Love in LoCo

This season I have the opportunity to serve the Potomac Falls High School Girls’ Lacrosse Team as a Character Coach.  I’ll be honest that prior to starting this role, I knew next to nothing about lacrosse.  I am slowly learning, though, as the girls who are on the sidelines waiting to go into the game graciously answer my many questions about different calls, plays, etc.  It is such a privilege to serve with these girls, as several are former students and current FCA huddle members and to get to know the three coaches, who are fathers of girls on the team.  So far, the girls have had a chance to pinpoint specific character traits that they value as a team and these will be the traits that we focus on throughout the season.  I am so impressed by the work ethic and camaraderie these girls share.  And, did I mention they’re the defending State Champions?  I have really loved getting to know these girls so far and I can’t wait to see how the Lord works ...

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!   I had a blast at Potomac Falls High School this morning where the FCA huddle hosted Batter Day, an outreach event they put on several times a year providing free pancakes to students and staff.   They were able to be extra festive this morning with plenty of green sprinkles and food coloring!   I love the heart these students have to serve their school and get the word out about FCA! Double duty...filling bellies and advertising for FCA! 3 Huddle Leaders serve pancakes to students and staff.     Serving is always more fun with friends! Festive pancakes!

Growing up in a Christian home, I’ve read some of the stories in the Bible so many times over the years.  It’s certainly helpful and inspiring to read about the lives of these people who were ordinary and flawed and yet still able to accomplish great things for God’s glory by stepping out in faith, but at the same time, there’s a bit of a disconnect sometimes.  These people lived a long time ago, in a world without technology and Netflix and other modern day distractions and temptations.  I’m encouraged by the stories of Esther and David, yes, but I can’t go to coffee with them.  In recent years, I’ve been inspired by some modern day “heroes of the faith.”  Some are people I know personally; others, I’ve simply read about and followed on social media like Jennie Allen and Kelly Minter.  Like me, these people are not perfect and face a myriad of struggles every day, but they are nonetheless surrendering their lives to God to be used for His purposes right...

In the past year, I had a new roommate move in and I started a new job.   Our country has a new president and is arguably facing more unrest than I ever remember seeing in my lifetime.   Even my home church is in the process of searching for a new senior pastor.   Change is an inevitable part of life.   For the more adventurous out there it can be exciting but for those who, like me, prefer their comfort zones clearly defined and secured, change can be a bit daunting.   Hebrews 13:8 says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”   Isn’t that such a fantastic truth?   I find so much peace in knowing that my Creator and Savior is unwavering – in His sovereignty, in His power, and in His love for you and me.   I could choose to go through life resisting change and, as a result, many of the blessings that come from new opportunities.   Or, I could fix my eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of my faith and trust that He wil...

My absolute favorite part of this job is going to huddles and hanging out with students.   While I believe that parents are the primary faith trainers of their children, I feel privileged to be part of an organization that is supporting those efforts and ministering to students in a way that helps them to understand the gospel and its application to their lives.    I love being able to speak truth into them and encourage them in their walks with the Lord, and it’s so encouraging for me to see this next generation of believers rising up to stand firm in their faith.    Here are a few huddle highlights from the past couple of weeks: The students at River Bend MS played a game last week where the leaders read a Bible verse and the students had to guess which book it was from. The teams were separated by grade level and the 6th Graders dominated! Student leaders from different schools had a chance to share ideas with each other at our Winter...

A couple of years ago my pastor preached a sermon series on The Armor of God in Ephesians 6.  It has been one of my favorite series at church to the point that I’ve re-listened to it at least two or three times.  The truth found in Ephesians 6:10–18 is so powerful and practical, yet I forget sometimes that I need to constantly be on my guard against the devil’s schemes.  This past weekend, my younger sister, Catherine, and I were supposed to babysit my niece so my older sister, Rachael, and her husband could attend a marriage conference at their church.  On Thursday, Rachael reached out to Catherine and me to give us the head’s up that our niece had a cold and was running a fever.  She was questioning whether she and her husband should even go to the marriage conference anymore since her daughter wasn’t feeling well—understandable, I’m sure, for all of you parents out there.  I’m pretty sure most of the time my younger sister has more wisdom than I do...

One of the books I have had to read as a new staff member for FCA is called 7 Practices for Effective Ministry by Andy Stanley, Reggie Joiner, and Lane Jones.  As you can probably gather, the book discusses several practices (7, in fact!) to make your ministry more effective, the first of which is, “Establish your win.”  As I was mulling this over I came across a pretty sobering paragraph in the book that said: “Read or study any report about church attendance in America.  They all suggest the same thing.  Each generation is more skeptical and less likely to attend.  Most experts believe that 70 percent of college students who have grown up in church will drop out when they go to college.  Attendance is declining and those on the outside seem to have a growing indifference toward what the church has to offer.” I don’t know about you but this hurts my heart.  As I continued reading, I couldn’t get that 70% statistic out of my head.  The com...