When Presented with Obstacles...

     There's a sign that hangs in our office welcoming visitors to our Career and Technical Education Department and at the bottom of the sign we have our motto inscribed which reads, "When presented with obstacles, may we only see opportunities to improve." If everyone could just look at obstacles, barriers, adversities, or even afflictions in this way, we would all be headed up the hill of having a growth mindset and never sink down into the realm of self-pity, bitterness, and eventual hopelessness. Some would say that seeing adversity as a positive is much easier to say than to do, but I would counter back with, it may be easier to say than to do, but the payoff for facing adversity in this manner is so much more rewarding.
     I would tell you that looking at obstacles in life as opportunities to improve has a great deal to do with how I approach life and it has been a rewarding approach in my eyes. When I was named the new Career & Technical Education Supervisor for Hamblen County Schools I was presented with the following question and or similar statements about leaving Union Heights Elementary Schools as the principal there. "I guess you'll be glad that you don't have to worry with the parents anymore?" or
"Now you won't have to deal with all of those teachers and problems anymore." To which I would reply, "No I'll miss that part of my job at Union Heights as well." Glutton for punishment? No, I just enjoyed problem solving and working out solutions to issues with the best interest of everyone involved being my driving force. Does that mean that when someone entered my office huffing and puffing mad over something that had happened to their child, I was tickled pink? Well, if I answered yes to that nobody would believe me, so let's just say my satisfaction was when at the end of one of those type meetings, we both shook hands, agreed to agree or even disagree, and I could say I had just added another positive outcome to my tool belt of success. Those tools enable me to do my job today, equipped with experiences of what has worked in the past and also what didn't work so well along the way. The key is that whatever the situation, no matter if the outcome went my way or not, I had learned some new knowledge about myself, my strengths, and my areas that I needed to work on and improve. You can apply this same mindset to pretty much any area of your personal or professional life. The key is that whatever the situation, you look at it as an opportunity to improve yourself and the lives of as many people that you "touch" each day!
     Think about the song that Kelly Clarkson made famous "What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger", there exisits a whole philosophical perspective on life with this same type of outlook in mind. The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche touted this adage praising the benefits of being resilient in facing the fires of life. For me, the whole concept of embracing adversity has enabled me to overcome and endure a great number of life matters, and yes I would say that I was the beneficiary of each of those experiences. Someone out there is reading this saying, "Yeah, but you don't know what I've been through, and if you did you wouldn't be so excited about enduring what I am dealing with in life." You know what, you're exactly right, and I would tell you that you don't know what I've been thru either. Everyone has their "cross" to bear as the saying goes, so what you have to bear and what I have to bear are different and can come at all different levels of intensity or severity, but at the end of the day, it is your obstacle in life and you have to overcome it!
     I love to read biographies or even better are autobiographies on men and women that have turned their adversity into the very thing that propelled the person into the spotlight or provided them the platform by which their success was achieved. I think of Helen Keller, blind, deaf, and mute, yet when she unlocked the world of silence that she was trapped in as a child, she went on to learn multiple languages, motivate and encourage people around the world, and lived an extremely independent life for someone in her position at this point in history. Then there's the story of Rob Mendez, a junior varsity football coach in San Jose that was born with a rare disorder which caused him to be born with no arms or legs. A football coach you say?? Coach Mendez says "Who says I can't?" The condition he was born with didn't kill him so he decided to let it make him stronger. The list goes on and on so when you want to say, "Well you don't know what I am going thru" just remember, I probably don't, but you don't know what your neighbor is or has endured and through the process has used the obstacle to fuel their passion and desire to succeed in life. 
     In the guidebook for perseverance and resiliency there are so many scriptures about enduring and overcoming obstacles in your life for support and encouragement as you face your own set of life obstacles. I'm going to close today's FTM with this aptly paired scripture found in James 1:2-4 "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." As I stated earlier, I don't claim to know the depth or breadth of your life's complications or situations that you have had to endure, but I do know without a shadow of a doubt that if you will buckle in, strap up, dig in, and fasten your life's chin strap then you are definitely headed in the right direction. I may not know what you have endured and I certainly don't know what you are currently facing, yet I know that I can pray that God will give you the strength you need to not only endure life's obstacles, but that He will give you the strength and the tools you will need to overcome and succeed in life! Sound too simplistic to be true? Trust and believe, and see what can happen in today!
Coach Carter

"What's Love Got to Do with It?"

