Basketball season is upon us!  Teams prepare to meet their foes as the gyms reverberate with the squeaking scuffle of high tops. . . a heavenly sound to the ears of a coach.  

One of the barking commands often heard during practice is, "LOOK UP!"  The reason?  A player must be very aware of the surroundings as he/she dribbles down the court.  Looking down instead of up is sure to bring on a sorrowful steel causing an unsettling fear and perhaps a dose of worry too!  

As sportmoms we may have to LOOK UP to our athlete as they grow taller and taller.  In order to stay in touch, we must tilt our heads back to gaze into their eyes, command their attention and be in communication with them.   God's Word has some encouraging thoughts for us regarding this subject.  There we find that to LOOK UP was necessary in many instances for a plethora of reasons.  Here are a few . . .  

• The SORROW of being blind and the faith it would take to be healed precluded Jesus' LOOK UP directive.

"After that he put his hands again upon his eyes, and made him look up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly."  Mark 8:25  KJV

• The FEAR that overtook Job after so many life losses included this same LOOK UP response.

"You will find pleasure in the Almighty, and you will look up to him" Job 22:26  NLT

• The WORRY that consumed King David was dispelled as he proclaimed his faith in the maker of the hills.

"I look up to the hills, but where does my help come from?  My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth."  Psalm 121:1-3 NCV

To LOOK UP into the eyes of our living God requires a strong measure of FAITH.  Along with David, we can re-direct our sorrow, fear or worry by opening the window of our soul and simply gazing upon Him.  

"My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up." Psalm 5:3 KJV

  SORROW LOOKS BACK - WORRY LOOKS AROUND - FEAR LOOKS FORWARD
 . . . but FAITH LOOKS UP!

Blessings . . . as you LOOK UP in faith.

 ©2010 SPORTMOMS & MORE | 11964 Elemar - Portland, OR 97224

 As Thanksgiving approaches, there is always a keen sense of evaluation. What has been harvested from the fields of my life this past year? How can I show my thankfulness for the blessings I have been given? To help us answer these very large questions, try this small ONE THING challenge . . .

STEP ONE: Think of ONE THING that makes you HAPPY - pause and thank God for it - now give the same away soon...that's THANKS-GIVING!

Let your attitude of gratitude for that ONE THING be the sunlight on your sportmom path today! Then purpose to do this once a day for 30 days. If each one around your Thanksgiving table would take on this challenge the happiness around you will double.

"Happiness is not a station you arrive at, but a manner of traveling." Margaret Lee Runbeck

Often we live from one happiness to the next which, when the formula above is practiced, can be extremely impacting. However, in between these mountaintop experiences we slog through the details of everyday life, heads down often with sheer will-power only leading us forward. A certain sadness, irritation or discomfort can fill these gaps which brings us to the second half of the challenge...

STEP TWO: Think of ONE THING that makes you SAD - thank God for being in it - now give away the opposite - and that is THANKS-LIVING!

"Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." I Thessalonians 5:18 NIV

If we take these frustrations, disappointments, hurts, betrayals, rejections, or losses in life and practice the formula above - they turn into rays of sunlight on the path of another.

Paul the Apostle wrote this to the Jewish Christians of his day about the importance of a thankful heart:

"Do you see what we've got? An unshakable kingdom! And do you see how thankful we must be? Not only thankful, but brimming with worship, deeply reverent before God. For God is not an indifferent bystander." Hebrews 12:28

This Turkey Day let's worship God with both THANKS-GIVING and THANKS-LIVING . . . a small request with large results!

 

©2010 SPORTMOMS & MORE | 11964 Elemar - Portland, OR 97224

Some do it on purpose, some do it with purpose, some purpose to do it, and some wonder around without purpose. Our world revolves around purpose - a reason for living and doing which brings happiness to our souls.

"Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose." Helen Keller

Purpose is interesting - it's not always ahead of us where we can see it. In my life I have found that it is often found in the doing rather than the seeing. As Sportmoms our purpose can be clouded by the daily chores...yet undaunted and happily we move forward. This reminds me of an old Charles Schulz quote - it goes like this:

"My life has no purpose, no direction, no aim, no meaning, and yet I'm happy. I can't figure it out. What am I doing right?"

Sportmoms do a lot of things "right" for the worthy purpose of raising our athletes, supporting our spouse as he coaches athletes, or as gal coaches we spur athletes on to new heights. The key is in the doing, the being there, when the greater purpose unfolds before us.

Speaking of "being there" - that is exactly what we find when we reach out to our loving God. We long for His clear and unobstructed purpose just as David the Psalmist did . . .

"I cry out to God Most High, who fulfills his purpose for me." Psalm 57:2

Any purpose outside of God's purpose is destined for eternal failure. We may experience a satisfying result here and there but when the hype wanes, there remains no lasting value. True purpose runs deep and accomplishes more than we can see or imagine - God himself made us that way. . . He is the author and finisher of our purpose.

