This weekend, I got to watch my 14 year-old Elliott play two basketball games. In these COVID-19 times, watching your kid play ball feels like a gift.
But the gift went far beyond simply watching him play this weekend. Elliott has always been a talented little basketball player. Elliott has also quite often failed to play as talented as he is. He doesn't have an agressive bone in his body, which sometimes means his talent stays on the bench when he checks into the game. I've always told Elliott - dude, you're quick. Clearly you're not big, but you ARE quick. Quick means you don't have to be big. Use that quick first step to drive around and through the bigger guys and get to that basket like you own it, I'd tell him - my dad mask slowly lifting and revealing the crazed inner coach in me. Well, there I was this weekend, watching him. Watching him grab a rebound on one end of the floor and quickly cutting through defenders all the way to the other end of the floor. Right, then left, then right to the basket like he owned it. For a minute I was like, who is this kid? He missed the basket, but I wanted to stand and scream like he'd just hit a 3-pointer to win the NCAA championship. For one whole quick scamper down the court the dude was using every ounce of his potential. I assure you I put my dad mask back on and told him all about it afterwards. It's Monday, and I find myself wondering how often this week God will raise his God mask and reveal the crazed inner coach in him. How many times is God going to want to say to me, you know Keith, you're not the biggest or richest or smartest or most talented kid on this planet, but there's a corner of this world just waiting for you to come claim it. It's your turn to take that quick first step; when will you finally take it? How many times will God jump up and down this week like I just hit a 3-pointer to win the NCAA championship because he sees me finally making use of the potential he gifted me long before I held a ball? I picture that God. Not a God sitting around demanding or even hoping for our perfection - he's not sitting around waiting for us to make it big. He's just wanting to jump out of his throne and celebrate us making the absolute most of the gifts he's given us. Too often, "make it big" becomes our enemy. Making the most of what we have seems too small in comparison to the celebrities we dream of making of ourselves. God didn't give us potential to shape a world of celebrities. He gave us potential so he could sit back and celebrate with us the day we discover it - and then drive to the basket like we own it. So drive on this week. Drive to the basket like you own it.
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Robert "Keith" CartwrightI am a friend of God, a dad, a runner who never wins, but is always searching for beauty in the race. Archives
May 2024
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