     
     This past week we celebrated Valentine's Day with sales of candy, cards, stuffed teddy bears, and roses boosting our economy. Candle lite dinners and romantic excursions may have even been the fare for a great number of couples. Some of us, with much chagrin, said "Yeah right!" to that last statement. Candle lite dinners become happy meals through the drive-thru and romantic excursions are exchanged for gymnastic lessons or a rec league ballgame. Yet, we use three little words to confirm that regardless of where we are in our relationships, we are still committed and connected to each other. "I love you" carries so much responsibility in our society, but I fear the meaning of those three little words may be get lost in our vocabulary and conversations today.
     Tina Turner sang the song "What's Love Got to Do with It?" in which she basically was asking the question, does love have to be involved in a relationship? The lyrics call love a second- hand emotion, one that doesn't have to be part of a physical ongoing relationship. In today's society, the "I love you" phrase has in many cases became a common parting phrase much like "so long, adios, or see you later". Saying I love you shouldn't be and isn't just a phrase or even just a feeling. For those of us that are married, when we said I love you and asked our future spouse to marry us, we were making a commitment that would endure sickness, hardships, and difficult challenges to the bond we forged in our vows. For those that are single, but definitely in a relationship, saying I love you places your relationship on a different level. In a courtship saying I love you places a couple together in a bond of trust and commitment. I guess my answer to the queen of rock n rolls question would be, "what's love got to do with it?" Everything!
      It isn't just in marriage or dating relationships. We tell our parents we love them, our children find peace and comfort in hearing those three little words, and we even use this proclamation with our friends, and many times our colleagues. I guess my questions would be what is the true meaning of the phrase "I love you"? What do we really mean? Has it lost its luster and relevance? And, have we as a society lessened the responsibility and commitment that this small yet powerful phrase conveys?
      The Bible is a great source for understanding what saying the words I love you actually means. In Matthew 22:35-40 Jesus was being quizzed by some religious leaders of the day when they asked Him, what is the greatest commandment to which Jesus replied "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind." And then He went on to say that we should "love our neighbor as ourselves". I John 4:20 tells us that we can't claim that we love God that we haven't seen, if we don't love our brother that we have seen. And in John 15:13-17 Jesus proclaims that there is no greater demonstration of love than for a person to lay down his life for another and then He finishes up that thought with His command to "love one another". These scriptures are just the tip of the iceberg for what the word of God teaches us about the word love. Throughout the Bible the message is clear, telling someone you love them isn't about you, it is clearly all about the person you are directing that phrase. 
      When we tell someone we love them then, what exactly are we saying? Well, according to the scriptures above, we are saying that we would lay down our lives for someone else, and that we should honor that relationship to a degree that it resembles the type of love that God has shown to us by sacrificing His only son so that we could be saved. True love equals total disregard for self. If we are going to use the words "I love you" they should carry that level of commitment. It shouldn't just be a phrase that we throw around casually in a temporary, unfixed manner. Instead, our declaration of love should be our word, it must withstand the storms of life, and endure the hardships, trials, and adversities that we all must and will encounter in life. Our declaration of "I love you" should mean that we will give and not expect anything in return, fore love isn't love if it is only given with limits or restrictions. When we say I love you, we must commit to that person and in our commitment know that at times we are going to feel like we are getting the short end of the stick in return, but just know that if you give your love unconditionally, then in your time of need, that love will be there supporting you because you loved first. 
 Coach Carter

What Good is a Monument Without Forward Momentum?

