“Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.” — Galatians 6:1

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Former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Chris Carpenter was known for his intense attitude when he was on the mound. That extended toward his teammates at times.

In a 2010 game against Cincinnati, Cardinals shortstop Brendan Ryan was slow to take his position on the field while searching for the correct glove, meaning Carpenter had to wait to start the inning. After the inning, Carpenter pulled Ryan into the tunnel of the dugout to have words with him. The cameras caught the intense situation, which involved some stern body language from Carpenter toward the young infielder.

Despite Carpenter’s attempts to have the conversation privately, they were visible enough for cameras to catch it all. Carpenter — who has opened up about his heart softening after his playing career and finding a relationship with God — faced criticism for showing up his teammate.

During the 2018 NBA Finals, Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James found himself in a similar situation. The Cavs and Golden State Warriors were tied toward the end of regulation in Game 1 when J.R. Smith grabbed a rebound off a missed free-throw. Instead of putting up a potential game-winning shot, Smith dribbled toward mid-court, thinking his team had the lead and he was killing the clock.

James demonstratively yelled at Smith in what has become one of the most memorable sports images and memes of the past decade. The Cavs went on to lose Game 1 in overtime and were swept by the Warriors in the Finals.

In both of these instances, a player made a costly error that hurt their team. But both Carpenter and James handled it poorly and caused embarrassment for their teammate by their public reaction.

Sports are competitive, and someone will always make a mistake, whether it’s you or your teammate. Sometimes it’s even a coach. Accountability is crucial for improving as an athlete and a team, but there’s a difference between holding someone accountable and flat-out disrespecting them.

The Book of James shows us the proper way to handle correction: “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires” (James 1:19-20).

You can make the argument that Carpenter and LeBron had legitimate reasons to be frustrated. However, the issue wasn’t whether their frustration was justified but rather what they did with that frustration.

We think that if we’re right about the problem, we’re justified in however we respond. Scripture would say otherwise. James doesn’t tell us that anger is wrong only when we’re angry about the wrong things. He warns us that human anger doesn’t produce the righteousness God desires. Even when the mistake is real, our response still matters.

That doesn’t mean we should ignore mistakes or avoid difficult conversations, but Paul tells us in Galatians 6:1 (above) to “restore that person gently.” We can correct someone without humiliating them. We can hold them accountable while still showing them grace. After all, there will be times when we’re the ones who mess up. When that happens, we’ll want that same grace in return.

— Cole Claybourn

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