Cheering At Practice...

Tuesday night was my son's first football practice. It was hot, the gear was too big for him, and his regular coach wasn't there, but I was excited about him playing. He, on the other hand, has his doubts. He is not use to the helmet or other gear, he's hot, and out of his comfort zone. He takes the field and begins stretching. I had told him previously, "Whatever the coach tells you to do on the field, you say 'Yes sir!' and do it." He does pretty great at listening to the coach and obeying. When they were running, I was yelling, "Go Isaiah! Go! Run harder!" When they were learning to tackle I was there on the side yelling "Grab him Isaiah! Pull him down!" That was about the time I noticed just about every other parent, including my wife, looking at me like I was an idiot. That's when it hit me. This was practice. Why am I cheering?

I was considering this thought as Isaiah came over for a water break. He got a drink and looked up at me and said, "I hate this, dad." Ug. My heart sank. I was so wanting him to really be into it. I think he will love it if he just sticks with it. After all, this was just practice. That's why I was cheering. I knew he was a little uncomfortable. I knew he was a little scared. I knew he may not like it at first. But I also believe if he sticks it out, he will love it.

Sound familiar? Sometimes God asks us to do something and we say "God, I don't want to do that! Its not fun, its boring, its out of my comfort zone." What if God knows (and He does by the way) that He is giving you this task because you will love the outcome?

...your Father knows the things you need before you ask Him.

-Matt. 6:8

Stay with the difficult task. You may hear God cheering you on. Even when you are practicing for the task.

In Christ,

jon walton

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