My ultimate goal as a ballplayer is to win the World Series. Period. When I played for the Yankees we didn't just hope to make it to the series at the end of the season. We expected to play in it and win it every season. Nothing changed when I left New York. I signed with the Astros after the 2003 season because I wanted to help bring a championship to my hometown. That's why I play the game.

As a Christian I also have one goal. I want to fulfill God's purpose for my life. I constantly ask myself "What does God want me to do?" and "Where does He want me to go?" Those may sound like odd questions to ask in a book about purity. After all, doesn't purity just mean sexual purity? Hardly. As I said in the last chapter, living a pure life means trying to please God in everything I do. And the best way to please God is living in a way He can work through me and use me in other people's lives.

The question of God's purpose for my life both today and for the rest of my life makes everything else secondary, even baseball. Don't get me wrong. I know the Lord wants me to play baseball. After all, a man needs to have a job. But my career won't last forever. Eventually my life will take another turn. When that time comes, God's plan for me and my family will come first. With every decision I make I have to think about what the longterm effects will be. Being able to discern this requires a pure and holy heart before God.

While God has me playing baseball, even where I play comes down to a question of His plan for my life.

When my last contract with the Yankees expired I could sign with any major league team I wanted. But I knew that wasn't really my decision. I prayed and sought God's will throughout the 2003 baseball season because I wanted to know where God wanted me to play next. Honestly I could never imagine playing anywhere but New York. But God could. He wanted me in Houston. I thought I knew why when I signed, but I only saw the tip of the iceberg. One month before the start of Spring Training, one of my best friends found out he had cancer. The Lord planted me in Houston to be there for him and his family.

I didn't know life would take this kind of turn when i was trying to decide whether to play for the Yankees or the Astros. God did. That's why living for God's long-term purposes and plan for your life is so important. And you can't do that without striving to have a pure heart before Him.