"I don't think the way you think. The way you work isn't the way I work...For as the sky soars high above earth, so the way I work surpasses the way you work, and the way I think is beyond the way you think." Isaiah 55:8 MSG

When we trust God for His purpose to be done in us, he uses every up and every down to bring it into being. His plans will be completed in us and our purpose made clear.  To sum up His intention  . . . 

                                                               THE PURPOSE OF LIFE IS A LIFE LIVED ON PURPOSE.

SPORTMOMS PRAYER: Lord, I find myself concerned about my purpose so I push myself really hard - so much seems to be left undone. I choose today to rest in the knowledge that YOU are accomplishing Your purpose in me. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Blessings . . . as you rest easy in His purpose-filled arms!

 TO RESPOND GO TO TOP RIGHT OF THIS ENTRY AND CLICK ON "COMMENTS.

©2010 SPORTMOMS & MORE | 11964 Elemar - Portland, OR 97224
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Today we hear a lot about sustainability. Research and development firms are keenly aware of the importance of this attribute. How long will something last, how difficult will it be to maintain and how often will it need to be maintained are all curious and vital questions that must be answered before product development can move forward.


As the winter sports season begins, it is another opportunity for Sportmoms to consider their personal sustainability. Failure to do this can, as they say on The Amazing Race television series - "result in elimination".


There have been times during Coach's long and grueling basketball season when I failed to take my longevity quotient into consideration. One particular season when Coach was in his first years as Varsity Basketball Coach I faced this issue. For some rather uninformed reason, I thought I could be his wife, be a mother of 2 young children, continue my career as a flight attendant, take care of the household responsibilities, teach a Sunday school class with Coach, teach piano lessons "in my spare time" and - as if that didn't stretch my time and energy to the limit - tackle the challenge of beginning a new young mothers ministry group at church. My schedule was, as I soon found out, not sustainable.


Not one, but all of my best-laid plans ended in some form of jeopardy. Deciding in the middle of the winter season which could stay and which must go was painful, disruptive and disappointing...but it was critical that I re-establish my personal sustainability in order to be effective at anything.

We can find great solace in our sustaining Creator. He set the world on it's axis with complete sustainability for the duration and He does the same for us. Here are a few examples of His sustaining power.


WARDROBE AND FOOT PROBLEMS?
"For forty years you sustained them in the desert; they lacked nothing, their clothes did not wear out nor did their feet become swollen." Nehemiah 9:21


SLEEPING PROBLEMS?
"I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the LORD sustains me." Psalm 3:5


NEED PROTECTION?
"You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great." Psalm 18:35****


HEALTH ISSUES?
"The LORD will sustain him on his sickbed and restore him from his bed of illness."
Psalm 41:3


ATTITUDE ADJUSTMENT?
"Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me."
Psalm 51:12


WEARINESS SET IN?
"Surely God is my help; the Lord is the one who sustains me." Psalm 54:4


TOO OLD TO MATTER?
"Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you." Isaiah 46:4


Blessings . . . as you find your sustainability in Him.

©2010 SPORTMOMS & MORE | 11964 Elemar - Portland, OR 97224
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"Be nice!" my mother would remind us. As right as that sounded, the difficult part was to do it. In our own family it was a challenge to hand out kindness to a sibling who
 wasn't being very kind. Even so, this hard-learned lesson brought much-needed truth into my life.

Team members may experience this same sort of dilemma. Offering kindness when it is needed but perhaps not earned is a challenge. A player who offers a hand of
 assistance to a downed opponent is a simple expression of unmerited kindness.

"Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see."  Mark Twain

Jesus gave us clear understanding of the importance of kindness in Luke 10:25-37. Here is a quick account: One day an expert in religious law asked Jesus what he
 had to do to live forever. As happened quite often, Jesus answered his question with a question as to what the law said. The lawyer then gave the "memorized-ten-
commandment-version" answer:
 
"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself."

Then the expert in interpreting the Law quickly followed by asking Jesus this qualifying question: Exactly "who" is my neighbor anyway? Jesus, taking advantage of the
 teachable moment, then told the story of the Good Samaritan and closed with yet another question . . .which of the three who saw the wounded Samaritan do you think
 was a good neighbor? The expert in religious law then answered his own original question, "The one who treated him kindly," the religion scholar responded. Jesus said . . .

"Go and do the same."  Luke 10:37 TM

Jesus gives the man a thumbs up and sends him on his way . . the question of eternal life now understood to include kindness.

Who do we give our kindness to? Is it reserved for the ones who we think deserve it? Or is it available to whomever may be in a tough place of need? Is is earned
 or is it a gift? Is it given as a merited favor or an unmerited favor?

The answer to this QUESTION ON KINDESS is found in another question: Do I have eternal life because I have earned it?

"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."  Romans 5:8 NIV

The answer is a resounding "no" -  so let's go do the same!  Because you love the Lord with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength, find someone today who hasn't earned your kindness and give it . . . in this is eternal life!

Blessings . . . as you give loving kindness to those who need it but haven't earned it. 

