Jim Daly
How could you do that? I mean, that's a big move. What did they say to you? Or I mean, that's a big move.
- [04:33]
John Smoltz
To go there it is. And the life that I lived was not an easy life that I lived gone half the time, you know, living in a gated community, trying to give my kids the best protection and life that I could and then setting them up for what would life look like for them. It was a very tough 21 years from a long term perspective if we didn't instill that faith and that, that consistency in their life. So I think, and I look back now, my youngest is 25, my oldest is 33. Man, I went through the gamut. I had to learn a lot of tough lessons and I had to ask for forgiveness and I had to go through forgiveness and the marinade that I was under, I would have eliminated a lot of people in my life based on the pain and hurt that happens to you. And that's what I'm saying. Like, what do you do when you don't see it coming? Well, I just learned to lean in more. I learned to trust him more. Jesus. And to really put more of that in the right area, because I was trusting me for the longest time and trying to do and solve life's problems by myself. And that's just not a good way to go. So I think when your kids see you're vulnerable and when they see you're not this person that can't have hard things happen to them. I kind of wish growing up they could see all the hard work I put in. They just saw the byproduct. They never saw that the 12 hours a week in the gym. I mean, they were going to school. They never saw all the hours that I was putting in and starting a Christian school. And I think over time they saw the consistency of a person that didn't react a certain way when things would happen. Because, you know, what you brought up, it's like, we got to hide it from dad.
- [06:11]
Jim Daly
Yeah.
- [06:12]
John Smoltz
And when you start hiding things and you get division and split in the household, that's never a good thing.
- [06:18]
Jim Daly
John, this is a delicate issue, but it's happening in our culture. You did go through a divorce. That's tough stuff. There's men in this room that probably have had that experience. It's not the best. But speak to that low place in your life.
- [06:33]
John Smoltz
Yeah. And that's another moment that I didn't see coming. And it was the lowest I've ever been. I'm a high energy, motivated, driven person. And there was nothing you could do to motivate me then. And I was going through a lot of rough stuff. And the reason I don't know to this day how people can do that, apart from Christ, I just don't. I think you can do, like, when you don't see it coming, the flesh is capable of doing something really stupid and living in that stupidity for a while. And I had to find out a lot about myself in that moment. And, you know, with my kids, that was something I didn't see coming. And what I had to learn is how to walk through something that I was not good at forgiving. I just wasn't. I think when you're not having in your mind to have been forgiven a lot, it's hard to extend forgiveness when you know it. It's for you.
- [07:30]
Jim Daly
You know, if I can interject there, it feels like the older brother of the prodigal story.
- [07:36]
John Smoltz
That is 100% me. Yeah. I mean, one. My wife corrects me because I used to say, I'm the prodigal son. She said, no, you're the brother of the prod. The older brother. The older brother. Yes, that is exactly right. You know, and I think that I had to learn through that. And. And that's when I was the emptiest. And I wish I was empty more because I would trust more and lean in, because God took me through that place in my life where he literally picked me up and brought me through it to the other side. I have one of the greatest blended families in the world. I have the greatest wife, Catherine, 16 years now. And, you know, I went through it. I mean, I went through the perfect storm that happened. The economy crashed. I mean, there was one thing after another after another. And when you're living a life of perception, perception is not a reality. And when you're a major League baseball player, that everybody can look up what you made and everybody can look up what you've done. That perception is not always reality. And so during it all, and during. Through it all of it with my kids, I had to ask for forgiveness, and I had to be willing to forgive. And those are two very different things. Because willingness to forgive something that you don't think is deserving forgiving is. Is. Is what God gives us. That. That channel to say, this is for you. You know, it's not necessarily for the other person. Sometimes the other person doesn't even know what they like. Forgive me for what? And that process, I remember happening in a car, driving down the road, and I said, lord, if you don't take me through this, I don't know if I can do it. I don't know if I can physically say those words. And there were a lot of situations. I'll just share one story. I had to speak at a Zig Ziglar conference on motivation from 25,000 people. I had agreed a year prior. I forgot all about it because I'm going through this, and nobody knows I'm about to go through this. And, you know, this always makes headline news. And so my agent calls and says, you ready for tomorrow? And I'm like, what's tomorrow? He goes, oh, you're supposed to be at the OMNI Speaking at 9am I said, I am. And I was completely like. I was out of it. I was depressed. So I walk, I drive down, I meet Zig Ziglar, and he tells me that boxing ring in the middle of the omni is where you're going to speak. You got 25 minutes. Don't go a second over. There's a clock in the corner. And I am just like, there's no chance this is going to work. He goes, I'll take you to the green room. And I went to the green room. It's the first time at that time in my life that I completely, 100% had nothing. And I said, lord, you have to show up. I've got zero energy. I don't even know what I'm going to talk about. And prior to that, I'd be. I'm like, motivational, one on one. I could do that in my sleep. And so I literally prayed for about three to five minutes. And when I walked out there, I don't even remember all of what I said, but when I was done, I looked at the clock and it went, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. And I got a standing ovation. And I got in my car and went back to sleep for who knows how long. Like, it literally was an example of what people tell me all the time, like, when you're brought through something. And I was completely empty. And I do that one one other time. And, you know, that showed me everything I needed to know about my trust and my faith and what was going to happen in the future. And. But when you're going through it, there's nothing that anybody can tell you until you experience his grace and his presence. And I wish I experienced it more often. I really do. I wish there was more of those scenarios to where I could speak and see, wow, he picked me up here, he used me here, he did this. And I'm sure there's a lot of those that I could look back, but that was the most unbelievable of my life.
