Slow Down, Be Patient, Enjoy the Journey
by Ryan Krzykowski
I tend to live life in a hurry. I want results now. I want to accomplish things quickly. Pretty much whatever it is, I don’t care for waiting. And yet I’m well aware that building things well, like athletic programs that are sustainable, lives that are actually changed for the better, it all takes time. John O’Sullivan writes that the “journey of being a champion teammate…is a slow, gradual, incremental process that unfolds at the right moment.”
Wise words, and as I go about my days, doing what I do as a parent, teacher, coach and husband, I need to keep those words in mind. We won’t become great overnight. My goals for my children or for my marriage require a great deal of patience. Our athletes gain strength gradually and incrementally. Changes I’m hoping for and working on in my own life take time. Two commonly-quoted verses provide encouragement as we work and wait:
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” – Jeremiah 29:11
being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. – Philippians 1:6
God’s plan is perfect. God’s timing is perfect. I can believe and trust that He is good and in control when things don’t seem to be happening quickly enough.
I also know this — as it pertains to sports, these games were designed to be enjoyed. All of it is actually supposed to be fun. So while we’re doing the hard work and patiently looking to the future payoff, let’s plan to enjoy the steps along the way, and help our athletes and fellow coaches do the same. This is such a blessed journey we get to be on together, and I want to savor every part of it.
Let’s Coach With Purpose…
Perfect love is patient. Imagine how society rushes us to have it all together, gosh I was in my 40’s when I started relizing that my life inside was a disaster, and letting God work in me would take time, I had to sort through a lot of “stuff” but I was willing to go with him into each of my days. Peace by Piece he put me back together, perhaps its why I love stained glass windows so much, I can see my brokenness and how God has worked through the years and tears. When I was 40, dad died. He was 58! Now I reached 58 this year and my son surrenders everything, every error I made that had affected him like a disease, on the outside he looked great, but me knowing God and me knowing my own errors knew on the inside he was that wounded boy, the child inside. I understood it was going to be all in God’s timing, I was okay with letting God work…