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I wonder how many times in my life I’ve walked away too soon, missing out on something beautiful that the Lord had in store for me. So often, our days don’t turn out the way we expect them to, or our circumstances don't look the way we think they should. And when that happens, we are tempted to give up, thinking that there’s no way things can turn out the way we hoped, much less better than we hoped.
Read MoreI want to tell you a story about one of the girls on the basketball team I coach. We'll call her Anna (for the sake of privacy). Anna is one of our starters and does so much to help out our team. She's great at stealing the ball. She hustles. She's aggressive. And she's a rebounding MACHINE. However in our first five games, she didn't score very much, which frustrated her.
Read MoreIt was one of the worst games I’ve ever played. It felt like I couldn’t hit the ocean with a beach ball. And as I added another failed shot attempt to my stat sheet, my mom - who normally was super loud and supportive - just put her face in her hands. We joke about this game now, and she’ll tell me “Kristen, all I kept thinking was ‘Stop shooting and pass the ball!’” But I never stopped shooting. I kept trying. And even though I had missed several shots throughout the game, I finally hit my stride in the fourth quarter and ended the night with 18 points.
Read MoreI want to tell you a story about one of the girls on the basketball team I coach. We'll call her Anna (for the sake of privacy). Anna is one of our starters and does so much to help out our team. She's great at stealing the ball. She hustles. She's aggressive. And she's a rebounding MACHINE. However in our first five games, she didn't score very much, which frustrated her.
Read MoreIf life always worked out according to our expectations, then we would never have to persevere through anything. We’d never reap the benefits, the character building, and the hopefulness that comes from persevering through hard times. To put it bluntly, the only way we’re going to learn how to persevere is to face difficult circumstances. But we can be confident that as we are enduring those circumstances, we are building character, and that character produces hope. And hope is the best thing you can have when you’re dealing with failure, disappointment, and unmet expectations.
Read MoreIt was one of the worst games I’ve ever played. It felt like I couldn’t hit the ocean with a beach ball. And as I added another failed shot attempt to my stat sheet, my mom - who normally was super loud and supportive - just put her face in her hands. We joke about this game now, and she’ll tell me “Kristen, all I kept thinking was ‘Stop shooting and pass the ball!’” But I never stopped shooting. I kept trying. And even though I had missed several shots throughout the game, I finally hit my stride in the fourth quarter and ended the night with 18 points.
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