- [11:22]
Jim Daly
You know, again, when you look at the arc of your life, it's really interesting that you could go from being the big brother of the prodigal story to experiencing the younger brother plight. Right? I mean, that brokenness. The scripture says he's close to the brokenhearted and saves those crushed in spirit. But when you're doing things so well, you don't experience that. I should be good enough to get into heaven. I'm a good person. And then the Lord goes about, well, let me show you.
- [11:51]
John Smoltz
Yeah. And I think people have a hard time being vulnerable. And I think people also accuse me of, like, well, it's real easy to share Jesus when you have everything. I said, no, see, that's where you're wrong. If you have everything. You don't need Jesus. And that's probably harder. I said, it's when you realize how much you really don't have. And you need him. And it's that whole, like, you're weak. You know, the whole culture shifted since I started. And where we are today, it's no longer thought of weak, but it's that strength that we have to have as men to lead our family in the midst of all of it. Right. It's not just in the good. And I've been vulnerable enough to realize that even though I've been given a platform with a jersey and a Hall of Fame and all that stuff, that all pales in comparison to where I know I'm going, right? And even in my hall of Fame speech, I wanted that to not be empty. I wanted people to know that this is the greatest thing here on Earth. But what I've got here on Earth pales in comparison to where the hall of Fame I end up knowing I'm going to go.
- [12:50]
Jim Daly
You know, you've had so many amazing experiences in life. You know, let's get down to a couple of core things that men should know. Not just the men in this room, but all the men that will be listening and all the men that their wives are going to say, you need to listen to this. All that you've experienced. And when you get down to it, what are those two or three lessons you're going? These are the things to remember, guys. A warrior which achieved you, achieved all the highest accolades. And I'll tell you what, athletes, in our culture, you are the gladiators. I mean, whatever the sport, you make a lot of money doing what you do, and no matter how you spend it, but the culture looks to you as superheroes. So when you're looking at that and then you say, okay, but the core thing in this life is Jesus.
- [13:40]
John Smoltz
Yeah, connect those dots. Yeah. The biggest thing is, you know, I wanted to prove fallacies and everything that, like, I wanted to be a warrior and I wanted to be a warrior for Christ. When I realized that that's my. My mission and that, you know, the book that we get to read, the good book, the truth, it's not a manuscript that we can live out. It's just not. We need him to live out the book that tells us how to live it out. Like, you can't do it on your own. And I think the one thing that I've learned is that if there's anything in my life that I'm holding onto or I have to hold on to. I'm running the wrong race. I can honestly say that I can let go of everything knowing now that, you know, the faith that I have sustained me, it's brought me through some of the most unbelievable times that nobody would ever know. And it's allowed my family to get reconnected when there was that brokenness that affects everybody differently. And they understand that. If there's one thing that my kids are saying that dad's about more than ever is consistency of understanding. His faith is going to drive him and be a motivator. And it's not about, you know, making the US Open or making the hall of Fame or doing all the things that I love to do competitively, but I no longer hold on to it, whatever that is, in a way to where it replaces what Christ want me to do. And that journey has changed because I could tell you all the things I said I would never do, I'm doing. And I don't believe that's an accident. It's a reverse bucket list that I am checking off that I said I would never, I would never write that book. There is no way I'm going to write that book. I would never start a Christian school. I would never do this, I would never do that. And I realized that all the things that if I become more available and I become more readily available for him better, like I think God looks at us, say, that's nice, that's good work, that's. I applaud that. But I don't think that the reality is like God will use you when you don't think you can bring anything to him, you know, and that we have so many people in the Bible that speak to that. And so I've just learned, my journey is an incredible journey. I've learned a lot. And I'm glad that I've learned grace through my children, grace through other things. I'm glad that I can have a better balance and not be stuck in my knee jerk reaction to go right to truth. And I'm still learning. Like I don't think we ever arrive. And I think that's a good thing because he, he wants us to stay dependent upon him.
