Happy Easter
Thankfully, my chemo cycle worked out to allow me to attend Easter service. More than likely, I would have been able to attend if Easter Sunday was right after my chemo treatment, but it would have been far less enjoyable.
More than ever, the meaning of Easter hits home. In the past few months, I have been presented with a tough situation in life. Regardless of the outcome of this situation or down the line, my faith continues to give me reassurance of the life ahead. The resurrection of Jesus provides hope for the future and offers us the promise of a new life. Through His ministry and sacrifice, Jesus demonstrated God's unconditional love for us. Even more, he taught us the importance of helping others and caring for our neighbors. Jesus' resurrection gives me confidence that good will prevail over evil and that joy is everlasting- regardless of the outcome of my treatment. I want to end with a quote from a hymn in today's service: "Jesus the vine, we are the branches; life in the Spirit the fruit of the tree; heaven to earth, Christ to the people, gift of the future now flowing to me."
Yesterday, I started off the day by attending the Community of Champions Award Ceremonies. This ceremony was held through the work of the Chamber of Commerce and the Dublin City School District. As the school board president, I first handed out awards to students. Then, I introduced the keynote speaker. As I took the podium, I was greeted by another extended applause. Like I noted previously, I am not sure how to describe the feeling of a moment like this... it is just overwhelming.
Finally, after the awards ceremony, we had a baseball game in Grove City. Again, I was welcomed by a great group of opposing coaches, players, and parents. Before the game started, I spent a good 20 minutes talking with the coach of the other team. He had mentioned that he had been looking forward to this game for the simple fact of seeing me.
In addition to talking with the coach, I spent some time talking with one Grove City's players who I have grown close with over the past couple of years. If you can remember, three Grove City High School students were struck by a drunk driver going the wrong way off of 270. This was a little more than a year back. Well, one of the students was this player's older brother. There is no replacing someone like that in the boy's life, but I still wanted to do all I could to help the boy out. Anyways, like I said, we grew close- often talking and joking before, during, and after games. His father came up to me before the game to talk. He said that his son was worried that I was going to be in the hospital and unable to attend. Again, I will continue to say this... more than ever, this process has confirmed my belief that good people make life worth living.
Despite missing players due to injuries and vacations, we won 7-2. The boys played a great baseball game. Again, we put ourselves in a position to win by making only one error in the field while playing smart mental baseball. In particular, I was proud of one of my players. He is our third string catcher. Typically, he does not catch much, and as a result, he does not see many repetitions at the position during drills. Due to the injuries and vacations, he had to play the position. I was proud of the way he played behind the plate, but I was even more proud of the way he took a leadership role during the game. My players know that I expect the catcher to be the leader on the field. With our starting catcher gone and our second string catcher hurt, he stepped up- without me even saying a word to him. It is such a great feeling to see the players learn and mature.
More than ever, the meaning of Easter hits home. In the past few months, I have been presented with a tough situation in life. Regardless of the outcome of this situation or down the line, my faith continues to give me reassurance of the life ahead. The resurrection of Jesus provides hope for the future and offers us the promise of a new life. Through His ministry and sacrifice, Jesus demonstrated God's unconditional love for us. Even more, he taught us the importance of helping others and caring for our neighbors. Jesus' resurrection gives me confidence that good will prevail over evil and that joy is everlasting- regardless of the outcome of my treatment. I want to end with a quote from a hymn in today's service: "Jesus the vine, we are the branches; life in the Spirit the fruit of the tree; heaven to earth, Christ to the people, gift of the future now flowing to me."
Yesterday, I started off the day by attending the Community of Champions Award Ceremonies. This ceremony was held through the work of the Chamber of Commerce and the Dublin City School District. As the school board president, I first handed out awards to students. Then, I introduced the keynote speaker. As I took the podium, I was greeted by another extended applause. Like I noted previously, I am not sure how to describe the feeling of a moment like this... it is just overwhelming.
Finally, after the awards ceremony, we had a baseball game in Grove City. Again, I was welcomed by a great group of opposing coaches, players, and parents. Before the game started, I spent a good 20 minutes talking with the coach of the other team. He had mentioned that he had been looking forward to this game for the simple fact of seeing me.
In addition to talking with the coach, I spent some time talking with one Grove City's players who I have grown close with over the past couple of years. If you can remember, three Grove City High School students were struck by a drunk driver going the wrong way off of 270. This was a little more than a year back. Well, one of the students was this player's older brother. There is no replacing someone like that in the boy's life, but I still wanted to do all I could to help the boy out. Anyways, like I said, we grew close- often talking and joking before, during, and after games. His father came up to me before the game to talk. He said that his son was worried that I was going to be in the hospital and unable to attend. Again, I will continue to say this... more than ever, this process has confirmed my belief that good people make life worth living.
Despite missing players due to injuries and vacations, we won 7-2. The boys played a great baseball game. Again, we put ourselves in a position to win by making only one error in the field while playing smart mental baseball. In particular, I was proud of one of my players. He is our third string catcher. Typically, he does not catch much, and as a result, he does not see many repetitions at the position during drills. Due to the injuries and vacations, he had to play the position. I was proud of the way he played behind the plate, but I was even more proud of the way he took a leadership role during the game. My players know that I expect the catcher to be the leader on the field. With our starting catcher gone and our second string catcher hurt, he stepped up- without me even saying a word to him. It is such a great feeling to see the players learn and mature.
posted by Chris at 9:55 PM
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