Space

Sydney Kate (my lovely little lady friend) is incredibly talented.

She won’t agree with that statement, but she honestly so is. Anyone who knows her can attest to that fact.

She is really artistic. She has an ever-thinking and very creative mind. Her knack for finding art and creating art is super cool. It’s one of the many things I love about her. She drew and painted me this canvas of an astronaut. And let me just say– it’s freaking sweet. It’s hanging in my dorm now. It was my inspiration for this blog.

I am finishing up day 5 of “camp.” In college, we call the grueling summer practice before school starts “camp.” No, there are no sing along songs. No, there are not s’mores. It’s basically a massive collection of soreness, yelling, intensity, and practice. But it’s necessary if we want to be ready for the season. So, we all just grind it out.

There are lots of things you have during camp– sunburn, aches, bruises, heavy eyes, meetings, etc. It’s a whirlwind. And it’s pretty intense. But, like I said, it’s necessary.

You want to know one thing you don’t have at camp?

Space.

I wake up with my roommates. I go immediately to breakfast with my whole team. Then we go to a special teams meeting. Then, the kickers and snappers (which includes me) go to the weight room to stretch and do some minor lifts. We then practice for 3 hours. From practice, I go to lunch with whole team. After practice, I’m either at training for something or in my room– with my roommates. At 3:35, I go to another meeting. This runs into either dinner or weights. From there, we have another meeting, maybe a walkthrough, and then… I get to stop doing things for the night. This is typically at like 9-9:30 at night. For my other teammates, it’s often much later. The gist is that I’m with people 24/7 during camp. I have no space. At first, I was thinking, “Wow, I just need some time to wind down and be alone.” But God was like. “Ehh. Maybe. Try this.”

See, this astronaut on this canvas hanging above my desk has space. He’s in space. But he has space. He has lots of it. But because of this space, he is alone— just floating. At camp, there is no “alone.” There is no “floating.” At first, it was overwhelming. I don’t want to talk all the time. I don’t want to share space. I don’t want to practice. But God wants to invade my space. There are lots of young guys around here who need my help. There are lots of guys who I need to be around to help me out, to keep me going. There are lots of people who God wants me to be around. This is either for them, or often times, for me. It’s overwhelming. It commands a water tight witness. I have to be on guard for sin and temptation consistently. But it’s also an unparalleled witness opportunity to show people what it’s like to know Jesus.

I’ve already had spiritual talks on 3 occasions. I have connected with a teammate who is also pursuing full-time ministry. I’ve made a couple of minor stances on some things. I’ve been able to encourage people. I’ve been challenged. This is not my doing, but the will of the Father. He’s training me.

Space. It’s an overrated comfort. I like to have space. Christ, however, had a much different idea for me.

And He knows what He’s doing.

Dang, this blog was like… short. You got lucky.

This time. 

–@CShort_116