Love in LoCo

Recently I have been reading my way through Joe Ehrmann’s book InSideOut Coaching .   It’s a book we often recommend and gift to coaches as we pursue our goal to minister “to and through the coach” and it challenges coaches to answer such questions as, “Why do I coach?” and, “What does it feel like to be coached by me?”.    Ashamedly, though I’ve been on staff for two years now and have given out several copies of the book, I hadn’t actually read it for myself until recently.   I can now see why this book would be so impactful for coaches of all levels – from rec league to high school and beyond.   Chapter 6 of the book is titled, “Community: A Team Without Walls,” and includes a list of statements that differentiate, “Being on the Team vs. Being a Teammate.”   A few of the statements on this list include: ·          Being on the team benefits your personal goals and ambitions.   Being a teammate benefits t...

Over the past two-ish years since I started this FCA journey, I’ve had the opportunity to meet FCA staff from all over the United States and the world.   It’s always interesting to talk to people who are doing ministry in different places.   There are times when it’s helpful because you learn that many people face similar challenges to do ministry in their places.   But there have also been times when I realize how different Loudoun County is from other parts of the US (and even other parts of Virginia!).   Virginia might be considered a southern state in the general sense, and parts of Virginia definitely fit into “Bible-belt” culture, but Loudoun County certainly does not.   Compared to other counties in the southern part of the state, Loudoun is far more diverse, affluent, and highly educated.   It is not the norm to call oneself a Christian here.   Our schools have a wide variety of cultures and religions represented, and although that can create...

The last several weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind for us at Loudoun FCA so I figured I’d take a moment to share some quick updates: Huddles have kicked off!   We have relaunched huddles at Rock Ridge High School (12 students at our first meeting last week), Dominion High School, and Eagle Ridge Middle School (kicking off this week) after participation had petered out last year.   Several other schools in the county are continuing to have strong attendance at their huddles which started up and grew in strength last year, including Park View High School, Brambleton Middle School, and Seneca Ridge Middle School.   Whenever parents or students ask about huddles at a particular school and why they don’t have one or it’s not well attended, I always explain that it largely depends on student leaders.   As an area representative for Fellowship of Christian Athletes, I can’t force my way into a public school.   However, if we have a few enthusiastic leaders...

People ask me often if I miss teaching and if I’d ever go back.  Believe me, there are times that the structure and security of a set schedule and salary (where I don’t have to raise support) is enticing.  But I don’t want to be the kind of person who quits just because something is hard.  I have led an incredibly blessed life.  School always came pretty easily growing up.  I wasn’t a star athlete or musician, but for the most part, I always got to be a part of the activities in which I wanted to participate.  I got accepted early to my top choice for college and, on the brink of recession, got hired to teach right out of school.  So it hasn’t been until more recently that I’ve had to really learn about perseverance.  I’ve been struggling a lot lately with questioning where God has me – job, city, life stage.  One minute I’m ready to leave town and pursue teaching or writing (or both) in a brand new city.  A minute later, I’m scar...

During my first year of teaching, one of my favorite classes was an Algebra 1 class.   This group consisted of mostly sophomores who tended to struggle in math; many had learning challenges or were English Language Learners.   Because it is such a foundational course, if a student doesn’t understand Algebra 1 very well, he or she is going to struggle with every other math class throughout high school.   This class happened to take place during the last block of the day, so kids were already pretty tired by the time they got there.   That, combined with the fact that I had quite a few characters in that class, made for some very entertaining interactions.   One afternoon, I was passing back a quiz that I had graded the night before – the grades were fairly average, typical for this group that tended to struggle a bit.   As I walked around the room handing back the quizzes, I prepared myself for the onslaught of questions and complaints amid the inevitabl...

Loudoun FCA is  off and running in this new school year.   Here are some ministry updates from the past few weeks, specifically on the eastern side of the county: This past Tuesday was our last of four huddle leader training events that we held all over the county over the past two weeks.   Students from just about every school in Loudoun attended these trainings to learn about Gospel clarity and how to run a huddle.   They left equipped with sample lessons, games, and supplies to engage students on their campus with the hope of Jesus. Huddle Leader Training in Sterling on 9/9 Huddle leader training in South Riding on 9/11 Potomac Falls High School kicked off their huddle with games, Chick-Fil-A, and introductions on Friday, September 7.   Last week they started a series on the Gospel starting with God as the Holy Creator, led by one of the new sophomore leaders.   He and another sophomore started attending the huddle last year as fresh...

Ever stress about a decision so much that you lose sleep over it?   Even after praying for clarity and asking for wisdom, it still consumes your thoughts?   For me, recently, the big decision was a new car.   Before you read any further, let me go ahead and acknowledge that I realize I am extremely privileged to even be in a position to get to think about buying a new car.   A little over a month ago, my dad and I were having a conversation about budgeting and expenses when he casually suggested that it might be time to start looking to replace my car – my beloved 2006 CR-V named Babar (like the elephant King ).   It certainly wasn’t a need – aside from the typical expenses and repairs one might expect to put into a twelve-year-old car, Babar had been running fine.   But, knowing that my car was getting older and losing value, and that I take a long time to make decisions and I wasn’t in any rush, I heeded his recommendation. The plan was just to start...

For weeks now, while local stores have been shifting their inventory from summer to fall clothing and décor, commercials on TV and online ads have also been eager to share the deals they offer on various back to school items.   Perhaps you have also seen friends from southern states posting pictures of their kids proudly holding chalkboards and letterboards displaying, “First day of ___ Grade.”   This week Loudoun County students will join their ranks for the 2018-2019 school year.   As a student and then as a teacher, a new school year was always equal parts stressful and exciting.   New clothes and school supplies can do a lot to somewhat ease the tension of busy school and sports schedules and getting back into the routine of picking out outfits and making lunches before you finally crash each evening.   I loved having a new beginning each year as a teacher.   It gave me an opportunity to get reorganized, try new ideas, and hopefully, come back in ...

          A few weeks ago I mentioned that our Loudoun FCA staff is now in ministry planning mode for the upcoming school year.   This includes goal setting as well as event planning – huddle leader trainings, our upcoming Golf Tournament (September 25), See You at the Pole (September 26) and Fieldsof Faith (October 10).   In addition to all of this, I’ve taken on the task of developing some lessons for our huddles to use to kick off the school year.   This not only takes some of the pressure off of our leaders to come up with huddle plans while they’re still adjusting to being back in school, but it also ensures that our students are on the same page when it comes to things like gospel clarity.               One of the “lessons” I’ve been working on today has to do with identity.   This is such a crucial issue for middle and high school students, as they all try to figure out...