We are the Champions

   "We are the champions, my friends, And we'll keep on fighting 'til the end, We are the champions, We are the champions, No time for losers, 'Cause we are the champions of the world" (Queen). If you don't know that is the song called "We Are The Champions" by Queen. It is a typical song sung by teams when they win a tournament. I always wanted to sing that song after winning a championship, but I never got to.
   Now, before you go thinking this is going to be a depressing blog I have sung that song in another competition. In this competition I didn't have to do anything to win. Someone won for me. In Him I am more than a champion. In Him I am more than a conqueror. Jesus has already won. People may think that he is in a constant battle with the Devil but they are wrong. There wasn't even a contest really. The devil is like an ant. Jesus is so big and powerful that all he had to do was step on him.
   Because we have this knowledge, when we feel down we must remember that the battle we are fighting is already won. In fact, the war has already been won. We cannot lose because Jesus is on our side. He defeated Satan because he loves us. Isn't that great to think about? Whatever you are going through I encourage you to remember that you have already won. Satan cannot bring you down. Even if you fail, even if you fall into temptation, Jesus is still on your side. All you have to do is ask Jesus to forgive you and he will. Now, that doesn't mean that we should continue to sin if we know Jesus will forgive us. We are to be more like him each day as we grow in him.
   So, how does it feel to know that you are more than a champion/conqueror? Will you continue to try to be like Jesus? How can you grow in Him today?

   Romans 8:35-37 and 1 John 5:4

   Image from here.

Better Than What You Are

   I am a soccer player. I've played every position on the field. When I was a junior in high school I decided to try to become a better goalkeeper. In order to do that, I sat on the couch all day watching TV.... just checking to make sure you are still with me.
   When I became a keeper I had to work hard to get my body in shape, learn how to dive, how to catch the ball, when to come out to get the ball, and so much more. If I didn't work at it I wouldn't have been starting goalie at LBC for 4 years, I wouldn't have broken LBC's shutout record, and I wouldn't have become a better person and coach.
   What would've happened if I didn't work hard at being a goalie? I wouldn't have made an impact on LBC's soccer team, I wouldn't have become a keeper, and I wouldn't have become a better person.
   In the movie Kung Fu Panda 3 Master Shifu has a conversation with his apprentice, Po. Shifu: "If you only do what you can do, you'll never be better than what you are." Po: "But I like who I am!" Shifu: "You don't even know who you are."
   "If you only do what you can do, you'll never be better than what you are." If we stay stagnant, if we don't try to improve, then we will never get better. If you don't try to learn how to cook, you'll burn your food. If you don't try to learn how to drive, the you'll crash your car. If you don't try to grow in God, then God will not be able to use you for his glory.
   1 Corinthians 10:31 says: "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." God gives us many gifts. He wants to be able to use us in his story. He wants us to be able to grow in him. Why does he want that?
   Po said he likes who he is. Shifu replied "you don't even know who you are." Who are you? You are a child of God (John.1.12). If you have accepted Christ as your savior then you are a child of God. Jesus walks with you and wants to help you grow in him. Now that you know that/have been reminded of that will you try to grow in him? Will you work hard for his glory? How can you work hard for him today?

   Image from here. 

