Proud Dad

I am a proud dad this morning.

As I have mentioned before, I coach my son's 4th and 5th grade basketball team. We had our 3rd game this past Saturday. We have pretty much been manhandled in our prior two games as we have a pretty small team. But we make up for it with inexperience.

To give you the entire picture, I have coached my son for the past four years. He has always been one of the better players on each one of our teams, until last year.

Last year, Robbie couldn't do the simplest things. He even had serious trouble just catching a basketball. I was perplexed. Here was one of the better players year after year who was now really struggling. It didn't make sense.

I figured that God was trying to tell me that there was more to life than athletic prowess. Since I had played in college, I really wanted Robbie to play competitively, at least through high school. I resigned myself to the fact that he would not play at the level I was hoping for. And believe it or not, I was OK with that. Robbie ended the year without a basket and feeling like he did not contribute much to the team.

Last spring Robbie told us he was having trouble seeing the black board at school so we took him to get his eyes checked. He needed glasses - big time! No wonder he couldn't catch the basketball - he couldn't see it!

This year I have seen Robbie (along with the rest of the team) gain confidence with each practice, each game.

This past Saturday, the other team had just scored to cut our lead to 14-12 with 30 seconds to go. On the ensuing possession, Robbie ended up with the ball and dribbled around his defender and shot a long shot that missed badly. However, he was fouled. He went to the free throw line and made both shots!

We ended up winning by two. I am so proud of our team. We have gotten better each day.

I am also proud of my son - not because he made the winning free throws (although I think that is pretty cool!). I am proud of him because of the teammate he has become. The funny thing is I also saw his actions on the court as a model for us in the workplace.

I saw him slapping other players high fives when they did something well (Romans 12:15). I saw him encouraging others on the team (1 Thessalonians 5:11). And, I saw him playing hard (Colossians 3:23). As a result of all this, I have really seen his confidence increase. Praise God!

Way to go Robbie! Thanks for being a great example!