    
I recently listened to a talk about "A Man, A Movement, and a Monument". These 3 M's are attainable goals for many in society today men and women alike. The idea behind this phrase is that the goal of a "man" should be to make a stand in his or her world. This "stand" or movement could be a political stance, an effort to change or improve society, or to some it could even be something like a football dynasty such as the one that Bill Belichick and Tom Brady of the New England Patriots have accomplished.
     Once the movement is established and recognized for its accomplishments, somebody needs to be acknowledged for their successes and contributions. Many times, that is done by creating a monument in honor of the person or group responsible. I'm thinking statues, buildings, gym courts, and other venues closely related to the person's cause in life. All of that is good and those that give so much should be recognized for their contributions, yet if the goal of becoming a "man" is to establish a monument to be memorialized and recognized for that work, I'm not 100% sure we are hitting the mark with a lifeless, stationary rock.
      When I think of a monument, the image that comes to the front of my mind is that of a tombstone, headstone, or some other marker in a graveyard. Statues of famous people also pop into mind with the topic of monuments. What is the purpose of a monument in the first place? To pay respect to those that have passed, creating a lasting reminder of who they were and what their contributions to society were, is wonderful and honorable, yet I would also add that if men or women work just to gain the recognition for self then the monument will ultimately be all that remains of that person's memory. What a true man or woman should be striving for is a legacy. A true legacy will outlast outperform a monument made of concrete. Legacies are what keeps the movement moving. The goal of those that work to create a lasting legacy is more concerned with the next two generations down the road. Ask yourself what are you doing today to create a lasting, positive impact on my children's children. If the only thing I will be remembered for is what God was able to accomplish through me, then I very likely fallen short of my purpose in life. The monument I want to create is a "sowing and reaping" legacy for young men and young women that become servant leaders, pouring their lives into the lives of the next generation. By accomplishing this goal my prayer is that the next generation’s leaders will instill in their children, their athletes, their students, or their communities the same work ethic and enduring faith in our Lord and Savior that I seek to instill in them.
     If I am able to achieve that goal I won't need a rock to represent a monument for my life. My monument will be visible, alive, growing, and evidenced by the lives of those that are teaching, coaching, and leading. Read Mark 8:36 which asks the question, "What hath a man gained if he inherits the whole world, but loses his soul?" I would ask you a similar question, "What will you gain if the world builds a monument to you, but at the end of the day you haven't created a movement that will continue to move? I challenge you to be a man, be a woman, and live your life with the goal of creating a movement that will long outlive you and will impact more lives after you are gone than you did when you were involved. That is the monument we should all strive to leave as our legacy!
Go out and do great things!
Coach Carter

From Zero to Hero

    
     From zero to hero, think about that for a minute, a common, ordinary man or woman walking down a busy city street when all of a sudden, a toddler wanders out into the middle of rush hour traffic. What does he or she do? What any of us hopes we would instinctively do, jump out in the middle of traffic and swoop up the child before the toddler is hit by a car. In that instant, that person becomes a hero in at least the eyes of the parent and most certainly that child. Did our hero plan to save a life at that moment? Obviously not, but by placing the safety and well-being of someone else in front of self, that becomes the unintended outcome. Each day you have that same opportunity to become a "hero" to someone. Hopefully you don't have to dive out in front a car, run into a burning house, or even climb a tree to save a child's kitten, but each of us each and every day have the opportunity to place ourselves last, and push the needs of someone else to the front of our list of things to do today.
     I almost started this next paragraph with a statement about how society is so self-centered today, but that's a negative spin on what I really want to make the point about, so let's talk about this topic from the perspective of all of those unsung heroes that exist among us each day. When heroes are born a part of them actually dies. With our example above, who among us would dare dive out into the middle of a busy intersection just to be jumping out there? No way, we all believe in self-preservation and that qualifies as a sure way to decrease the likelihood of surviving to see the next sun rising in the east. Yet, place the life of someone else on the line and all of a sudden we no longer think of self, we don't even think, it just happens. At that moment, a little bit of you dies. The little bit that says "I will do all I can do to make sure I live as long as I can", ceases to exist, suddenly our life doesn't matter. That part of us that dies is the part that allows us to become a hero to someone else.
     Unintentionally, the person above becomes a hero. Some "heroes", on the other hand, become famous for their acts of selflessness, Captain Chesley Sullenberger being one such example that comes to mind. "Sully" became famous for landing US Airways flight 1549 safely on the Hudson River back in 2016, saving the lives of all on-board. You know I guess Captain Sullenberger could have decided to don a parachute and take the "every man for himself" attitude, but instead he placed self at the bottom of his list and then went about the business of navigating a crash landing on the frozen Hudson River. By any definition, hero. If heroes were only born at a moment of potential tragedy and with the potential of personal harm to the hero, I'm not sure the waiting list for who's next would be very long. I believe each of us has the opportunity to be an "intentional" hero each and every day.
     To be an intentional hero, you still have to make the decision to place others in front of yourself, it just doesn't have to be in a life or death setting. Your choice to stop and buy a cup of coffee or hot soup for a homeless person certainly pushes you up the ladder in the eyes of the one holding the cup. Placing your "needs" to the side and serving someone else less fortunate than you, makes you a hero in their eyes. In education, we that teach have the opportunity to be a hero each and every day. Don't ever lessen the impact of a kind word, an encouraging comment, or just the simple act of stating that you believe in that student that otherwise doesn't have an encourager in their life. Side note, When I use the word teacher I don't use it in an inclusive manner for just those that are in the profession of education, but instead I want to make sure that everyone reading this post understands that you are a teacher to someone whether it is at your place of work, in your home, on the city streets, or wherever your life takes you each day, you are a teacher and you can be a hero to someone each day.
      The concept of becoming a hero is best summed up in Galatians 2:20 where Paul proclaims, "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." Using this example of selfless sacrifice that Paul is describing here, we can all seek to attain this same attitude. If we have a relationship with our Maker, then it no longer is us that lives, it is He who lives in me. If that is true then we no longer are living to honor our own self, but instead we are living just as Jesus lived, serving others and placing self last for the benefit of a child wandering out into the street, or even for the child that wanders into our life each day looking for a smile, a glimmer of hope, or a word to help them make it through another day. 
      I wanted to start today's thought with this phrase, but I think it is much more appropriate to end our time together today. "When I become nothing, that allows me to become everything to someone else." I challenge you to be a hero today, tomorrow, and every day that Our Lord and Savior gives you to live! Go out and make a difference today! 
Coach Carter

