The year is 1972. Exactly 30 years ago.

Turn on the radio, and you hear the sound of the song "Sunshine" by Jonathan Edwards, "I Can See Clearly Now" by Johnny Nash, and "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)," by a group called Looking Glass.

Other hits include "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing" by the Hillside Singers -- remember that one? As hard as you try, it's impossible to forget. This song is soaring up the charts along with "Hold Your Head Up," by Argent, "Precious and Few," by Climax, and "Popcorn," by a band called Hot Butter.

So what do all these classic tunes have in common? They're One-Hit Wonders -- songs that launched their bands on a skyrocket ride to fame and fortune, before exploding and then burning out, forever.

These bands could never repeat the stunning success of their one big hit. Of course, if your group is named Hot Butter and your hit is called "Popcorn," what can you do for an encore? There's nowhere for Hot Butter to go, after "Popcorn."

The music world is not alone in experiencing One-Hit Wonders. Mike Nicolette was a shooting star in 1983 when he recorded the only victory of his short-lived PGA Tour career by beating Greg Norman in a playoff at the Bay Hill Invitational. That was his one and only victory. Five years later, he quit the tour. "If you're not up on your golf trivia," he told the Associated Press, "you have no idea who I am."

In the world of baseball, which is swinging into action again this month, one-hit wonders seem pretty lame when compared to home-run heroes like Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, and Sammy Sosa. Suddenly, a player doesn't appear to be much of a hitter unless he bangs 50 or 60 or 70 baseballs over the fence.

That seems unfortunate, especially for those players for whom a home run turns out to be -- quite literally -- a once-in-a-lifetime experience. A company called Stats Inc., which compiles sports statistics, created a list of the 20 major leaguers who played a fair amount of baseball, but who managed to knock just one ball out of the park in the course of their entire career. These one-hit wonders included Duane Kuiper, Emil Verban, Johnny Bassler, Floyd Baker, and Woody Woodward. (John D. Thomas, "The Other Route to Home Run History," The New York Times, August 19, 2001, 4-2)

These five players each got to bat two thousand times, at least. And out of all those at-bats, each hit only one home run.

It's not too wonderful to be a One-Hit Wonder.

So, should we feel sorry for them? Not at all. They don't feel sorry for themselves. "I wasn't a Bozo hitter, but that just was not my role," reflects Bob Randall, an excellent fielding second baseman. "It was just a blessing to play in the big leagues at all." They were thrilled to be playing professionally in a game they loved, and they all made valuable contributions to their teams.

The very same is true for us.

The first letter of Peter reminds us that we Christians have only one homer to our name: Faith in Jesus Christ. This faith gives us access to "an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading" (1:4), and it ensures that we will enjoy "a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time" (v. 5). We don't have to set home-run records or produce a string of platinum CDs -- for us, faith in Christ Jesus is what takes us to the top of the charts.

"In this you rejoice," says Peter, "even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials" (v. 6) -- like a ballplayer struggling through a hitting slump. It is our faith, our faith alone, that will result in praise and glory and honor when Jesus is revealed. Peter tells us that our faith will be tested, for sure, but it is ultimately "more precious than gold" (v. 7).

These are good words, but do we believe them? If thrown into an interrogation room, most of us would probably confess that we are anxious for more gold, not more faith. We imagine that another $5,000 or $10,000 or $100,000 would enable us to be truly happy, truly content, truly satisfied. We'd feel much happier if we had just a bit more gold.

A Massachusetts pastor named Coty Pinckney tells the story of a well-known musician whose group had sold 50 million records. He was anything but a One-Hit Wonder. The musician had just signed an $80 million contract, and an interviewer asked him, "Are you happy?"

Think about it: 80 MILLION dollars. What do you think your response would be?

The interviewer writes that the musician finished chewing his animal cracker and gave a perplexed look. "Happy?" he wondered. That just didn't compute. "I don't know if happiness is something that's even relevant, you know," he said. "Some days I'm happy, some days I'm not." Then when asked if he was satisfied, he replied, "I'm completely unsatisfied." (Coty Pinckney, "True Satisfaction Through Faith Alone," Community Bible Church, Williamstown, MA, April 8, 2001)

If $80 million leaves a person completely UNsatisfied, then there must be more to happiness than money.

Peter suggests that true joy comes from faith in Jesus Christ, not from fat record contracts or baseball signing bonuses. This joy is felt when you are willing to lean on Jesus, to rely on him completely, and to trust him to show you the way to everlasting life. There's not much to SEE in such a relationship -- in fact, Peter says, "Although you have not seen him, you love him" (v. 8) -- but deeper than physical sight is an INNER vision that confirms for you that Christ loves you and cares for you and will never abandon you. This trusting relationship leaves you with "an indescribable and glorious joy, for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls" (vv. 8-9).

An indescribable and glorious joy. That feels even better than an $80 million deal. And it all comes from our one big hit: Faith in Jesus Christ.

Like baseball players with only one homer on their record, our joy comes from the realization that we are saved by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ. Our salvation comes not from personal perfection, somehow managing to get a hit every time we step to the plate. It's not from good works in the field, never committing any errors when wildly-bouncing grounders or scorching line drives come flying our way. It's not from somehow mastering the game we are playing, knowing all its rules and its statistics and its trivia. No, our salvation comes as a gift from God, and we receive it through our one hit: Faith.

Joy also comes from being a part of a team -- part of a community of faith that lives IN the world, but is not defined BY the world. Although we certainly have a role to play in the complex and confusing culture around us, we see ourselves most clearly in relation to another realm: The kingdom of God. First and foremost, we are members of God's organization, a team of men and women who are forgiven, reconciled, and equipped and encouraged to do the work of Christ.

This gives life a whole new significance, regardless of the particulars of our own earthly batting average. It's important for members of our church softball team to remember this, especially in the midst of a batting slump. Peter describes our spiritual perspective as "a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus from the dead" (v. 3). With a new birth and a living hope, we can do our Lord's work without fear of failure, without being scared of striking out.

As members of the Christian community, we can pray to God, trusting that he hears our prayers. We can feed the hungry, believing that Christ is present in all who come to us in need. We can comfort a grieving friend, knowing that the Spirit is with us as a Holy Comforter. We can mentor a child, confident that such an investment bears fruit not only today, but tomorrow. We can develop new forms of praise and prayer, believing that God delights in our creativity and our heartfelt attempts to communicate with him. We can do our daily work with integrity, trusting that Christ is alive and well and active within the labors of the various members of his body. We can ask for Christ's peace when we are feeling overwhelmed, for he has promised to be with us always, to the end of the age.

All we have to do is ask for Jesus' help. And trust that he will respond.

All these expressions of faith are what you might call "homers" -- hits that move us around the bases of life, ever closer to our heavenly home. They're not exactly One-Hit Wonders, but they are clearly signs and wonders of the one true God. Amen.