Sermon About Soccer

Yes, you read the title right, I gave a sermon a few Sundays ago all about SOCCER... but I quit playing, and I have played my whole life. Now are you wondering why I would give a sermon over something I don't even DO anymore? I actually wrote this to be more about my journey with soccer and what I learned through quitting it, and religious or not, I hope you will find a take away. Another reason I shared this on here is that many people have been wondering my reasons for quitting, so I decided to share this sermon I wrote about it. Here it is!

"Hi, My name is Caroline. I have been a member here a long time, thanks to my awesome parents Tim and Julie. I am playing piano and singing in the youth band today and I sing solos on Christmas eve each year.

And for those of you who don’t me well, I play competitive soccer, or rather USED to play competitive soccer.

My journey with soccer started in kindergarten. When I asked my family about my early years of playing, they told me that after games, they had to tell me to stop running through people and that I needed to pass the ball more. I loved the game and it was my life.

When high school started, I played club soccer in the fall and high school soccer in the spring. My freshman year was honestly just rough. My club team for the second time was in the state final championship game and we lost. I have very high self expectations, and my expectations for how I should have played were not met. and Shortly after the season ended it was time for high school tryouts. When team assignments came out, I was on JV. Now most people would say that is good for a freshman, but it wasn't good enough for me, because I wanted a Varsity spot. To top it all, the season was awful. I spent a lot of time on the bench and my usual starting spot & playing the whole game were beat out by juniors because of seniority. Also, the coach’s style did not mesh with my needs as a player. It ended up being 2 very tough seasons back to back. That is when I started to question soccer. Is this what God planned for me? Why would God want me to do something that is so time consuming and not giving me joy any longer?

Ultimately I decided to give it one more shot. I also began to pray nonstop to God asking Him what his plans for me were. During this last year, my sophomore year, things turned around. I still had lots of frustrations with injuries, time commitments, and losses, but my club team beat our rivals in state 2-1. After 3 years in a row of being in the final, we finally won! I played the entirety of all 4 games as a defender, and I was very proud of the work of my team. Then when high school soccer season came, I finally earned that Varsity spot. I even got to learn a new position. Both seasons had huge milestones I wanted to accomplish, but I still had that voice inside of me that was saying it’s time to move on. I loved the game, but with all the things that came along with it like missing school dances, not having time to experience having a job, missing youth group frequently, and putting my love for music on the shelf, I realized that it might be time to hang up the cleats. Being a soccer player came first, and everything else came next.

When I attended a peace retreat during spring break this year, I could feel God was calling for me to do and be more than just a soccer player. Soccer had become my life, and I needed to recenter my priorities. Now don’t get me wrong, the decision was sad, hard, and scary and it took a lot of grit. I did not know what was coming next without soccer in my life. As I was in the middle of making that decision I found it inconvenient that God wanted me to reroute all my plans and hobbies for him. However, after more time, I knew that because I was making this decision for God and to be a better disciple, it was all going to be ok. As it says in Hebrews 11:8, “By faith Abraham...obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.” Just like Abraham, I have had to let go of all my insecurities and fears and take a leap of faith, all in order to follow God’s plan. God calls us to do things we may have trouble doing or calls us away from things that are hard to leave. He never said it was going to be easy following him and he never said being a Christian was just going to be “convenient.” In fact, being a christian takes a lot of grit sometimes! But in the end I would still rather follow Him than my own nearsighted plans.

I played my last games with my club team at regionals late this June. When stepping on the field for those final times, it was emotional, but I knew it was the right thing. Soccer had given me all the life lessons it needed to. I won a state championship and I got a varsity spot. Soccer was great for that time in my life, but God is calling me toward something so much greater and better than I could imagine now that I have the freedom in my head and schedule for him. I cannot wait to see what persevering in faith will have to offer me this junior year as I focus more on school, my friends, youth group, volunteering, and music. Although we cannot see the end of the story, God will always be with us, because as Deuteronomy 31:6 says “Our lord will never leave or forsake us.” And when you have God on your side, there is nothing to fear because as Philippians 4:13 says, “I can do all things through Christ.”

So my question to everyone is this: What might come first in your life ahead of God, good relationships, and loving others? If it is something you feel you should or need to give up, God will give you the strength and grit to tackle it. God is devoted to being there for us. Once we fully submit to following him, I lean on the promise that the peace we find and the life we will have will be unimaginable. I pray that as I continue my life without soccer, that I will carry the life lessons from it with me always and that I can continue to follow God. I also pray that what comes next for me and for you is the best kind of payoff for preserving for God… a life with Jesus at the center!"

Thanks for reading. I am so grateful to have my blog in this time of transition without playing soccer. I hope you learned something from this post, and I pray that God will guide you toward his purpose and plan for you always!

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