A Forgiving Death

   We have all had to do it at one point or another in our life: forgive. Maybe a stranger stepped on your foot. Maybe a friend had to cancel on you. Or, maybe a family member betrayed you. Whatever the case, forgiveness is called for. We all expect to be forgiven yet we all know that forgiveness is not an easy thing to do at times.
   Why is it so hard to forgive? Ann Voskamp has an answer in her book The Broken Way. She says: "NO one gets to forgiveness unless something else dies. There always has to be some kind of death for there to be any kind of forgiveness." The ultimate example of forgiveness is Jesus. He had to die in order to forgive our sins.
   Now, you may be asking, “what has to die when I forgive someone?” The answer is typically your pride. Let's say that someone has lied to you, not just once but many times. He promised he would never do it again but he continued to do it. According to the world's standards, you have every right to stop forgiving this person. You could hold a grudge and never speak to him again. But, according to God's standards, do you have a right?
   In Matthew 18:21-35 we read about a forgiving master and an unforgiving servant. The master had a right to throw his servant in jail because the servant would NEVER be able to pay off his debt. It just wasn't plausible that during the servant's life he'd be able to pay 100 bags of gold off. The master was merciful and forgave the debt. The servant went out and found a fellow servant who owed him 100 pieces of silver. The servant threw his fellow servant in jail because he could not pay his debt. All this servant had to do was forgive because he was forgiven. He could've let go of his pride and just said it was "okay, you don't have to pay." But, the servant wanted what he deserved. Then the servant got what he truly did deserve; he was thrown in jail and the key was thrown away.
   We have been forgiven so much. God has every right to say, "you have sinned too many times. You cannot come to heaven." But, he doesn't say that. The creator of the universe has every right to be prideful and give up on us but he doesn't. If he is our ultimate example, then why can't we put away our pride and forgive others just like he does?
   Ann Voskamp goes on to say: it is "Never the cross you carry, but your resistance to the cross, that makes it a burden." We can push back and pull back and choose not to forgive others. But, when we don't forgive, we are only hurting ourselves. We all have a cross to carry. It could be a situation, a problem that keeps happening, a sin, etc. And, if you remember correctly, crosses are heavy. Jesus needed help carrying his cross because he was so beat up. He has experience carrying crosses. It is very difficult for us to carry the cross on our own. We can ask Jesus for help carrying our cross. We can ask him to help us forgive that person who wronged us. Then, our burden becomes lighter.
   So, do you have anyone you need to forgive? Are you going to ask Jesus to help you carry your burdens? Will you choose to die to pride in order to forgive others?
   Image from here.

Who You Are

   We have all gone through that time of life: middle school-early adult years. That is the time where we search for answers: why are we here? Who are we? Who do we want to be? All of these questions have to do with our identity. I think that's why many movies enjoy focusing on identity a lot; it is something we are all searching for.
   In the movie Moana, a young child named Moana, is chosen by the ocean to restore the heart of an island. Moana goes through many trials until she gets to the point where it is too hard to continue. She begins to wonder why the ocean chose her. She did not feel special at all and wanted to give up. Of course, Moana just needed a reminder of who she was. 
   Moana was called because she stood apart from the rest of her people. She never gave up (until that point). She realized that the call is inside her just like the call is inside us. She realized that her heart was for her people and doing what was best for them even if it was hard. That's why she was chosen. She would not have been able to complete her mission if she did not figure out where her heart was.
   Just like Moana, we are chosen. When we are born God wants us to come to him. He calls us. We all go through different trials in our lives. We have a choice, we can choose to give up and walk away from our destiny. Or, we can be like Moana and never give up even when it's hard. In those times we need to remember we were chosen for a reason. We are children of God. We need to lean on him for strength and do what he calls us to do.
   So, do you believe you are chosen for a reason? Will you choose to never give up on what God calls you to do? What can you do to remember who you are, and why you were called, when trials come?

   John 1:12 and Romans 12:1-21

Never Give Up Because He Doesn't Give Up On You

   Have you ever gone on a mission and you were about to give up? One time my sister and I really wanted to see Avengers: Infinity War because we had not seen it yet. We decided to go on a hunt for the DVD at Red Boxes.
   We began our hunt with a lot of hope, even though we were hunting on a Saturday night (FYI don't go on a Red Box hunt for a movie that just came out on Red Box 1 week ago on a Saturday night). We searched in E Town first. We checked Giant and three Turkey Hills. The fourth Turkey Hill gave us hope because we saw that it was there. Unfortunately, it was on Blu-ray, which we did not have.
   My sister and I moved on to check two Turkey Hills in Mount Joy. One had it, but it was on Blu-ray again. At this point we had been searching for 30 minutes and checked 6 Red Boxes. Our hope was beginning to wane. But, I looked at my sister and I kept saying a quote from Star Wars: Rogue One, "rebellions are built on hope." My sister kept saying, "we are not rebelling." I laughed because I knew she would say that. We were both tired and both had thoughts about giving up. Then I decided we were not going to give up.
   Next we traveled to Columbia and checked two Turkey Hills there. Both of them had it... but it was on Blu-ray. At this point my sister and I were tired to the point where we were going crazy. However, we kept on saying the quote, "rebellions are built on hope." And, we kept encouraging each other. We had been searching for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