Controlling the Controllables

     
     This past week Jordan Stapleton, a recent Hamblen County graduate, spoke with groups of middle school students about making the most out of their high school experience and developing that strong "work ethic" that we all know is necessary to be successful in life. I personally did not get to hear Jordan speak, but one particular thought that Jordan shared has resonated with me ever since the moment it was brought to my attention. This young, 20 year-old adult, who now has a supervisory position at one of our local businesses didn't come up in an environment which afforded him the support and guidance we commonly expect all children will receive as they grow and mature. From his account life was tough and he was slowly becoming a product of his environment. That's when he made a revelation that turned his life completely around. That revelation created a mantra in Jordan's life that not only helped him get his life on track to move forward, but also his declaration has provided me with today's Flat Tire Ministries Thought. In life, there are certain things that are out of our hands, we have no physical control over, and that is just the way it is, but in life there exists so many things that we can have an impact on, and that's where Jordan made the decision to "control the controllables" in his life.
     I'm not sure if Jordan Stapleton has realized what an important realization he has made at such a young age, but I will say if he gets a firm grip on his concept of controlling the things in his life that are controllable, and then he comes to terms with the fact that everything that is out of his control is fully and completely in the hands of our Maker, Jordan Stapleton is going to be just fine. What are "controllables" you ask? Well to me those are all the things that impact your day in which your decision to go right or go left make a difference in the outcome of your day. For example, I see many people that spend a great deal of their time with their face stuck in a mobile device. That my friend is a controllable. If you struggle with making deadlines, you feel like you aren't getting things checked off your things to get done list, or your life just seems to be stuck in a rut, then you have to make some changes that will get the ball rolling. I'm not saying social media doesn't have a place in society, but I am saying it has a place and it isn't all day long and it isn't meant to replace real productivity, which leads to making deadlines, getting things accomplished, and allowing you to set goals and reach them. What about rest and sleep? Food choices, junk food or healthy choices? Exercise or sedimentary? The choice is yours. All of these areas of your life fit into the "controllables" category.
       Jordan's speech to the students was centered around "work ethic" which is a topic I deal with in my position as Career and Technical Education Supervisor. Many people call them "soft" skills, I prefer to use a term I picked up this summer and call them "power" skills. These are a set of skills that tend to set people up to be successful in the work place and also in life. Being on time, being there period, working on a team, passing a drug screen, pushing yourself to be the best you can be, and opening yourself up to new opportunities and then gleaning all you can from those opportunities to enhance who you are and what you are capable of accomplishing in life. Those are all controllables, we may have to work hard to make some of those choices and decisions, yet at the end of the day, we do make those choices. Good or bad. If you want to get better at your job, read books and watch podcasts that are related to your job field. Say there aren't many jobs about being a great dishwasher out there? Well that may be so, but you can read about how to become an entrepreneur from the ground up or watch a video series about how to raise yourself up the ladder in your work station in life. Unfortunately, many people instead make the choice to sit in front of a television watching reruns of some show with about as much worth in it as a bag of air. The key here is how we spend our "free" time is ours to control, how we improve ourselves is ours to control, and what we do to change our lives for the better or for the worse is ours to choose as well.
     But what about those things that we can't control? What about when we go to the doctor and the news isn't what we wanted to hear? How about when unforeseen accidents happen and the lives of those we love are impacted and altered? Loss of job, loss of spouse, loss of everything we personally own, what about those "uncontrollables" in life? Uncontrollable events and circumstances are part of life just as much as those things that we can control. The problem is when we hit an uncontrollable we want to control it, we want to make it right, but that just isn't possible. That's tough. But there is an answer. Those that know it can be at peace in a storm. Those that have found the strength to go forward when they are faced with insurmountable mountains will tell you that it is only by submitting to the omnipotent mercy and grace of God that they are able to face these uncontrollable forces in life.