- [16:17]
Jim Daly
Definitely. So you look at, we have a number of young men in the audience here, but you look at the courage that it takes to do that. That warrior attitude that you talked about, about baseball, now you're trying to apply that in a spiritual context. What word of encouragement do you have for young men who by the way, are coming back to the church in big numbers right now. Young men, 20 something, 30 something men, they've got about a 15% increase in coming to church, which is huge.
- [16:47]
John Smoltz
Yeah, I think pressure in general is a. I loved it in my sport. Like, I love pressure. And I'm not saying everybody is going to be in that category. But the one thing I can tell you, and rest assured on, and you have to get to in your life, and I've thankfully got there, is I'm not going before I could fool everyone right now. Like, I could be saying things that are true, but end up failing you. When I walk out of this place in two weeks, I'm not going before any of you when I die. Like, we're not fooling God and we're not fooling Jesus. So to be bold and to be courageous and all the things outwardly on the earth, that's fine. But if we're just Jake in it, it doesn't matter. Right. And I had to get to the place where it's like, I'm not fooling him. So I'm either trustworthy and steadfast gonna do and march to this way. And I think it's, again, easier said than done. It's not for everybody. Like, everybody can't make the same decisions because ramifications are different. I was in a place, I can't tell you how many people came up to me and said, I wish I could do what you're doing. They just weren't in position. They were going to lose their job. They weren't in a position. You know, when it comes to this subject, I tell my kids this literally before it happened. And I said, be careful what you know in life. I mean, every intention I believe in life was started for good evening. The Internet was started for good. And then evil takes over. Right. It just, it changes things. And I said a lot of what life happens is like sitting in an ocean in an inner tube, and you don't paddle, you don't go anywhere, but in 10 minutes, you're a mile or two away. And life does that to you. If you're not careful, like you intend in the right direction. And if you get distracted or you get into a pothole, next thing you know, you are completely in something you never intended to be. And I'll never forget that because in my life, that path has been that way. And there's been so many opportunities for so many people to get in that. I call that ocean effect. And, you know, the world does it.
- [18:55]
Jim Daly
Yeah, that's for sure. Right at the end Here, let's speak to everybody from a dad perspective. You had a great relationship with your father. You talk about the legacy that he left you and your family. He passed away three years ago, which gave you some thought about what legacy do you want to leave? So we're a bunch of men in this room right now. Talk about your dad's legacy and then what. How that has led you to say, okay, this is what I want to be about.
- [19:27]
John Smoltz
Yeah, as I told you, I gave you a little sneak preview. He was not afraid of who he was and what he did. He would just as soon laugh than cry. And he just had a. A spirit about him that he was going to work and give you everything he had. He never met a stranger. My dad did something that I used to just beg him not to. And I realize now why he did it, you know, but. But he made my first baseball card. And like I said, he handed out his business card everywhere he went because he was a salesman, but he handed out this baseball card every single place he went. And I was in high school, and he would go, my son's going to be in a big leagues. I want you to have this.
- [20:06]
Jim Daly
And I'm like, dad, those are worse than money today.
- [20:09]
John Smoltz
I'm like, dad, I'm running into people and strangers that got these cards. Like, he traveled all the time, but he was proud, and I get that. And then when he passed, I realized, okay, my mom said you got to go through all the stuff. He kept everything, every single thing. And it may, you know, almost embarrasses me to think, well, we keep it on our phones now. We have the technology. We kept every letter. He kept every news clipping. He kept every video. And so it took me a day and a half to go through it, but it was. It was very. It was very cool. It was. It was awesome to see. And. And the one thing about being a dad, and, you know, sometimes it's unfair that we view our Heavenly Father like our earthly father, you know, and if it's a good relationship, then we view our Heavenly Father in a good way. If it's a bad relationship, then, unfortunately, you might have that same feeling about your Heavenly Father. And I realized that, you know, in all the way that he brought me up, and he brought me up, like I said, buzzer at the seminary, and then didn't feel like that was his calling. And then, of course, lived 80 years on. On this earth. And I realized his passion for never missing a game, driving 400 miles for a silly baseball game. And I Used to tell him, like, dad, you're killing yourself. That doesn't make any sense. Never missed a game. So when you have kids, you're like, whoa, I get it. And I can't imagine what it was like for him to be sitting in game seven in Minnesota watching me pitch that unbelievable game. And the tension and pressure and the pride, like he was just. And until I watched my child, you know, playing soccer in college and I'm like, this is at level five, that must have been level 100. And he just had a zeal for life. He never met a stranger and he always did things for people. And you know, obviously I want to pass that forward as much as I can. And he was the guy that everybody loved and everybody knew.
