FCA Girls Breakfast {Free Printable}

I had a wonderful time at the FCA girls breakfast this past Saturday and my talk on "worth" went really well---thanks for the prayers!!

The food was yummy...

The girls were very welcoming...

They even played my silly games...

We discussed the difference between how the world measures our "worth" and what God says about our "worth."

When I was finished, their FCA leader gave a personal testimony related to her own struggles with "worth" growing up, which fit perfectly with my opening---isn't it amazing how God orchestrates these things?!

All in all, it was a great day---and to top it off, the weather was beautiful (this was pre-"spring break" blizzard which I will tell you about soon)!

Go HERE to read the poem I gave to the girls at the breakfast.

I have used this poem over and over again when speaking to teenage girls and young women. It is wonderful and could be used for women of any age.

Feel free to download, print and share it!

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. {Psalm 139:14}

Worship While You Play {FCA}

Recently I have become involved with a local FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) group!

My first encounter with this group was back in the fall when I was asked to serve as a counselor at the Fields of Faith event at a local highschool.

Fields of Faith is an FCA sponsored event where athletes, students and coaches share what God has done in their lives, the gospel message is presented and students have a chance to make a decision! The event was held at 650 locations across the country on the same night! Awesome!!

We got to worship with Danen Kane (a local favorite), hear the coach of the UWGB women's basketball team speak and I even had the privilege of counseling/praying with students who made a decision for Christ!

What a great night!!

A few weeks ago this same FCA group invited me to attend the UWGB women's basketball game where we had the privilege of hearing the head coach again as well as the assistant coach and one of the players speak and give testimonies before the game!

At the time, the UWGB women were ranked #13 in the country and they are now a #5 seed in the NCAA tournament! Go Pheonix!

I must admit that it is so refreshing to see such a high-level program led by an outspoken Christian.

You see, God gives us great abilities to be used for His glory! He does not want us to "downplay" these gifts in the name of "humility."

In fact, I have always loved this quote---

Humility is not thinking less of yourself but thinking of yourself less. {C. S. Lewis}

I would like to encourage you to be bold and confident in the use of your God-given talents, abilities, etc. Just make sure you keep it in perspective---knowing and acknowledging where these gifts come from and using them for His glory!

Now, back to the pre-game talk!

The player who spoke to us used a term that I absolutely love.

"Worship while you play."

She also used one of my favorite passages of scripture, Colossians 3:23 which says, "whatever you do, work at it with all your heart as if working for the Lord and not men."

You see, whatever we do---whether it be sports, teaching, parenting---God wants us to give our all (100%), all the time!

It is a form of worship.

Worship does not simply take place on a Sunday morning, or even just during the "song" portion of the worship service.

On the contrary, worship is an ongoing, constant out-pouring of our day-to-day lives.

So let me ask you---what is your life saying?

Are you worshipping while you play (work, parent, talk, think---you fill in the blank)?

As you ponder this thought, please pray for me because this Saturday morning I will be speaking at the FCA girls breakfast for this same FCA group.

I will be talking to the girls about "worth."

Wow---where do I even begin?

Sports Ministry Opportunities {Prayer Requests}

I do not normally blog on the weekends but I have 5 really important things to tell you about and I want to take this opportunity to ask for prayer---so stick with me!

1. As you may or may not know, I am a Compassion Blogger which means about once a month or so, I will tell you about something special going on through Compassion International so that you can help take care of the orphans as God commands us to do! {James 1:27} I am one of many voices for orphans and underprivileged children!

Meet Emilda.

Emilda is an 18 year-old sponsored Compassion child with the mental capacity of a 3-year-old who lives in the Philippines.

And she is FAST!!!

In 2009, Emilda competed in the Philippine Special Olympics and she did SO well that she qualified for the World Special Olympics in Athens, Greece this Summer!!

BUT...she needs your help to get there.

Neither Emilda's parents nor the Philippine government are able to pay her way to Greece.

She needs $19,857 to get there.

Will you help her?

Go HERE to make a donation---any amount, no matter how small will help!

You can also go HERE for more information related to Emilda and her story.