     The apostle Paul reminds us “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7. To tell someone to place their trust in God to see them through the uncontrollables they are experiencing may sound like an easy answer that doesn't provide a ready- made solution to the matter at hand and that has a certain degree of truth in it. What you must do is place your trust in God, that unwavering faith that God has a plan, His plans are bigger than anything we could ever imagine, and that our job is to keep moving forward taking charge of the things we can control and allowing God to take care of the rest. Our mind has to be set on the truth that whatever is going on in life, it is only preparing me to handle what is coming up next. That's called faith, and a faith like that is founded in a relationship with God. Just calling on Him when the storm hits won’t give you the strength you need to battle the uncontrollable event in your life. You have to believe, you have to commit to nurturing your relationship with God, and you must hold firm to the belief that God is with you and will be with you no matter the outcome. “Be still and know that I am God” Psalm 46:10.
     So, in life there are the controllables which Jordan Stapleton spoke wisely about with our students this past week, and then there are those uncontrollables that we must submit to our Father in Heaven and place our trust and our faith in Him to see us through the storms of life and the uncontrollable events we will most certainly encounter. For me having God's assurance that He will always be with me allows me to confidently and courageously move forward! My prayer for each of you is that you too can know the peace of God in your uncontrollable situations in life, and that you will boldly take charge of all of the controllable aspects of your life.
Coach Carter

Keeping Your Flashlight Charged

    
     Not many of us today are carrying around a flashlight in our pockets. Due to the overwhelming convenience of the advent of flashlight apps on most mobile devices, that just isn't necessary. It is highly convenient to be able to pull out our phones and have an instant flashlight. Whether you rely on your Iphone's flashlight app or if you have an old style EverReady flashlight rolling around in the trunk of your car or stashed away in a kitchen drawer, it really doesn't matter if the batteries are not charged properly. The light that your device of choice can shed is only going to be as bright and glaring as the strength of the batteries in its storage tank. Neglecting to regularly check on the charge of the batteries life can lead to some frustrating situations. Failure to check on the life of, and then regularly charge those batteries, will most likely end up creating a situation where you are in need of some additional light and you will find that our source of light is either dimming quickly, or in many cases non-existent. Funny how our life's "light" is much the same as that of the flashlight.
    In Matthew 5:16 Jesus proclaims, "... let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." We each have a light inside of us. The extent of our light's effectiveness in helping others "see the light" first falls on our ability to turn the light on. With our flashlight analogy, there is an on / off switch or button, and to shed our device's light we only are required to press that button. Instant light! For us to shine our light to those around us it's not that simple. To be a light in this world is a choice that we have to make. There isn't a button that someone can press and suddenly our light is visible to the world in which we live, we have to make the decision to be a light. Unfortunately, we can choose to hide our light or actually be an extinguisher of that light.
    In the same chapter of Matthew, Jesus makes the point that we don't turn on a light only to cover it up with a basket, but instead when we turn on our flashlight we set it up on a table so that it's light is beneficial to everyone in the room. Do you cover up your light? Do you make an effort to share your light with others so they can see? Have you even turned your light on or is it hidden deep inside your calloused soul? Believe me when I tell you that you have the potential to brighten the life of those that you come in contact with each day. You have the potential to bring light to the darkness that envelopes someone you know or a whole group of someones you live with, work with, or encounter in some way each day. Your job is to make sure your batteries are charged up and prepared to shine each day.
     Charge your batteries on the source that provides energy to your very soul. The Word of God is able to lift you up and energize your life, but you must connect to it much like batteries that receive their charge when they are plugged into an electrical outlet. Store up God's Word in your heart, mind, and soul so that you are prepared to shine in even the darkest moments of your life or the life of those you encounter. Finally, keep your light with you at all times. In life, we don't know when we will encounter a time that a flashlight will come in handy, and in much the same way if we only shine our light when we are in the places that already have light such as at church or among like-minded friends or family our light will not be able to reach those that actually need the "Light" in their lives. If you aren't shining your light wherever you are at this moment in your life, then you are allowing your batteries to be depleted of their energy in an extremely unproductive manner. 
      I pray daily that God will fill me with His Word and with His purpose for my life, and then I pray that He will pour me out each day, emptying my life of its batteries charge completely, so that I can come back to the source for a new charge each night before I lay my head down to rest. It is my prayer for each of you reading this today that you too will charge your battery, shine His light brightly, and always leave a room brighter than it was when you entered! You are blessed, shine and share it each moment of every day!
Coach Carter

