A Gift of Hope from an Airline Passenger

An airline passenger who brought me hope……

To be like a child can be a good thing. Why? I think it relates to trust, an openness to “possibilities” not limitations. When I fly, I often think of Jacob, my son who died in 2004. Lifted to puffy clouds in an endless sky ignites mystery and brings Heaven closer to Earth. Likely, this is a childlike mind-set that heaven is in the clouds. But the ritual of remembering gets me to thinking. This thinking about loss is tricky, especially of my son. More often than not, the Jake connection is likely to bring me to tears. Being a private person and in the airport sea of strangers, I do all I can to hasten along these thoughts, closing with a prayer to the Almighty Coach for encouragement.  “Get me through this. Make the thoughts happy. Help!”

Do be careful what you pray for. Here come-ith the lesson. This day, Oct. 25, I was flying back to FL out of my stopover in Chicago.  Boarding, I found my aisle seat and stood waiting for my seat mates to annoy, crowd, entertain, or enlighten or some combination.  A large, elderly (86 years-old) woman took the remaining middle seat.  Being a book lover, I am often curious about what others are reading, especially travelers.  Our chatting began then over the book she was reading. She told me a story that came  straight from her heart, and (I believe from) heaven. I am not sure what to do with it, so I am writing it down. Her conversation began about the book she was reading, Heaven is for Real.  The book was a best seller. It’s about a boy who almost dies, actually he may have died during an operation but lived. She said a relative gave it to her because she had a son who had died a few years ago.  At age 21, he had suffered a terrible accident was left paralyzed. So this mom took care of him for some 50 years. Here was her answer to my question” “To what do your attribute your long and healthy life? “Well,” she said, “God let me take care of my son all those years. I could not stand to think he might have had to live in a nursing home. He had tons of friends and a wonderful attitude. You know ,” she said, “he never complained about his lot in life. Well, just once….He banged his fist on a wall and yelled out, ‘Why me, God?’ I went to the wall, she said, and I pounded back, ‘Why me, God?’ She said, he laughed and so did I. He added , ‘You really do have it worse than I do, don’t you, Ma?.’” I grabbed my hankie with the peppermint and eucalyptus. It was all I could do to keep it together. I wanted to understand the pieces of her story as they related to me and to Jacob. What would my life have been like caring for him for the rest of his years? Would he have been able to laugh at life? Not likely. He had all he could handle even when his days were good. I know this woman beside me is/was a “presence”. Yes, on an earthly note, she takes up a lot of my already cramped airline space. But on the spiritual side, she has been gifted to me this day. Just as my heart was sinking remembering Jacob, my childlike mind prepared for a “possibility” and another angel appeared.  It happens quite often. “I’ve got him,” says my Lord. Yes, because I am an athlete, & because I do have a childlike imagination, I like to picture our Lord like a great outfielder. He will catch us every time, & most gently at our finish, He will catch us for all time. Indeed, He has my Jacob. I pause, I look over at her, this 86-year-old. I don’t know her name. Her book is down, as she quietly mouths the words to the Rosary, fingers working along a lovely wooden bracelet. Thanks  be to God. Let me remember you Jacob in the way that God always remembers each of us: full of love, goodness, and of course….Possibilities.

"Narrow is the Gate" Find the way to be encouraged.

We have so much to be thankful for.

I just "happened" upon this inspiring blog here today. It's from Therese at Beyond Blue or Beliefnet. The message contained is something of which I remind myself and others regularly. I say: "Step away from the self." It's so hard during life challenges when you think you are already maxed out, to reach within for more reserve. Yet, when we put our eyes & hearts back on our Source of Creation & Power, we know we were created to persevere. As a coach, I use fitness challenges to help others get stronger on many levels. You need a higher level of RPM,s to rev up your "gitty up" I think. This adding fitness to spiritual conditioning has worked well for me and others. Then, my setback, first day back home after being away from training and the clients I train. Don't you know, an accident, I hit a dip in the road, rolled my ankle and cut up my opposite knee. Holy Crap, as Frank Barone on Everybody Loves Raymond would say. The coach is the cripple right now. No idea just yet how bad. The fall happened yesterday, a Sunday. I am doing all the right treatments, RICE- rest, ice, compression (not yet), & elevation. Moving about is nearly impossible. The right knee is stiff and cut up. The left ankle is severely swollen and refuses to bear weight. Yet how can I complain? This too shall pass. I know that is the truth....somewhere. Anyway, thank-you all for sharing your challenges to remain "encouraged" in spite of the obvious discouragements. Your perseverance through adversity helped me today. You are doing the most and the best that you can right now. You can't beat up on yourself for not being able to do more, to provide more for others. I will have to do the same. May God bless you in your journey. If you have time and interest, you can read about how I came to this ministry of faith and fitness on my site: Read: Background.

Susan Kelly
Sporting Our Spirit, Coach & Founder

Athletes: Give BELIEF as in God A Try!

Athletes: Give BELIEF as in God, a try! 

Why not add faith into your training regimen? There are lots of gimmicks out there that promise performance enhancement. Give me a minute to challenge your sport and spirit connections.

Let me start with the weakest reason I ever heard for faith. It has been said, I would rather live my life believing there is a God, then die and find out that I was wrong, then to have lived my life believing there was no God, then die and find out I was wrong. While that thinking deserves some credit, surely you can see where it is lacking in passion, right? It is basically, a cover your “behind” way to think. The faith that I am talking about requires a more courageous stance. Let me ask you this: Do you race because if you didn’t you might not win, or is your motivation something more than that? Most of us pit ourselves against the competition at races because it keeps us honest. How hard would you train if you knew you would never be tested? Faith is training for life. Believe me, you will be tested…at the race and throughout your life. Both take a mammoth amount of conditioning. Part of your sports’ training is soldiering you for life. Plenty of others will look to you for the courage contained within your heart. Ever wonder why the words of some of the best coaches sound an awful lot like a sermon? Consider this quote by Vince Lombardi (great football coach) about mental toughness. "Mental toughness is spartanism with qualities of sacrifice, self-denial, dedication. It is fearlessness and it is love."  Hey readers, what could be more God-like than fearless love? Is that in your training plan?

