Making the Most of the Journey...

We woke to temperatures in the very low 30s...

And the first frost of the season

Not exactly ideal conditions

For an evening soccer playoff game

Under the lights

Two and a half hours north of here.

But we were looking forward to the day

Not only because of the game

But because of the journey

along the way.

You see, most of the away games

Are many miles from home.

So we all pile in the car,

including my 87 year old parents,

and head for parts of Maine that we seldom see.

The trips we have made this season

have been wonderful...

We leave early enough to stop
 at interesting places

We listen to my parents share 
stories of the "old days"

We meet special folks and make new friends...

We usually get to "eat out"...
which is always a treat...

Oh, yes, and then there are the games...

This season, our trips have been much like
our journey with the Lord...

We need to be prepared as we travel...

As we did today with extra clothing and blankets

For sometimes the conditions are unfavorable...

Some of the roads we travel are newly paved

but many are full of potholes...

There are times when we need to cross bridges
Or maybe even build new ones...

This is an amazing bridge that we cross on our way through Bucksport...

We travel for many miles

Often out of our way
Occasionally, we get lost for a time

And the trip can be very costly...

So...We need to follow the "road map"
And watch for signs
Because often our time is limited...

We need to stop for "refueling" along the journey

And take the time to be "fed"...
To sustain us along the way.

We need to be mindful of our conduct
And "sportsmanship"
Wherever we are...
Because of the "Family" we represent...

Sometimes, when we take the time to stop

and look closely...

We find wonderful "treasures"...

We need to share the stories of the past...

Learn from those who have gone before us...

For my son, Daniel,

It has always been "about the journey..."

I recall a recent afternoon game
Where, as we sat on the bleachers...
We watched as Daniel removed
his brand new soccer cleats...
And gave them to one of his players
Because he had just blown a hole in his.

You see, most of the young men

whom he coaches do not walk with Lord...

So, he attempts to share with them

Through words and actions

That there is Something bigger and

more important in life than soccer...

Of course, he would love to see them
 win every game

And take the State Championship this Saturday...

But, he knows, that he can only help to prepare them...

For ultimately, 

the choice belongs to them...

How much they want it...

As is our decision to follow Christ.

In the end, there will be winners and losers...

You can't just "partially" win...

Just as we can't just "partially" trust in Him.

My prayer is that we will all

make the most of this amazing journey...

For, in the end, it will be well worth the trip.

"Know ye not that they which 
run in a race run all, but one receiveth
 the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.
And every man that striveth
 for the mastery is temperate in all things.
Now they do it to obtain 
a corruptible crown; 
but we an incorruptible.
I therefore so run, not as uncertainly;
 so fight I, not as one that beateth the air:
But I keep under my body, 
and bring it into subjection:
 lest that by any means, 
when I have preached to others,
 I myself should be a castaway."
I Corinthians 9:24-27