Of all the trades made in the MLB, the most confusing ones for the average fan are the ones that include the dreaded “Future Considerations.” What this means is that the trade will be finished later when a certain player who is ineligible for trades has become eligible. There are a few reasons a player may be ineligible for a trade; he may be hurt, or just recently drafted, or suspended from play. It may even be that one team can’t decide between two players, and they get the option to pick later from the two whenever they decide which one they want. Often this is just pitched to the public as “Player X is traded for a player to be named later.” This is always a tough pill to swallow for the public, since they have no idea what their team is doing other than getting rid of players. Sometimes it’s the only way a team can get something done; leverage something far in the future for right now. Sooner or later though that player will be named, and you just hope as a fan that it’s worth the price.

1 Samuel 1: 9-11, 17-18

After they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh, Hannah rose. Now Wli the priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the Lord. She was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. And she vowed a vow and said, “O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head.”…
…Then Eli answered, “Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have made to him.” And she said, “Let your servant find favor in your eyes.” Then the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.

Hannah had it pretty rough. She prayed earnestly for a son and didn’t get one. Desperate and at the end of her rope, she cried out (literally) to the Lord for help. She promised to God that if he were to give her a son, then she would raise that son for the Lord’s service. She was so crazed by her begging that Eli thought she was drunk, and tried to console her to sleep. When he saw her earnestness, he blessed her, and God did soon give her a son. That son was raised to serve the Lord, just as Hannah promised. In this case, Samuel was both the player traded for and the player to be named later. Hannah gained a son, but she had promised him away to the Lord, for the gift of a son was given to her by God alone. We should have a similar attitude towards our gifts; treat them as players to be named later in a trade with God. Whatever we’re given, be it money, influence, or even a family, devote it to the Lord as much as you can as a tribute for all he’s done for us. While we can’t promise our families will follow God, we can do our best to raise them to know the Lord and know how to follow his ways. All we’re given in life is because God has trusted us with it. Let us not forget that, but instead be good stewards of it until the time comes to hand it back over for him. Be joyful when the time comes to let your gift go out to God, knowing that he has great plans for it as well as you. Our lives are fleeting, but God is eternal. His gifts will outlast us, but we can make sure that our small lives are a blessing to the Earth as part of his kingdom’s impact. Let’s try and do so.