Wednesday I got the call. It was the call telling me if I was accepted for the position at the high school. I was eager to hear her answer and then came the dreaded words of "we haven't chosen you for the position." If that had been the end to her sentence I would have been let down, but that wasn't the case. She finished with, "because I think you would be better suited at a different position. I think you'd be wonderful at working with our students who English isn't their first language. I want you to call the assistant principal, here's his extension, and set up an interview. I think you would be much better in this job because it's more one on one with the students. I can tell you really have a heart for kids so I think you'd be much happier here. Make sure you call him because he's expecting your call. I've already called him and told him about you so make sure you do it. And if you do decide to teach, this will be your ticket in. Make sure you keep me updated because if this doesn't work out I can get you a position at another one of the schools."
Woah. I was shocked at the desire to get me into this district. I was trying to hold back tears and be as professional as I could until we hung up. Can I get an amen for how wonderful God is?! I sat there on my couch crying over the fact that I was being taken care of. As much as I'd love to say I know without a doubt that I will always be taken care of, I am human and I have my doubts. But this showed that God can take my meager attempt to get established into the high school and work His will through it to make it bigger than I thought possible.
Wednesday night didn't slow down much either. I went to church and the guest speaker talked about working for God and how you should be able to glorify Him in your everyday life. The message hit home. Many times I find myself wondering if I'm giving too much of myself to coaching. I wonder if it's bad that I miss church on Sunday for meets or if I'm late Wednesday because of practice. The speaker talked about making work your mission field and doing the work for God. "You can praise The Lord by peeling a spud if you peel it to perfection." As long as I know who I am working for and as long as I continue to work for Him and His kingdom then I am moving in the right direction. So working hard to make my kids better is glorifying Him. I meditated on this for awhile when I got home and I came to this conclusion. If I put time and effort into my workouts, my studies on swimming and the body, practice time, and meets, then I will gain more trust and respect from my athletes and their parents. If I gain their trust then they will confide in me more. If they confide in me more I will have more chances to be with them and talk to them. If I have more chances to be with them and talk they will have more chances to see how I live. If they have more chances to see how I live they will get to know Christ. And if they get to know Christ then we all win because we get another brother and/or sister into our family!
Thursday I got to take my kids out to lunch and got a free meal. God seems to be blessing me with quite a few of those lately.
Friday I had a private lesson with my swimmer who will hopefully soon have that AA time, then I collaborated with my head coach about how to inspire the swimmers and coaches by how we decorate the building (thank you graphic design skills), then I ended up getting to eat with him and another coach, then dinner with the coaches for a meeting (another free meal) and finally game night with some friends. Busy day, but thankful for the Lord's blessings of fellowship.
Saturday was a surprise.. in two ways. My best friend Casey was going to Stillwater for her uncle's birthday party.. or at least she thought she was. What she didn't know was the party was for her and her sister who had just graduated college. Her mom had sent me a message telling me about the party and I told a few of our friends. The ones that could go somehow were able to keep the secret for over a week and on Saturday we made our way to Stillwater. I was able to carpool with a friend and we had a great time eating the no-bake cookies I had made and talking about everything under the sun. We arrived at the house and to be honest I was nervous. And that's the second surprise. I felt so comfortable with her family. Actually, all of us did. We spent the afternoon eating lunch, playing cornhole, throwing the football, watching the little cousins attack the football, throwing the frisbee, sitting on a porch swing, talking, laughing, eating some more, playing with balloons, throwing children in the air, letting a two year old think she tackled me when I caught the football, and learning about Casey's family. When it came time to leave I didn't want to. It reminded me so much of time with my family and it brought back memories of only a month ago when I was with them. Even talking about it now is bringing a smile to my face. Comfort is really the only word I can use to describe it. It was good, southern comfort. We then headed over to Eskimo Joe's for dinner and then back to Tulsa.
I'm so thankful for the friends God has chosen to put in my life. They aren't just friends though, they are family. Spending the entire day with them was so enjoyable. I'm thankful I got to grow closer to them and them to me. Looking back on this week I'm amazed at what God gives me. I know I deserve none of it but still He's willing to bless me. And that right there is reason enough to be thankful.
This is how I get to start my mornings.
I'm the real deal now. Fully registered as a USA coach.
Inspiration I found on Twitter and couldn't help but share.
What happens when you take a ten year old to a sushi restaurant.
Destroying my kitchen for a few cookies.
Finished results.
Congratulations cake!
The guest of honor!
He's such a good brother letting me decorate his face.
Decorating myself.
Corn hole.
This is the girl who I allowed to tackle me. It's because of the eyes.
Somebody made a friend.
Precious.
Taught her how to climb up me and flip over.
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