- [22:01]
Jim Daly
Let me ask this last question. The prodigal child. The dads that are struggling because their late teens or 20 somethings aren't in a good place, self destructive behavior, whatever it might be, what do you do?
- [22:16]
John Smoltz
I think that's where the, you know, a combination of grace comes in and obviously a lot of prayer. Because I told you my kids experience things I've never experienced. And I was, I told my oldest, I'm like, I hope you realize that nothing I do in life should define who you are and vice versa. And I think the hardest thing is we're attached to the outcomes of sometimes that are just not even fair. They're not an identity of who we are, but we get wrapped up in like, I'm going to make sure my child's this or that or if he does this or she does that. And I had to get to a point where I realized I'm doing the very best I can for you and I'm going to pray for you and hope that you get to experience peace. But that whatever you do or whatever I do is not an identity of who we are. Like a bad outcome is not going to make me feel like I'm going to wear, you know, a straight coat and put in handcuffs because you've done something stupid. And I hope you feel the same way if that ever happens to me. And I think that as a father and being available and understanding that I can do a little bit more of the prayer aspect because, you know, it's never good to just assume, oh, they're going good and everything's going good, that there won't be attacks and they won't be pulled. And we all probably know situations where children left to gone to college and they've come back and you're like, I do not know who you are based on what we thought we agreed on. And so, you know, there's obviously, you know, all the studies, but as a father and a leader in the home, that that's where it starts. And when that's broken and when there isn't a father, then there is not a lot of good research that's being done. And the blessing to me, the final thought I would give you is my dad never got the blessing from his dad. And my dad was super successful. And I know it just killed him. You know, he was out to prove, prove, prove, prove. And I luckily could see that and breaking that chain, that generational chain in your family of making sure that you give the blessing to your children. Because if you withhold that blessing based on what happened to you, or you say, I'm never going to be what my dad was, the likelihood of spinning that in is incredible. And I realized that my dad never got that blessing. And I got to speak to him about that saying, I love you. No matter what shape, size, wherever you're at, whatever you're going through, that love is not going to change. And you know, he had a hard time for a while saying I love you because he never received that from his dad. And his dad was beloved by everybody. And imagine that dynamic. So I think sharing that blessing and really passing that on to your kids is what I've really learned to be a vital turn of the switch to what you can see has been going on for maybe a generation or two.
- [25:09]
Jim Daly
That's so good, John. This has been great. I want to say thank you. Thank you for working so hard as a four year old and all the way forward so that the Lord could use you to talk about the gospel and about the Lord the way you do so boldly.
- [25:23]
John Smoltz
Well, there's still work to be done.
- [25:24]
Jim Daly
Well, and you're also an amazing golfer. Let's thank John for being with us. Way to go.
- [25:34]
John Fuller
Our guest for the past couple of days has been John Smoltz, hall of Fame pitcher, husband and father, and wow, Jim, there were some great messages in there. There were.
- [25:45]
Jim Daly
It was really good stuff and I don't mean it as a picture. And the men in the room appreciated what John had to share about grace, forgiveness, steadfastness, integrity, trust, and so much more. He reminded us about what really matters as we live for Christ. And if you've been inspired by this conversation and you don't have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, we have a free online resource called Coming Home that explains what it means to put your faith and trust in a relationship with Jesus. And John's going to tell you more in a moment. Then also we have a copy of his book John Starting and Closing it shares a lot of his baseball journey, but also more importantly, his faith story. And with a gift of any amount today, join us in doing ministry together. We'll send you a copy of his book as our way of saying thanks for supporting other families.
- [26:41]
John Fuller
Yeah. Donate today as you can and be sure to look for our Sports and Faith audio collection. It's a free audio download and includes today's presentation by John Smoltz and also inspirational interviews about sports and the Christian faith featuring Darryl Strawberry, Kirk Cousins, Darrell Waltrip, Benjamin Watson and others. And you're going to want to share this great collection with a young person in your family or perhaps a friend. You can get the Sports and Faith audio collection and and also read that Coming Home article we have about the Christian faith and get a copy of John's book all online and the link is in the show Notes. Of course you can always call. Our number is 800, the letter A and the word family. 800-232-6459. Thanks for listening to Focus on the Family with Jim Daly. I'm John Fuller inviting you back next time as we once again help you and your family thrive in Christ.
- [27:51]
Jim Daly
God is at work and he's calling his people to rise in truth. Truth Rising is a powerful new documentary from Focus on the Family and the Colson Center. See how ordinary Christians choose courage in a culture that needs truth. Watch Truth Rising today and find out how you can become an agent of restoration and hope. Visit truthrising.com com today. That's truthrising. Com.