2. I have been asked to be apart of an amazing team going overseas to teach basketball to orphans and underprivileged children! The trip is totally up my alley since WOTP is all about sports and orphans---however, I do have some concerns and am having a hard time discerning God's will concerning my involvement. Please pray that God will quickly and clearly reveal His will to me.

3. It is time for us to start planning our summer schedule as far as volleyball team camps go! If you are apart of (know of) a volleyball team that would like to set up a WOTP Volleyball Team Camp for Summer 2011, please email us at worthyoftheprize@yahoo.com.

4. I am in the final stages of the publishing process of my sports camp manual, Worthy of the Prize Sports Camps! Please pray that everything will come together in God's perfect will and timing.

5. Finally, yesterday I had the privilege of attending a FCA event here in town! I am somewhat connected with a local FCA group---I served as a counselor at the Fields of Faith event (where athletes and coaches from the area gave their testimonies) at a local highschool back in October and yesterday I was invited to attend the basketball game of the #13 ranked NCAA women's team and it was a blast! The UWGB women's team is fantastic and fun to watch---and the best part is that the coach is an outspoken Christian! He was the guest speaker at the Fields of Faith event in the fall and yesterday we got to hear him, his assistant coach and one of his players speak and give testimonies before the game! Please pray for his ministry there at the college and in town. Also, this same FCA group has asked me to come to a breakfast in March where we will be talking with the teenage girls about "worth" while the guys talk about "purity." Pray that God will speak through us and that He alone will be glorified!

Be sure to stop back by tomorrow for our weekly mom2mom {linky party} and either link-up or leave comments of things that "work for you" as a mom!! Can't wait to see what MJ has in store for us!

Have a great week!

Summer 2010 Update

So, when I posted about our Summer 2010 events here, I forgot to metion that I also had the privilege of leading the FBC Webb City children in a team-building session at their summer camp this year!

And let me tell you, it was a BLAST!

We had a great time and the kids were SO cooperative!

And of course I LOVE the adult leaders! ;)

I led 6 group games that were centered around their camp theme "Army of One!"

We had alot of fun getting to know one another better and learning more about our "oneness" in Christ through these games!

Specifically, we learned that as brothers and sisters in Christ, we are a "team" working together to reach our main goal of bringing others into the kingdom of God!

Email me at worthyoftheprize@yahoo.com if you know of a group of people who would like to participate in a team-building session.

I have worked with all types of groups from sports teams (in fact we do these with the girls at volleyball team camp every summer) to corporate teams to ministry teams to youth to adults to children to ladies to singles...the list goes on and on!

I can use any topic or theme to unify a group, just let me know your needs!

Oh and by the way, I have updated totals on our Summer 2010 donations...

So far you have helped us raise $397.04 (not including the $ raised by Cap Creations and 517 Creations) for our adopting families!!

And you have helped us donate 56 baby gifts to moms in need!!

Wooooohooooo!

Weekend of Love

To kick off Valentine's weekend, the 4 of us attended Little A's Valentine breakfast at preschool on Thursday morning!

Of course he LOVED having us there, especially his little brother, who he shows off any chance he gets!

The Valentine breakfast!

They served heart-shaped waffles and strawberries, so cute!

Little A stuffing his face!

Little E reading a book in the red chair! He is very advanced! Ok, maybe not, but he does make some good animal sounds and has the sweetest sounding "Ma-Ma" and "Da-Da" in the whole world! (I will post a video soon)

After breakfast, A went to work and e and I returned home to begin the 1st of many Valentine projects!

We (I) made these pretty little petit fours for Gigi and Granddaddy!

I got the idea from MckMama! They were SO easy to make...believe me, if I can make them, anyone can (this coming from the most non-crafty person, A thought he was hallucinating when he got home)! Ok, so they don't look as good as hers, but still.

On Friday, a helped me make these pretty little flower Valentine's for Gigi, Granddaddy, Caleb, Eli, Uncle Seth, Auntie Jess and Auntie Sarah! Really, I did the making but he told me who to make them for and what color dum dum each person got!

Friday night, A and I attended our small group Valentine party and had a great time partying and playing games with good friends!

