Ready For Some Football?

Okay, so my Justin has been wanting to play in the Kingwood Football League for about a year now. We finally signed him up for this season. He tried out, was chosen in the draft and is extremely excited!

I'm very confused with much of the equipment though. Yesterday, Johnny was getting Justin's mouthpiece fitted correctly. See, that is where I would have messed up. I would have taken out of the package and put it in his mouth and sent him on his way. But no, there are actually directions on how to use this thing. You have to cut it to the correct size, and then place it in boiling water to soften the plastic (I guess even in football, there is cooking). Then it goes in Justin's mouth, much like an impression plate at the dentist. This is when I'm really wishing they had done this before dinner, because I'm quite sure what is going to happen won't be pretty and I will be called to clean up duty. So, I leave the room. I happy to report, that other than a few threatening gagging coughs, there was no clean up to be done.

Then it is off to League Night, where parents and players get all the information they need for the season. I should have worried when I found out the Information meeting lasted an hour. How much could they need to tell? This is little league! After that, Justin got to meet his coaches and players, and happily, there is a boy he knows from our homeschooling group on his team.

During this time, I've texted Johnny, reminding him NOT to sign me up for any volunteering. See, long before I had children, I attended the baseball game of a Pre-K student of mine, and there, my aversion for volunteering for a children's sports team, was born. I saw this poor mom, in a dugout with a bunch of preschoolers who were hanging from the side of the dugout. I decided then and there that I would never reveal the fact that I have a teacher's certificate to any of my future children's coaches, because I knew that was a sure ticket into the madness of the dugout. Now, if a need arises, will I help out? Of course!

So, they get home, and Justin has his fundraiser order forms and another booklet. I look closer at the booklet, and it is a playbook. Now, I have a college degree, but I can't understand anything in this playbook. I told Johnny, that was all on him this season. I can teach reading and math, but that stuff looked like Greek to me. I guess we have PE taken care of for Justin this semester!

So we are entering a season of learning for me. I really don't know much of what to do or expect. It reminds me so much of when I first started to really dig into God's Word and desire a relationship with Him. It started with me feeling very overwhelmed, and doing a little at a time. The first Bible Study I attended covered the book of Joshua, in the Old Testament. There were many fact
questions: who, what, when, where, why, easy fill in the blank stuff. Just read the text and find the answer. Every once in awhile, there was a "what does this mean to you" type question. The study after that was Ephesians. That one was filled with less "fact" and more "heart", I really had to think and look at my own heart to answer the questions. That was so much harder for me! Much easier to just fill in a blank. The next study I did didn't have any fill in the blank questions, there were simply scriptures to look up and I had to search my own heart for the answers. I really struggled with that one. But I found that the more I studied God's Word, the more I wanted to see how to apply it to my own heart and life. And the only way to do that was to move past the fill in the blank and take an honest look at myself and my relationship with God.

It has been, and continues to be, such a great journey! Not always happy, and sometimes downright painful, But as I learn more about God and myself, I'm excited to continue on and see what lies ahead!

Justin's first practice is tonight, Johnny is in charge of getting his practice stuff together, after I asked him if he was to wear the pads with shorts or his football pants. I wonder what adventures we will have this season? My hope is that we can use this to be a light to others.