PRAYER

God definitely has plans greater than our own...Sometimes, we are ready to accept the fact that God has something far greater, but I think the majority of the time we are taken by surprise, not because of the actual event that God set forth, but because of our own thoughts that we are in control and we are proven wrong!

The reason why I am writing today, is to ask for your special prayers for Dee's Grandma and family. Last night Dee's grandma passed away...She was a strong, loving, inspiring 90 year old great-grandma, grandma, mother and friend.

It definitely is a surprise to everyone because she was a very strong person, with such determination to get well. She said one day "If God wills it, I will live for a longer time!!!" Praise God for her willingness to leave it in His hands.

As a reminder: The Lord does not take anything away from us rather, He allows us to experience His creations, to embrace and appreciate them, to learn, to grow, and to use His creations as outlets to see His LOVE and GRACES. Dee's grandma was a true reflection of GOD's LOVE and GRACE...and over the many years of her life she has brought hope, inspiration and love to her family and friends (one of Jesus' teachings...AMEN? - AMEN) So let's remember that the Lord has only taken back only what He has created! One day we too will be in the Kingdom of our God, rejoicing in His Goodness! Let's pray for one another and please pray espcially for Dee's grandma and family!

AMEN...+BIL

Update

Over the past semester, I had the opportunity to coach an 8th grade girls basketball team...It's actually Dee's younger cousin's team...Anyway...It was a roller coaster! Girls are very different from boys, well, at least this group of girls...When I was growing up, basketball was my life...Day in, Day out, I played basketball. I never missed practice, games, open-gyms, tournaments, and any other times I had the opportunity to shoot around or just dribble a basketball...Out of the 7 girls, only 2 of them came to practice and games consistently...From my basketball background, I assumed that anyone who was in a team, cared about being on a team and cared about PRACTICING and PLAYING in games. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case for this team. When I showed up to the first practice I explained to them that basketball is not all about WINNING...I don't think they ever understood that. To me basketball is a sport that builds character. And I tried my very best to explain that to them. All they cared about was missing practice, messing around at practice if they did show up, and playing in games, WANTING to WIN every game. To me that doesn't add up...And when we lost games (4 total) you could see the disappointment in their faces. ????? Anyway...when we lost our second game, the other coach and I sat them down and asked them what they wanted to get out of playing on this team...Overall, they wanted to WIN... IS that possible?

From that day, the girsl changed...They started to trust me and the other coach a lot more, and for some reason, they had the mindframe of learning to play the game. See, according to Dee, these girls never had a coach that ever cared about them learning to play the game of basketball. When I was asked to help out, I didn't hesitate and my primary goal was to teach them how to PLAY!!! NOT TO WIN...TO PLAY!!! See there's a big difference. I wanted them to IMPROVE, to LEARN how to work together as a team and to build CHARACTER...I'm not sure if they ever reached the optimum level, but they did come a long way...We ended up winning the North Division Championship! The first time these girls ever made it to a championship basketball game. Check this out...because we were the North Division Champs we had the opportunity to play in the NORTH/SOUTH Championship! (keep in mind these are PRIVATE school teams. PUBLIC school is very much different) So this was THE game to be in...Unfortunately, we lost, to the school that Dee works at...haha...how ironic! Anyway, all I have to say is that I am really proud of these girls...In the last two games, they showed me and the other coach, how teamwork, dedication, and leadership can make a basketball team successful!!!