But the true celebrating began on Saturday, when the 4 of us traveled to Waco! We met up with Gigi and Granddaddy who graciously took the boys for 7 hours (ahhh) while A and I attended the Baylor vs. Mizzou men's basketball game with our good friends Tim and Quinn, we even got to go to the pre-game pep talk for Baylor! Tim, Quinn and I were rooting for Baylor (I am a Waco-girl myself but didn't really care much who won, mostly just like to harass A) and A was of course pulling for Mizzou!

Baylor pulled it out with a last second shot to win the game! It was hilarious listening to A and Tim go back and forth the entire game...one minute one was yelling and the other cheering and then they would switch!

After the game, A and I attended the FUMC Waco Singles Ministry Valentine dinner, where I was the guest speaker and A was my opening act (he led worship before I spoke), as he likes to call himself!

We had a great time fellowshipping with the singles group and studying the story of Esther, in order to learn how to be "Successfully Single," or successful in anything we do in this life for that matter.

Afterwards, we picked up the boys who had been playing at Oma's all day with a whole bag of new noisy trains, cars and trucks that you know who (Gigi and Granddaddy) had bought for them to keep them entertained all day! They were supposed to go to the zoo but the weather was not cooperating!

When we arrived, they passed out their Valentine's to everyone and we headed home!

All in all, it was a wonderful weekend of love, spending time with my 3 favorite boys!

I hope you had a great Valentine's weekend, celebrating with loved ones and would like to encourage you to celebrate love every day of the year, not just on February 14th!

Take time to tell those you love how you feel and again, let's not forget our one true love, 1 John 4:7-10!

(Sorry this post is so delayed but as you know, for about 4 weeks now, someone in our house has been sick...first we all passed around a stomach bug and then we all passed around a cold, which for e of course turned into an ear infection and for a turned into an upper respiratory infection of sorts...as of now, we are just dealing with the usual congestion and cough, praying that spring will arrive sooner than later!)

1st Show

Yesterday was our 1st Official Fit Band Show and I must say that it was a HUGE success!

The Canyon Creek MOPS group invited me to come and speak to them about Health & Fitness, so I did my talk entitled, "Physically Fit Moms!" My entourage (aka. MJ and Melissa), as they call themselves, came along to help me and we had a great time! The ladies were SO nice and it was a very well run meeting, we got some great ideas! We are wondering if it will be okay for us to attend both their group and our group from now on?!!?

While there, we debuted our Fit Bands and actually sold alot! There were about 30 ladies in attendance and we ended up selling 7 bands and 12 sets of cards! Plus, several ladies took order forms so that they could order Christmas gifts! And the best part was that they asked me to return in the spring to speak to the CC Preschool Families!

To date, we have sold 26 bands and 19 sets of cards! Pretty good for our 1st 4 days in business! They seem to be a hit and will make great gifts too!

By the way, I forgot to mention that last weekend, I had the privelege of speaking at the 2009 AMBC Fall Worship Retreat! My breakout session was entitled, "Back to the Basics: Being Physically Fit." It was alot of fun talking with adults about how to incorporate health & fitness into their already busy daily lives! Of course I always make my groups play at least one silly game!

Martin Volleyball Team Camp

Sarah and I just finished hosting the Martin Volleyball Team Camp this past week in Arlington and we had a BLAST!! We got to work with all of the girls trying out for the team this year, freshmen to seniors!

We briefly went through all of the different skill groups, from passing to serving to setting to hitting to digging and blocking!! However, we spent most of the time doing team drills and team-building activities in order to prepare them for their upcoming season. We obviously spent more time on the basics with the freshmen than we did with the upper classman!

All in all, it was alot of fun! We want to wish them all a wonderful 2009 volleyball season! Go Warriors!

If you would like to set up a team camp for your high school volleyball team for Summer 2010, contact Sarah Vick at 817.437.2776 or worthyoftheprize@yahoo.com. We would love to host one for you!

MOPS

We had the privelege of speaking at the AMBC MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) group last night! The talk was entitled Physically Fit Moms! We started out with a fun get-to-know-you game and then gave them reasons why it is important to be physically fit, tips on how to become physically fit, and the results they will see if they become physically fit! We also outlined for them some sample workouts that would be easy for them to incorporate into their busy days and showed them some exercises! It was alot of fun to see them up and active, having a great time! We want to wish them the best of luck on their quest for health & fitness!

