Soccer Update

Life has not been stagnant or still; we have been busy. Poor excuse for not writing sooner, but there it is. Perhaps a better excuse is that it hasn't been a part of my weekly schedule. Here's to learning to make it more regular, both for you, so you can check out what is new, and for me, as it is good to reflect on what of importance has been happening.
I enjoyed attending a recent retreat for Ministry Initiative Leaders. I was invited to attend as I am now co-leading a Ministry Initiative. More on that soon...!
The retreat was a time to share, reflect, ask questions, and get to know our TEAM co-workers better. The 2 nights were spent at a remote location which found us boarding a small water taxi and ferrying across 1 km of the Sea of Cortez. When we arrived on the other side, a minivan relayed us to the house we rented. It was a very nice retirement home, that was a gift we found easy to enjoy for the short time.
The peninsula that is known as The Magote is quiet and peaceful, with the occasional snake, many birds, and a few tourists. Some have made it their permanent retirement getaway. Once we were settled in, we spent some time sharing. I shared this...

In the last few months, I have been coaching a boys soccer team, with boys from the ages of 10 and 11. The boys are energetic, full of life and I have enjoyed getting to know them. They also fill me with joy when they give me high fives and smiles. A few help me get the equipment out, I set up some cones, and then we sit down and chat. Once some more boys come, we open in prayer. Last time it was a bit embarrassing as I tried to say Glorificarte and got stuck on the pronunciation, but they helped me out graciously (with a few chuckles). I am also working with a fair number of boys that are missing out on practices as they attend training for their first communion in the Catholic church. This tells me that there is either a desire to know God, or their is a strong connection to tradition.
We are in 7th position in the standings, so played the 2nd place team in the tournament. Our first game was tough, we played well to begin, taking a half time break with a 2-2 tie. The second half was wide open in front of our net, and we ended up losing 9-3. The second game against the same team was better played by us, but the final score ended up 5-3 for them.
I was hoping for better results for the hard work that we have put in, but see that we have a lot more hard work to go. Some parents were quite upset by what they saw from us, and I pray that it won't hinder our relationships. I know that I have to earn their respect as the coach, or it will be harder to share anything with them about Jesus.
The last day of April was Dia de los Niños, which is a celebration of children. To celebrate with my team, we took a day of practice and played fun games that had little to do with soccer. We ate buckets of ice cream and ran relay races, tossed many water balloons and laughed a lot. I took about 5 minutes to share why they are important to me and to God. They listened and seemed to appreciate what I shared, but they were somewhat distracted. I hope to find another natural opportunity to share more with them.


Please continue to pray for these 30 boys and their families. They are precious!