©2010 SPORTMOMS & MORE | 11964 Elemar - Portland, OR 97224
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Oh the joys of the Mud Bowl!  Our grandson, Parker, just played in one last Saturday (photo above).  Thankfully they won but even if they hadn't it would have been a blast getting all mudded-out . . . just part of the game.  Now haul out the extra-strong, ultimate stain removing detergent . . . for the jersey (not the kid!) for this muddy mess.

The saying "I better do this or my name is MUD!" takes on new meaning with a look at this photo.  Ending up with "MUD on our faces" is what we want to avoid.  As sportmoms it is an on-going chore to keep up with our athlete children or husbands.  Our name can quickly turn to mud if we miss the pick-up time, don't know where the gear is, or mess up on a myriad of other crucial duties that are expected of us. MUD is not a good thing! The old saying "I better do this or my name is MUD!" takes on new meaning since we don't want to end up with MUD on our faces.

Then there is the muddling through a situation - making it work even when we don't have all the answers or the right equipment.  Winston Churchill once said, "The English know how to make the best of things. Their so-called muddling through is simply skill at dealing with the inevitable."

The old saying "I better do this or my name is MUD!" takes on new meaning since we don't want to end up with MUD on our faces.  As sportmoms it is an on-going chore to keep up with our athlete children or husbands.  Our name can quickly turn to mud if we miss the pick-up time, don't know where the gear is, or mess up on a myriad of other crucial duties that are expected of us. MUD is not a good thing!>And there's the MUD-slinging!  Heaven knows we have seen plenty of that in the recent election process.  The candidates either get hit blind-sided with an unexpected glob of un-true reports or worse, find themselves giving out a few!  Oh me, but then they may be in some good company if the former is true.  Take a look at what Moses said to all of Israel about their God and throwing mud . . .Mud is a slippery, slimy substance that we avoid. Yet, it was used to bring good out of bad circumstances. . . for MUD was the medicine of choice Jesus used to heal a blind man! And here is what the no-longer-blind man said about this unbelievable healing:

"...our God! The Rock: His works are perfect, and the way he works is fair and just; A God you can depend upon, no exceptions, a straight-arrow God.  His messed-up, mixed-up children, his non-children, throw MUD at him but none of it sticks."  Deut. 32: 4-5 TM  

Mud is a slippery, slimy substance that we avoid. Yet, it was used to bring good out of bad circumstances. . . for MUD was the medicine of choice Jesus used to heal a blind man!  And following that miracle this is the simple story the no-longer-blind man announced to his world:

"The man named Jesus made some MUD and put it on my eyes. Then he told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see."  John 9:11 NCV  

Wow! Mud? Just picture yourself as that man.  What do you mean put that nasty filth on my eyes? It's disgusting! But the blind man allowed that mud to be placed on his eyes and the result was sight!  "Mud on my face" suddenly takes on new meaning. Jesus took the very substance that we would avoid and used it to bring this man into full relationship with his world.

Is God using a MUDDY situation in your life to bring new perspective and understanding?  He will if you ask Him . . . He is in the business of healing and He definitely can use MUD!

Blessings . . . as your MAKER cleans up the MUDDY MESS.

©2010 SPORTMOMS & MORE | Janet Brown 11964 Elemar - Portland, OR 97224

 Having THE RIGHT STUFF is key to a team's success. Ability is an overwhelming must, but without "approachability" success is at risk.

An impacting coach is accessible to his or her players. A warm fuzzy? Probably not. Approachable - definitely! The most effective coaches have an amazing ability to manage their sport while effectively relating with each player both as a team member and as an individual. This combination results in THE RIGHT STUFF!

Athletes also benefit from remaining approachable. A healthy fear of their coach is good as long as it is based on respect within a mentoring relationship. Approachability can be compromised, however, if the fear is rooted in resentment or mistrust. Players who maintain an open, positive and transparent attitude toward their coaches and fellow team members find that their abilities rise to new levels . . . this is THE RIGHT STUFF.

I recently read about a Franciscan Monk, who, when asked about the distinctive brown robe he wore, answered, "We have the choice to wear it, and a lot of us make a real effort to because it acts as a magnet. People tell me things they’ve never told anyone. Complete strangers will confess something they did 30 years ago and ask if God can forgive them."   The robe with which he clothed himself was his tool for "approachability".

Jesus was very accessable! He often hung out with the crowd that needed him the most instead of the crowd that knew him best! Religious leaders maligned him for it, his followers questioned him about it, but the world was changed because of it! Here is what He said:

"Who needs a doctor: the healthy or the sick? I'm here inviting the sin-sick not the spiritually-fit." Mark 2:17 MSG

Jesus was approachable - he had THE RIGHT STUFF!

Are we clothed in approachability . . easily accessed by those around us? Let's dress as magnets of God's love today, always at-the-ready to answer anyone who asks about it...this is THE RIGHT STUFF!

"...worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it." I Peter 3:15 NLT

Blessings . . .as you find yourself in the right place doing THE RIGHT STUFF.

©2010 SPORTMOMS & MORE | 11964 Elemar - Portland, OR 97224