I love…
- …to see my kids red-faced, sweaty, and smiling, rather than pale and grumpy
- …it when they are fixated on the goalie box, rather than the box that the couch faces
- …to see them fighting together with a team rather than fighting each other for the remote
- …it when they wake up on Saturday morning saying, “I have a game today!” rather than sleeping Saturday morning away
- …to see a coach (instead of just me) pressing my kids to do more, be more, give more–even when it hurts and they want to give up
- …it when my child scores a goal, then looks over to see if I saw it
- …the way we treasure it when the stars align and the five of us get to enjoy some time together
I hate…
- …the opened floodgates of laundry that all needs to be clean before this weekend’s games
- …the stress of always having another practice to get to
- …never having meals together
- …siblings whining about going to each others’ game
- …coaches who only tear down, and forget to build up
- …seeing my child struggle on the field, then struggle on the bench
- …when the other kids on the team unravel all of my encouraging words
- …not knowing what a good mom would say, as we’re driving home from the game
Lord, thank you for spring sports. Help me to serve my family well in the coming weeks. May my sacrifices be packaged with a smile.
Give me wisdom for those teachable moments in the car, on the way to a practice, or home from a tournament. Use what happens on the track or the field or in the pool to show us our hearts (me, included!). Help me to rely on your coaching, as I coach my kids both to play well and to live well.
Take the ball, the score, the team, and the coach, and use them to make us all more like Jesus.