Before I even begin this post I know it is going to be spastic. I'm not sure what I want to say or what direction I want to take.
Last week Luke participated in a soccer camp run by our local professional team. Luke likes soccer but he is not very aggressive. When we showed up for the camp they split the kids into age groups and his group's ages ranged from 5 to 7. When they were calling off the roster and I saw the size of the kids in his group I started to get nervous. Probably 95% fell into the 7 on their way to 8 category and the other 5% were 6. Then there was Luke. He was so small compared to the other players. His coach was from Argentina and it was obvious that soccer is not a mere sport to him it is life itself. Most of the parents left but I felt like I needed to stick around and I was glad I did because on the first water break Luke was desperately looking for me.
Luke is that little player in black
That first day, I watched from a distance as Luke struggled to keep up with children twice his size. So many times I was tempted to run onto the field and snatch him away to the younger group of 3 and 4 year olds. Instead of doing that I called my sister and cried. I know, I'm such a wimp! It is so hard to see your child struggle. Rach gave a good pep talk that he was going to be fine and that I hadn't made a huge mistake. Right at that moment I looked out on the field to see the kids putting on colored jerseys to play a one on one soccer game drill thing. (I have no idea what to call it) Luke was struggling to get his on and the boy next to him noticed that he was struggling and started helping him get it on. It hung past his knees. Then the older boy put his arm around Luke's shoulder and showed him where to stand. It touched my heart that such a simple thing could change my entire outlook on what was going on. A little later I noticed the coach get down on one knee to talk to Luke eye to eye. The next day, another boy helped Luke find the water station and I was hovering close enough to hear him tell Luke he would push the button while Luke held the cup. By day two, because the kindness of others, Luke seemed to gain more confidence. Everyday he said he wasn't going to give up!
As I was sitting there thinking about the situation it made me think about my Heavenly Father. Is he watching from the sidelines desperate for someone to help me or for me to help someone else? Would he love nothing more that to run onto the field and smooth the way for me but in his wisdom and love he knows that I won't grow into who I could be if he did that? The struggle made Luke stronger and gave others the opportunity to help someone else. It made me hope that I'm not missing the cue when the Lord is relying on me to help someone else. Life feels pretty crappy sometimes, but I guess it helps if I picture Him watching me from the sidelines cheering me on.
Luke got to met Real's mascot Leo the Lion.
Last day. I was feeling pretty proud of him!