Second, I invite you to read the Athletes Prayer . It concludes with this wonderful line:  “With Thee as coach and trainer, Lord, real victory must be mine."

In conclusion, I am going to challenge you to stretch yourself. Life is not an equal opportunity provider. That means this may be one of the few times you think about the relationship between your talent as an athlete and your relationship with God. So for now, start with two simple strategies for integrating faith into your training: (1) Be open and aware. Listen for God, (2) Say “thank-you” every time you feel grateful. Doing step one is bound to open up many more moments for doing step 2. Try it! Guaranteed.

Follow this “Sportuality” blog and share your thoughts. I welcome them. 

Coach Susan Kelly http://www.sportingourspirit.com/index.html

Don’t hide your light under a basket.

Many athletes know or come to know the Cross through the ecstasy of sport. Revelations of great comfort and promise have come to me often while engrossed in physical conditioning. In fact, sometimes, I can’t hear God until I have physically settled down the meaningless distractions that can plague me. There is nothing like a good run to clear the mental clutter and make room for a heart to heart moment with our Father. It is an awesome blessing to realize how God speaks to us and walks with us according to our individual personalities. Sport too often is trivialized when in fact it is talent gifted to us by God. Faithful organizations of athletes who go out and serve others are thoughtful, generous, and giving. Thank God for the talented yet humble athletes who accomplish great feats. While too many athletes are satisfied with their prizes and notoriety, others are called to serve. Those athletes who are called to serve, recognize the need to inspire and to provide for others who are less fortunate. They have a light that shines. Yet, this aspect of athleticism is only part of the ministry related to sport. Sport is worthy for its transformative power and influence on our individual determination and ability to persevere. We miss a great opportunity, when we minimize the ways in which our own spirituality is enhanced through sport. I often see God as my Coach. His wisdom is unmatched. He speaks to me on the sidelines (of life) and sends me back in the game a better player. So, this is for all you athletes, recreational, used to be, elite, pro, or want to be, or full of excuses, whatever:

“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill-top cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp to put it under at tub; they put it on the lamp-stand where it shines for everyone in the house. In the same way your light must shine in people’s sight, so that, seeing your good works, they may give praise to your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-16- The New Jerusalem Bible)

Besides providing for the body (which is the temple of our soul), sports and fitness allow us opportunities to experience God within. A triathlete pursuing an ironman finish must seem crazy to some, but to others, it could be a means to experience the “extraordinary”. To know God is to tap into Extraordinary. Since God made us in His image and no one of us is exactly the same as another, why should we expect our relationship with our Creator to be anything less than individualistic and personal?

Here is a sweet victory story about a former student of mine, Adam. Keep in mind, this was middle school. Adolescents are terribly vulnerable, yet they can be heartless in peer groups and to one another. Adam was crippled with shyness because he stuttered. Since he was less self-conscious with me, he would speak in his halting manner about soccer. He was a good athlete. With all his brains and charm, I felt badly that he was avoiding potential friendships and never spoke up in class. One day he asked me if I thought he could speak about a paragraph of a report he had written in front of the class. He thought he was up to the challenge. We talked about tough moments in soccer, like penalty kicks and tie game kick-offs; moments when all eyes are on you, the pressure can be paralyzing. We talked about how we as athletes handle those moments. I reminded him that most people, spectators and classmates alike, do have compassion. They see themselves in similar situations and want the best outcome. No one really wants to suffer or to see another suffer. Dancers, writers, craftsmen, speakers, artists, musicians, scientists all practice to hone skills and to improve. It was obvious to Adam that in order to improve, he’d have to practice and thus be put to the test. I made some precursory announcement to the class about respecting the challenges that some students (and adults) face in speaking in front of groups. Some students gleaned that this was a moment which would call them to a higher standard. Others were clueless. Adolescents, right? Humans? So Adam spoke a perfect first sentence, and then, it happened. He couldn’t speak a word. Opening his mouth, only guttural noises came forth. His distress was obvious. I thought about how Peter in the Bible stepped out on to the Sea of Galilee to approach our Lord, then fear overtook him, and he had to cry out for help as he began to sink. What would Adam do here? How long should I let him suffer with this first experiment? One student in the class called out some mockery of Adam, like “what is the matter with him…what an idiot”. A number of students in the class glared at the student who spoke out. Their chastisement was far more powerful than anything I could say or do. In fact, my intervention would have seemed somewhat parental. Adam knew that the class wanted him to overcome. I could sense that he was determined. Another sport’s image came to mind, and something like it was happening for Adam. Sometimes at a tennis match, when one player is losing resolve, fans begin to clap to call the nearly defeated player back to rally. The class waited. Adam regained his composure and spoke the rest of the paragraph. It was one of those rare Olympic moments. We as witnesses, were transformed. Students spoke to Adam after class. They were patient with him. It wasn’t long before he was joining classmates at a lunch table. One day, toward the end of the school year, he introduced me to his girlfriend.

We are all different, aren’t we? My mission is to help those athletes and non-athletes alike celebrate the special ways that God ministers to all of us. I believe sport has many virtues and lessons. Give honor and glory to God by using the talents you were given.

We have opportunities for Olympic moments. We are called to be extraordinary in the depth of our faith. Be not afraid. The love of God is mightier than any test.

Let your light shine. We need you, child of God.