   We had one last chance to find this DVD and it was at the Sheetz in Marietta, which is probably the busiest place in Marietta. My sister and I got out of the car and checked the box. It had one last DVD. The DVD we had been searching for was there. We got it and protected it with our lives. It may have seemed like a crazy thing to do because no one would steal a Red Box DVD from two girls. But, we had worked hard to get that DVD. We never gave up hope and we were rewarded in the end.
   At this point you may be saying, "why does this story matter?" The answer is it really doesn't unless you think about this in a different way. Jesus came down to earth to die for our sins. He rebelled against the Pharisees and taught the true way to heaven. Jesus saw our sin and he could have just given up on us. But, he loved us so much that he couldn't give up on us. I'm sure that if we were in Jesus' position we would have given up on humans a long time ago because of how much we sin. Jesus didn't do that because each of us are precious to him. He loves us and protects us just like my sister and I protected that DVD. Jesus searches for us and calls out to us. He never gives up on us just like my sister and I didn't give up on getting the DVD.
   It seems like there is a pattern Jesus calls to us and we may get close to him but then we back slide. It's like when my sister and I got so close to having the DVD but it was just the Blu-ray version instead. In the end, we received what we were looking for because we didn't give up. We have to live our lives like we are running a race. No matter what obstacles come our way we have to keep pressing on. We cannot give up hope. Because, our rebellion against the world is built on hope.
   So, do you believe that Jesus is calling for you and loves you? Are you willing to continue to run the race and never give up hope?

   Hebrews 12:1, 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, 2 Timothy 1:9

   Image from here.

Oobleck

   Being a preschool teacher, I get to do many fun activities. One of those activities is I get to play with cool sensory items. The sensory item that is one of my favorites is oobleck. 

   Oobleck is a funny thing. It is not quite a liquid and not quite a solid. This goo is something you can mold into basic shapes, bounce, and stretch. Children love oobleck because of these things.

   The concepts of oobleck are not just good for children. Oobleck can teach us important ideals as well. For example, oobleck is a very stretchy substance. As Christians we are called not to stay stagnant. We need to be in the word to grow and get to know our savior. He stretches and molds us to be more like him. 

   The other important thing oobleck can teach us is to bounce back. In this life we will face hard times. We can choose to give up in those hard times or we can choose to not let them beat us. James 1:2-3 "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness." Trials help us grow. We can know that these trials cannot break us if we trust in God. He will help us bounce through the trial. We will come out of that trial changed, but we will still have our faith in God if we walk through it with him.

   So, when hard times come, what do you do? Are you in the word each day to grow in God? 

Soccer Lessons Conclusion

   This concludes my soccer lessons series. I'm sure that there are many more lessons that I've learned and that I teach; but, one thing is for certain: I'm not done learning or teaching. And, as long as you draw breath, neither are you.

   You may not feel like you are called to teach or coach. That's okay, you don't have to teach or coach in the way I do. However, you are still teaching others in your day to day life. If you are a parent this is what God's word says to you: "Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord" (Eph.6.4). You are called to discipline your child. Discipline isn't just "you did something bad, here is your consequence." Discipline should be more like discipleship. It should be "you made this choice. Here is what God says about that choice. I care about you and I want you to grow in God. Because of that, this is what I will do because you need to learn a lesson." That's probably not entirely what you want to say to a child but it should be along the lines of what we are thinking as we disciple children. That's what's going to help them grow in the long run.

   If you don't have children, that doesn't mean you get out of being a teacher. Titus 2:7 says: "Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, (and) dignity." You are a role model. You may be saying that you are not near children at all. That may be true in your job and such. However, when you go for groceries, to go shopping, or out in general do you see others? My guess is yes you do. People are watching how you act. If you are a Christian are you projecting Christ? Are you showing others what Christ looks like? People are watching and you are a role model. I encourage you to think about what you are teaching others with your actions.

   So, back to the soccer series. You may not be a soccer player, athletic, or an athlete. But, I hope through this series that you realize how important sports are. I hope you remember that you are a teacher. I hope you grow in God and teach others about him.

   Image from here.