Leaving the 99 for You

     
If you haven't heard the song "Reckless Love" by Cory Asbury, let me recommend it to you right now. The message is as simple as it is complex. In our lives, it is easy to feel like you are going it alone. Your hardships, your isolation, or your situations create a sense of hopelessness for many people, it's just hard to believe that if God loves you why would He, the omnipotent, all knowing, all seeing God of Creation allow you to go through your crises alone? Well that's just it, you are not alone. In the Asbury's song, he pointedly provides a clear message to each of us:
"There's no shadow You won't light up
Mountain You won't climb up
Coming after me
There's no wall You won't kick down
Lie You won't tear down
Coming after me"
This message is being delivered in the context of a parable Jesus shared with a group of people gathered in the streets. The parable shared was is best known as the "Parable of the Lost Sheep" and that is the subject of our Flat Tire Ministries time together this week.
     Keep this in mind, you are important. Your life matters, you have a purpose and God wants to see you fulfill that purpose. In our adversities and afflictions, we don't always feel that way, but we have an assurance that serves as a constant reminder that it is true! In His parable, Jesus shares a story about a shepherd and the one sheep from his flock that has wandered away from the comfort and security of his 99 buddies. Jesus says "surely, this shepherd would leave the 99 to go out and find the one that was lost."(Luke 15:4). That one little, lost sheep means that much to the shepherd, so much, that he would risk leaving his flock of 99 just to find the one. That one lost sheep is representative of each of us. Wherever we are, whatever our circumstance, we have an assurance that God sees our adversity and He is willing and able to help us in our times of need.
      There's a whole different lesson connected to this parable about being lost, but really what I am focusing on is the simple understanding that you are important. Not important because you are some type of celebrity in society, but you are important because you are a part of His flock. When you feel all alone, He is there with you. When you feel trapped, He is the key to your freedom, and when you feel like there is no hope, look to God for your assurance. God is there, he always has and always will be, it is us that has wandered away from our faith in His ability to meet our needs and heal our afflictions.
      There's no mountain He won't climb up, there's no shadow too dark that He can't light up, and there are no walls or lies that Jesus can't overcome in our times of need. We must only remember that God's plan will be fulfilled. He wants us to carry out our role in His plans, but at the end of the day, His plan will be fulfilled. We are important, we have a duty that we are called to complete, and it is up to us to fulfill our purpose in this life we have been given to live.
     At one point in the song "Reckless Love" the chorus starts in a low reassuring manner, and then  repeated several times culminating in a proud declaration of God's love for us. My prayer for you today is that in all situations, under all circumstances, you in the same manner as this powerful song, allow God's love to grow in your hardships and become more robust in your time of need. He will leave the 99 for the one, and that one is YOU!
Coach Carter