Views

I love the game of softball! In the last couple of years I have been very blessed to be around the game in many ways again. As a player, umpire, an asst.coach and a scorekeeper. I have found that in each one I see a different view of the same game. Depending on what I am doing, will change my view of the game.

As a player of the game I am looking for the weak spots. Playing the game the best I can to win. Having fun for the most part. There are times I lose my cool and let my temper get the best of me. There are times I wish I had a "do-over" to swing at a better pitch or just walk away from the ugly talk that goes on.

As an umpire, I do my best to call the game as I see it. Holding up the rules and making the best calls I can make. Sometimes I blow a call but I always intend to do my best. There are teams I really like and some I dread when they come on my field. There are a lot of things that you have to tune out. Things you have to rise above and not take them to heart. There is always that one player that wants to see you jump so you always have to be ready for the ball to come your way.

As an asst. coach my goal is to pass on the love and fun of the game and all the life lessons this game had taught me. The biggest joy is not if we have a win but to watch the girls grow and get better in every game. To see the girl who has never hit to finally reach 1st., to see the catch not dropped, the first stolen base, and to see a group of girls become a team. To hear the girls cheer from the dugout is like music to my ears. Next to playing, I think it is my favorite thing about the game.

As a scorekeep---well that is just pure fun! I love to sit up in the tower and watch. It is so relaxing to watch. I laugh when mistakes are made, I "oooo" when good hits happen or the ESNP catch that was made. No stress of winning, making the right call, or making sure I always set a good example. Just to sit an enjoy a love for a game.

One game, many views on it. I am learning it is same in life. The way I view something can change, so then the way I deal with that thing will also change. My prayer in life is to view people as Jesus does. To love those who make it hard to love. To remember we all have dropped the ball and want a "do-over". To know sometimes I just have to jump out of the way. To rejoice in the moments we make the hit and are safe at 1st. To stop and just watch, remembering there are times in life you just have to laugh.

We have but one life---with many views. So when things are at their worst for you, stop and ask yourself----Can I change the view? I know when I do I am always amazed at what I see.

Measuring Up....

Everyone measures themselves up to something or someone. We measure our spoues, our children, our jobs, our loves, almost every part of our lives we measure in some way. We hold standards and try to meet those standards. We base so much on what others think about us in some way. Now, you may be reading this and saying to yourself...."Not me. I don't care what someone thinks about me". I have said that myself many times. Let's be honest....what do we do when someone says great things about us....do we walk a little taller when we hear those words? Do those words make us feel better about ourselves? If we don't really care what people think why do those words bring such joy to us? Truth is, we all care what some people think on some kind of level.

I have been in a battle lately about knowing who I am in Christ. A battle of not letting words(positive or negative)define who I am. A battle of measuring myself to someone that may have more knowledge than myself in an area of life. I am in a battle of not measuring my marriage up to others or to what I think it should be. I am in a battle to not put life in a box of do's and dont's. Battles that somedays I win and somedays I lose. A battle that I'm not really sure will ever end or be won. Lately, I had to tell myself a lot "It is what it is" and "God has a good plan for me" and "God knows my heart and at the end of the day that is all that really matters".

My goal in life is to love freely as Christ loves, to be honest as I live everyday, to trust in the Lord in every way of my life, to be real with everyone in my life, to serve those God has put in my life, to be free in Christ, to live in God's grace, and not to measure myself to anything but God's word.

We all measure......what are you measuring your life up to?

Trusting In God

Dictionary.com defines trust as reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, surety, etc., of a person or thing; confidence: confident expectation of something; hope: a person on whom or thing on which one relies.

We all have trust in something or someone. We trust that our mates will love and honor us. We trust our friends will be our friends. We trust our cars to get us where we want to go. We trust that we will be paid for the job we do. We trust that the light will come on when we flip the switch. TRUST--a word we use very loosely and very deeply. It is something that on some level of life we use everyday and don't even think about. Like Nike we Just Do It.

So how do we get so confused when we put it to God? How do we get so lost? How come we don't know HOW to trust in God? We didn't give it one thought when we went to flip the light switch. We were confident the light would come on. We relied on it to see what we were walking into and our ability was there to flip the switch. So where does it get hard when we add the God factor to it?

I have been asked more than once "How do you just trust God?" To which each time I replied--"You just do." Not the best answer I know but I didn't have the words to explain. The more I think about it, the more I come back to believing in the fact that God really does LOVE me. Every time I think of 'trust in God', I think of love. God loved me enough to give His son to die for my sins; my sins yesterday, my sins today and my sins tomorrow. How could I doubt such a loving God not to trust in HIM?

So what does it mean to 'Trust in God'? There are times I think it is as simple as flipping the light switch and there are other times I think it is as deep as trusting our mates or friends. The only difference is that God will NEVER fail us. There will be times we do it with no thought at all and there will be times we will have to say to ourselves Proverds3:5&6--Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. That is where I always come back to love. If I know that HE LOVES me then I have to trust that HE has a good plan for me(Jer.29:11). If I know HE has a good plan for me and I know that I have called on HIM and came to HIM and prayed to HIM(Jer.29:12), then I will find HIM. Trust has to be there in it all. Trust is not some words you just say---like--"Just Give It All to God" , "Let Go and Let God", "Jesus Take The Wheel", "Give God Control". Trust is not in watching how other Christains deal in their day to day lives. Trust is reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, surety, confidence, hope in a God that loves us enough to give us HIS son on a cross so that we can have a new life in HIM.

I don't think there is any easy answer in the question "How do you just trust God?" I think it is in learning everyday in God's word and God's love. When you seek HIM you will find HIM! That is HIS promise to us.