If you play tennis, racquetball, squash, baseball, cricket or golf, you know about the “sweet spot.” It’s the location at which the object being struck (usually a ball) absorbs the maximum amount of the available forward momentum and rebounds away from the racket, bat, or club with a greater velocity than if struck in other places.

When I played tennis in my younger days, I loved that feeling of hitting the ball in just the right location. This didn’t happen often, mind you. More often than not, I connected on a “dead spot,” which produced a jarring sensation in my arm and hand as a result of all the vibration produced. The ball would land just a few feet away with a dull thud—a sure sign I had not hit it in the sweet spot that’s located near the middle of the racket. 

In our spiritual lives, we sometimes experience the bliss of a sweet spot hit … Those occasions when, with minimal effort on our part, we find ourselves in a “God moment” that is both bewildering and exciting. I’m sure this is how Paul and Silas felt when they led the Philippian jailer and his family to Christ following the earthquake that released them from prison (see Acts 16). Queen Esther experienced a “sweet spot” result to her prayers and courageous obedience during a traumatic time in Israel’s history. Because of God’s favor, she and all the Jews living in Persia were saved from being annihilated. We could recount many instances in both the Old and New Testament of God orchestrating circumstances in such a way that His people experienced supernatural help and deliverance. In 2 Kings 19 we read about King Hezekiah taking the threatening letter from the Assyrian king, who vowed to capture Jerusalem and enslave its people, and spreading it out before the Lord. Imagine his joy (and relief) when God himself defeated the invading army.

As it says in Hebrews 11:32-35, “I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah, about David and Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. Women received back their dead, raised to life again.”

As we can tell by these verses, spiritual “sweet spots” take on multiple appearances. They can look like deliverance from our enemies, supernatural empowerment to do God’s will, and/or an amazing outcome to a tragic situation. If I were to try to come up with a general definition of a spiritual sweet spot, it would go something like this: “The surprising and dramatic intervention of God in circumstances that would otherwise be insurmountable.” When God’s Spirit is at work, we find the “vibration” minimal and the outcome better than we could have imagined. As the prophet reminds us in Zechariah 4:6, “‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit’ says the Lord Almighty.”

Look at Peter’s experience in Acts 10 with Cornelius, a centurion serving in Caesarea with the Italian Regiment. Peter was troubled by God’s Spirit instructing him to go to his house and share the Gospel, but God was already at work in Cornelius’ life. When Peter put aside his fear of becoming unclean by the encounter and obeyed, he got to witness an amazing “sweet spot” moment in his ministry life—bringing the first Gentile convert into the church!

Can you recall a “sweet spot” moment in your walk with Jesus? If not, maybe you need to get out there and swing that racket more often. Finding the sweet spot makes all the difference in our enjoyment of spiritual life! Although we can’t come up with a formula for “how to experience more sweet spot moments” in our faith walk, there are some contributing factors that seem to help bring them about. The people in the Bible who saw supernatural breakthroughs were:

PRAYING—seeking God’s wisdom

PATIENT—waiting on God’s timing

PLIABLE—willing to adapt to God’s plans and methods

PLUCKY—courageous in obeying God’s instructions, despite their fear and confusion

I think most of us would like to live in this way … anticipating special moments of God’s favor upon our lives. We can’t expect to find that sweet spot every time we step up to bat, of course. But when we can touch another person under the direction of the Spirit at the right moment, in the right way, we’ll find a special joy only experienced by partnering with God.

Earlier this year Tony (my husband) and I got to see salvation come to a dear friend we knew from our college days. We had not been a part of each other’s lives for over 50 years, but social media finally enabled us to reconnect. Tony visited with Mark in person a couple of times, sharing the Good News about Christ whenever he could. But (not surprisingly) he wasn’t interested initially. After all, Mark grew up Jewish. God was at work in his life, though, and eventually we were shocked to hear that he was thinking a lot about Jesus. This past year we saw him pass from death to life, and last month he asked us to baptize him when we came through his area for a visit. Mark’s baptism at a public beach was a unique picture of how the Spirit of God can work miracles. From the shore I watched a Christian (Tony) baptize a Jew (Mark) with the help of a Muslim man (Jabeel) who happened to be in the water at the same time. Only Jesus could have brought us all together that day! It was a “sweet spot” moment I’ll never forget.

When we continue reading the passage in Hebrews 11:35-36, we see that miraculous interventions are NOT something every Christian experiences in every situation. “There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection. Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment.” There will be times when we must serve Jesus without the joy of sweet spots. But even in adverse situations we have the promise that His Spirit will sustain us. As Paul wrote in Philippians 4: “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation.” In every kind of situation, we must make the decision to remain true to Him. When we’re set on glorifying the Lord, we can trust that His grace will be sufficient. But … we can still practice our swings so we can find the sweet spot of ministry as often as possible.  

Lord Jesus, we look to you today. Open our eyes so we can see the opportunities around us for your supernatural intervention. May we be sensitive to the moving of your Spirit. We want to partner with you in making a difference in the lives of those we encounter. Teach us how to use our ministry gifts in a way that enables you to deliver maximum responses. We want to experience the sweet spot hits more often! We’re grateful for your empowerment and help. We love and praise you. Amen.