Only semi-decent Kelso football

Ok, I know.  Ridiculous that I use my blog to rant about high school football but that's why you have a blog, so no one can tell you what to write about.

However, I just have to get it out.  As much as I hate (and yes, hate is the absolutely right word to use here) to admit it, MM ran a good offense.  Various sets, multiple options out of similar sets.  Kelso had to pay attention to where the ball was going.  Kelso?  Yeah, same looks, same direction, over and over.  Most plays had 1 of 3 looks:  screen to the right, run up the middle or a run to the right.  Super easy to defend.  MM looked like they had a fantastic defense, however it's not hard to defend 3 basic plays.

Now I realize I'm not a expert on different play packages, etc etc etc....but I've coached long enough to be able to read tendencies.  And the tendencies were there....like nasty habits you just can't conquer. You know the definition of insanity?  Doing the same thing over and over hoping for a different result.  Unless Kelso changes something up, then it's going to be a long season in the powerful GSHL 4A.  Sigh.....

I guess I could also go to football games and be a part of the crowd who just socializes the whole time.  However, it's just soooo hard to shut off the coaching gene.  :)  Plus I like football.  A lot.  I like it even more when my team wins. 

YL Kelso 2011

Lily: “I’m unlovable”

August: “That’s a terrible thing to live with. There’s love all around you."

Just finished watching 'The Secret Life of Bees' and heard the quote above. I've been doing a lot of catching up with YL folks and a lot of thinking. I truly believe that's what Young Life is. We show up because there are kids who believe they are unlovable just like Lily did. Our goal is to introduce them to the God who created them and who absolutely adores them. The thing is, as of this writing, we have 2 leaders. 2 leaders for 1000+ kids who need someone to love them...to show them that there is love all around them. Guess we need a little prayer and perhaps a miracle. Lord, you hearing this?

2011 YL Summer Assignment

A little over a week ago, I got back from my 3^rd summer assignment with Young Life. I served as Camp Director at Breakaway Lodge in Gearhart, Oregon. After a summer assignment, it’s always hard to re-enter into the ‘real world’. This year is harder. I wish I could put my finger on exactly why but I think bringing all the factors into play and hammering it all out would not be worth the effort. I can honestly say that I haven’t said the phrase “I feel” so much in one month…ever, but that’s sort of beside the point.

We go into our assignments knowing there’s a lot of work ahead of us. We hope kids have an opportunity to come face-to-face with the God who loves them. We hope that kids see an honest reflection of Jesus through our team. And we pray with everything we have that we don’t screw it up for a kid. It’s hard because we know full well how broken we are and how ugly our heart can be sometimes and we know that as much as we continually lay it all down, we also routinely pick it all back up. We get tired, hungry, overwhelmed, lonely (etc. etc.) and then our guard goes down. Then in that place, we react and the results are often anything but acceptable. I had one of those moments this summer. Short version? I ‘fixed’ something that wasn’t broken and I didn’t do it very nicely.

I don’t mention this b/c I feel I need sympathy or need to confess or anything to that effect. I share it because I feel like this summer, more than any time in my Christian life, I got a reminder of who is God and who isn’t. Seems like I should have figured that out by now and, in my head, I know the answer. I just don’t necessarily follow through on that belief with my actions as much as I’d like. This summer I saw in so many ways how God is faithful all the time, luckily regardless of whether or not I ask.

I got my assignment in December. From there right up until the day before kids showed up, I had personnel changes. Jeff (Camp Manger) and I were convinced that God had (has) a great plan for the kids, leaders or even assignment team. Jeff reminded me of the story in Daniel 10 where Daniel prayed and the angel responding to that prayer:

(10-12): Then he said to me, "Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia” (NIV).

Sometimes when you’re in a spot where it’s hard, you pray and it stays hard. The process is frustrating and anxiety-ridden. This was an incredibly challenging assignment in so many ways. I truly believe that we fought the necessary fight in prayer and while we may never know where these kids end up, I’m grateful that I got to be part of the process. I gained an incredible sense of peace, a trust that the Lord knows full well what we need and what we want (Psalm 37:4 comes to mind…). I have seen first-hand the Lord be faithful in so many small things. I desire to live out Psalm 16:8 and ‘set the Lord before me.’ The Lord is faithful, as the Daniel verses and as I saw at Breakaway, even if I can’t see it. I need to camp there.

Now I’m back in the ‘real world’…and I feel different, changed if you will. At camp it was so easy to pray, seek God and trust that He’s going to do something great. YL camps are holy places; sacred ground that has been fought for, prayed for, and set apart for the Lord’s work. It’s harder to have that open relationship with the Lord that I had at camp. I read Luke 8 this morning, the parable of the four soils. I feel verse 12 very distinctly: “Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts…” I honestly feel so distracted, even awkward praying sometimes. Frustrating because how in the world can it be so different here than at camp! Arg!! I know how but still…frustrating.

As challenging as it was, I’m grateful for the experience. I made some great friends, had some good talks and got a chance to continue to be molded by God.