Thoughts from my Birthday

I wrote this little post on my birthday (August 5th), but I sort of forgot about it. I want to share it today, because today marks the beginning of the fall soccer season! Today we begin fitness testing, and in the next week we will endure a special kind of torture called preseason. I had a wonderful summer. It impacted me on so many levels. These are my thoughts on summer, preseason, and my call to serve:

My heart is so full today.

Not only is it my birthday, but also my last day in the Lonestar state for 4 months. Being a collegiate soccer player is no easy task. In two days preseason will begin, and the 2015 fall women's soccer season will follow.

  I'm about to enter an atmosphere that is physically, emotionally, and spiritually challenging.  Physically, because I'll be training every day several times a day and playing games. Emotionally, because I will be away from my friends, family, and boyfriend for a while. Spiritually, because I won't be in an environment that is totally centered around God. Regardless of the position I hold on the team, starter or sideliner, my heart is at such peace. This summer God has taught me a lot about trusting in His plan and call. This is a hard lesson for me to apply to my life, because I'm a perfectionist and planner...  But through my time at church camp, time spent with my family, prayer, and conditioning God has made it clear to me that I have to let Him "take me over," if I want to be a light to my teammates this year. 

Although leaving home is always difficult… God has assured me He has a mission for me at UCA. As I transition back into my cleats, I'm mindful that God has blessed me with the opportunity to play college soccer and entrusted my teammates to me. He is challenging me to love them through wins, losses, hard training session, and conflicts. He is asking me to be outside myself, and be a reflection of His love even when it's hard.

Even though I'm so sad to be leaving the home that I love, I know that my true home is in Jesus. As I head back for my second year of college, my head and my heart are full of confidence and excitement as I follow the will of the Father. I am not sure where He will be leading me in the next year... But I am positive it will be fantastic and cause me to be further in awe at the wonder of God's majesty.