Walking By Faith!!!

What a difference a week makes... We are well into another week of training, preparing for a tough game this weekend against Indonesia here in Singapore. I thought this would be an appropriate time to get some things off my chest. The socks say it all and if I thought I could make it any other way I have been reminded lately that I have to rely on God even more than I already do. First of all, the game results from last week were good. We played in Brunei, our first road trip of the season. The team stayed at a nice five star hotel...very plush. It was refreshing to see the excitement on the faces of the younger players on our team and get a chance to build team camaraderie. Life on the road is always tough. You are out of your routine and comfort zone. You also have to deal with the home crowd, a usually fired up home team, and our job is even harder because of the target on our back. We are the only undefeated team left so everyone wants to knock us off. The game itself was a tough one physically and emotionally. We trailed most of the game to a hungry, much improved and well coached team. In the end we were able to build a nice lead in the fourth quarter and hold on despite a late game charge to win by 2 points. Shout out to my teammates, we did a great job of executing, limiting our mistakes, and making our free throws when given the opportunities. Personally, many observers commented that I played great because I scored 32 points in 35 minutes. But let me just fill you in on the struggles of last week and let you make your own assessment. I have to give all honor, praise, and glory to God. Without him, how could I deal with this past week and still perform the way my team needed me to? Monday started out with some strange news. I found out I had full blown shingles. This is a very painful skin rash that forms around the rib cage area. The doctor told me this was due to a high level of emotional stress and worrying. It causes you to itch, be sluggish, and feel overall fatigue. "How in the world did this come about?" Things have been wild the last 6 months or so. My wife and I have dealt with a lot of issues, she lost her grandmother (who raised her) to cancer, I haven't spent that much quality time with my wife and kids in the last year or so due to playing overseas (major sacrifice), her mother is currently dealing with major health issues, in addition, my wife may be leaving soon to return home to be with the kids and I found out Thursday that my grandmother (who helped raise me) had a heart attack and passed away. Wow! So going into this game I had so many issues on my mind and heart. All I can do is just walk by faith! You see when all else seems to be crumbling around me...that Bible is my crutch and I know God is willing to carry us when we are too weak to keep walking. So for me, my only intention going into any game is to allow God to use me in the manner he deems fitting...to glorify Him. That is what I believe we are sent here to do anyway...Glorify Him in all that we do, while leading and inspiring others to follow suit & be lead into His Kingdom. So with that said, on to another week, with me in the backseat and you know Who driving........GOD First!