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| Part of the Teen Mania's Outdoor Exercise Course for Interns |
When I was in grade school and high
school sports, I remember two coaches which pushed me and my
teammates far beyond what we thought we were capable of. We endured double and triple session practices under hot, humid Michigan
August skies. I remember the first time I ran 10 miles, keeping pace
with my cross country coach. (Looking back, I'm sure he let me keep up with him) I felt genuine pride when I completed those
milestones, even though my muscles hurt, and I fell into bed early and
exhausted. I saw the same pride on my son's face that afternoon, and
on the face of the nameless, jogging intern as they talked about ESOAL, and inviting us into their accomplishments.
I think there are times in life
when you have to go through something to understand it. If my mom
would have been standing on the side of the field while I endured calisthenics and grueling football drills, I don't
think she would have understood. She may have yelled at the coach,
demanding that he back off. But then, if he had, we may not have
earned the city championship football title that year. A recent MSNBC 'expose' on Teen Mania's Honor Academy certainly falls into the "doesn't understand" camp.
Good coaches know that their players
have to be pushed, not only so they can learn the sport, but so they
can discover the potential that God put deep inside them. Th leaders at Teen
Mania's Honor Academy also know how to push the interns, and help them find and develop their spiritual, emotional and physical abilities. Is it hard work
for the interns? Yes. Can it be misunderstood by the outside world,
who only looks on? Yes, it can be. Is it the perfect environment for
all young Christians? Probably not. A physically, emotionally and
spiritually demanding environment isn't the right Petri dish for
every Christian's growth. Looking back at my high school, out of a
class of more than two hundred, less than 25 were on the football
team. That doesn't make the non-players any less important. It just
means that God created them for another purpose.
Good word. Really enjoyed your post.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite Indian proverbs is, "You don't know what's inside of a cup until it gets bumped." Then whatever's inside sloshes over!
The same way with sports, adversity and challenges in general! You find out what your true reaction is. Putting aside all of the philosophical, theoretical, theological discussions about how you SHOULD react, adversity shows you what you really are. From there we can take ourselves to the cross and ask Him to come dwell in us once again and shape us to His image ;)
Your Indian proverb has a deep application to the RA bloggers and their agenda. I think that the apostle Paul says, for the same reasons, to search our own hearts for unforgiveness, and avoid bitterness. It corrupts what is inside the cup like a forgotten carton of milk left unattended on a warm kitchen counter for a few days.
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