We are over halfway through the summer and are switching from sand volleyball to indoor volleyball so we can get ready for our upcoming seasons. I loved playing sand volleyball and hope that I will be able to play more competitively some day. Now it's time to focus on court! I'm still not sure if i like sand or court volleyball more.
Tuesday was our first day to train indoor, other than playing a little bit here and there at the camps we run. It is so funny watching and listening to the excitement of volleyball players getting ready to play indoor. Even at 6 am, everyone was extra awake this morning because of the opportunity of getting to play indoor again. Every time I am able to put on my knee pads and ankle braces is a blessing. I quickly forget how much of a blessing it is.
The first day of playing indoor was an extra blessing. US Men's national players, John Winder and Andy Hein trained us- HOW COOL!?! Both of them do such a great job of creating an environment that allows us to grow both spiritually and physically. Our goal is not only to become better volleyball players, but to connect with God as we are practicing the sport we love and that He created. Today's focus was being in the moment and making the most of it. As an athlete, I create unnecessary extra pressure by thinking too far ahead in games or in life. In reality, I can't control the past or the future, only the present. This idea applies to life also. We constantly plan and worry about the next day rather than being in the moment that God has given us.
One fear that I had before I came to Cali was that I would compare my playing abilities to others. When I found out who the other interns were and where they went to school, I was a little intimidated. The reason why I was intimidated was because I was still finding part of my identity in who I was as a volleyball player and not who I was in the eyes of Christ. Yes, volleyball is a big part of me, but it is not all that I am. When I was younger, I didn't know who I was other than a volleyball player. I was the girl who lived by the quote "Eat, sleep, play volleyball." And as embarrassing as this is now, I was even once a volleyball for Halloween, the best looking volleyball. ;) I realized how much of my life was wrapped around volleyball and how much my identity was in volleyball growing up. Over the past few years and even now I am continuing to learn that I am first, a daughter of God, and secondly, I am a volleyball player, a student, a friend..... When I first find my identity in Christ, I am more free to play the other roles in life.
Even as we learn about our identity in Christ, it is still easy for us to go back to our old ways and begin to compare. One thing we did before practice was pray against the desire to compare and to continue find our identity in Christ. There is a variety of skill level here- girls who played in high school to girls who played at small colleges to girls who played division 1 and plan on playing overseas to men's collegiate and national players. It is such a wide variety of skill level but all equal in the eyes of Christ. God has given us different gifts and talents and together we make a team and become the body of Christ.
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