Fellowship of Christian Athletes - In 1996, at the age of 16, Albert Pujols moved from the Dominican Republic to the U.S., settling in the Kansas City area. He graduated from Fort Osage High School in Independence, Mo., after twice earning all-state honors in baseball. He made a name for himself at Maple Woods Community College where he’d earned a baseball scholarship, and was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 13th round of the 1999 free agent draft. After only one year in the minors, Pujols was invited to spring training with the Cards. His performance was so good that he never got sent back down to the farm team. Instead, he began his big league career by setting National League rookie records for RBIs, total bases and base hits.

As great as it was to reach baseball stardom and success so quickly, something more significant happened to Albert Pujols in 1998. He met Deidre, the woman he eventually would marry, the woman who soon would lead him to the Lord. As a child, Pujols had been to church once in a while, but he did not know Jesus Christ, the Savior. After attending church with Deidre a few times and asking the pastor what it meant to become a Christian, he was determined to commit his life to Christ. From that moment on he has grown up in the Lord.

Pujols’ conversion happened four years ago. Since then, he has been diligent and determined to deepen his faith. He worships at his home church as often as he can, is a regular in Baseball Chapel services and Bible studies, and has formed close relationships with other Cardinals’ players involved in the Chapel. One of the biggest differences his faith has made is in giving him a heart of deep gratitude towards God. He expresses his thankfulness through giving financially to God’s work with a joyful heart, and through being a living witness of what Christ has done. Pujols lovingly shares his knowledge of God’s Word and his heart with teammates and fans alike.

Principle: A Living Memorial

Platform: Joshua 4:24, He (God) did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the LORD is powerful and so that you might always fear the LORD your God.

Process: In the fourth chapter of Joshua, God tells the Israelites to take 12 stones out of the middle of the Jordan River to serve as a sign or memorial in their new home in the Promised Land. This memorial was to be a reminder to the people forever of their miraculous crossing into the Promised Land by means of God holding back the waters of the Jordan until the entire nation passed to the other side. This safe passage by God’s power is similar to the Israelite’s crossing the Red Sea 40 years earlier, when God freed them from slavery and oppression in Egypt. Previously, in Exodus 12, the Israelites were instructed to remember these events forever by their annual celebration of Passover. “Because the LORD kept vigil that night to bring them out of Egypt, on this night all the Israelites are to keep vigil to honor the LORD for the generations to come.”

God constantly commands His people to remember what He has done for us—and to us. He also warns us to remember examples that should keep us from repeating the sins of others (Luke 17:32). Albert Pujols is a man who remembers what God has done. His life is dedicated to living out his thankfulness to God, and keeping away from sin. Pujols remembers who he was before God saved him, and who he is now because of God. Pujols is a living memorial.

ASK and DISCUSS: According to Joshua 4:24, what results from memorials?
(1. People will know that God’s hand is powerful; 2. God’s people will always fear Him.)

Note: To fear God is to have a reverential awe of Him that leads to obedience.

Name synonyms for remember: (reminisce, recognize, think back, look back, return to thoughts of, dwell upon, keep in mind, review, know by heart, commemorate).

ASK and DISCUSS: What do you remember in relation to who you were before God saved you, and what He has done for you since you accepted His gift of salvation? Why is it important to remember? How have these remembrances been significant in your life? In what new says can they become more significant in your relationship with Christ and others?

Your history with God is a memorial. Each event you named demonstrates God’s power and should cause you to revere and obey Him. It is very important that believers remember these events that are unique to them alone!

ASK and DISCUSS: Among many things, the Israelites were to remember forever how God miraculously freed them from captivity in Egypt and passed over them when He judged the Egyptians in His wrath. They were to remember forever how He made a way for them to enter the Promised Land. What key events are Christians to remember forever? (The life, death and resurrection of Jesus, for a start.) How can you apply Joshua 4:24 to these? How can remembering these events increase your love for the Lord? How can remembering these events enable you to be a living memorial to the Lord, like Albert Pujols? What do you, as a living memorial, look like?

[To the graduating Senior Huddle members: As you look to graduation and the future beyond school, what kind of living memorial have you left your Huddle? You still have a month left to make the necessary changes God has instructed you to make.]

Close with these thoughts – The only right motivation for serving God, and the only one with any “staying power,” is your love for Him. But your love for God did not begin with you. It originated with Him. Read Ephesians 2:1-5. Be a Living Memorial to Him all the days of your life!

Personalize: Buy a notebook to compile a Memorial Accountof your life from the time before you became a Christian until now. Write out Ephesians 2:1-5 on the first page. On the following pages include notations according to what each verse describes about you (i.e., who you were before Christ, how you came to recognize your need for Christ, how you accepted His gift of salvation, and what He has done in your life since then). Then write examples of answered prayers, cleaning up your life, your influence for Him with others, major growth experiences, dealing with current sinful habits, promises He’s met, times of struggle He took you through, etc. Add to your Memorial Account often. Use it as a source of encouragement and a key to being a Living Memorial that reveals God’s powerful hand and produces your reverential obedience.