Ladies Retreat

We were priveleged to get to speak and to lead team-building sessions at the WCBC Winter Ladies Retreat last weekend at Riverbend Retreat Center in Glen Rose! The theme for the weekend was "It's Tough Being a Women," and was based on the life of Esther, particularly Esther 4:14. So we built the 3 sessions around this theme and verse. We took a look into Esther's life to find hope for our own life. We found that even though life is tough, we can find hope in the fact that God made and gifted us for a specific purpose and gave us a support group in the body of Christ! We also talked about the importance of setting goals to help you fulfill God's purpose in your life. It was a joy to get to know and lead these women during this time. They had a great time playing the team-building games, getting to know one another better and just being kids again!

Mystery Camp

We spent the weekend out in Burnet at Camp Buckner for the AMBC Student Ministry Mystery Camp. We had a great time leading the students in 2 team-building sessions during the weekend! The first session was focused simply on getting to know one another. During this time we played several silly ice-breaker type games that helped break down barriers and foster unity. The second session focused on the theme for the weekend "Gifted," which was basically a focus on the fact that as Christians, we are each a part of the Body of Christ and have each been given spiritual gifts. During this time, we played several games that highlighted the topics of knowing who you are in Christ, discovering your spiritual gifts, using your gifts, and working together with the rest of the members of the Body of Christ to reach the ultimate purpose of sharing Christ with others and furthering God's kingdom. We had a blast and want to wish the AMBC Student Ministry a great 2009!

Winter Worship Retreat

We were priveleged to lead a team-building session at the AMBC Winter Worship Retreat this past weekend. During that time, we focused on setting individual and team goals for 2009. We played several fun hand, card and dice games that each emphasized an important topic related to goal-setting. Such topics included knowing your goals, making a plan and working together to achieve your goals, as well as not letting distractions keep you from reaching your goals. It was alot of fun seeing the adults getting to know one another better and acting like kids again!

Winkley Class

We had a great time conducting a team-building clinic on October 17 for the 1st grade class at Winkley Elementary. The children had fun playing games and learning a little bit about being a leader and being apart of a team. We hope they have a wonderful school year!

Worship Retreat

We had the privelege of conducting a team-building clinic for the AMBC Worship Ministry during their retreat at Highland Lakes Camp last weekend, September 5-6. It was a blast watching the adults participate in all of the games. They had a great time...it was like they were kids again! We want to wish the AMBC Worship Ministry goodluck this fall as they kick off their new Country Gospel Service!

Summer 2008

This summer has been a VERY productive one for Worthy of the Prize Sports Ministries. We started off the summer hosting the Anderson Mill Baptist Church Sports Camp. We averaged around 100 campers per night and had around 120 campers, 4 yrs. old-Completed 5th grade, total throughout the week...it was awesome! The campers had a great time learning basic skills in volleyball, basketball, baseball, soccer and cheerleading, as well as enjoying team-building games, concessions and a camp store! We look foward to next summer's camp, which will be held August 3-6. Cost will be $10/camper.

In July, we had a great time hosting the 2nd Annual Arlington-Martin Volleyball Team Camp. We had 41 volleyball players, ranging from Incoming Freshmen to Seniors, and they were a blast! Camp consisted of a combination of intense volleyball drills and competition, several fun team-building games, concessions and a camp store. Goodluck this season girls, we wish you the best! Next summer, Martin Volleyball Team Camp will be held July 27-29 at Arlington Courts. Incoming Freshmen will come from 11:00-1:30 and Returners will come from 2:00-5:00. If you sign up early, it will only cost $75 for Freshmen and $90 for Returners. Late sign-ups will pay an extra $10. Hope to see you there!

We are excited to report that we will be adding 2 more volleyball team camps next summer, including Plano High School and Katy-Taylor High School. We are hoping to add 3 more, for a total of 6 team camps in 2009. If you would like us to come out to your school, please let us know.

We ended the summer by hosting a team camp for the Lago Vista High School Cheerleaders. We had 20 cheerleaders show up and had a great time hanging out with the girls as they decorated signs and ate pizza. We finished the night with 2 hours worth of team-building games. We had a blast and want to wish the girls a great 2008-2009 school year! We would love to host a team-building clinic for your team, group, company, church, etc. Contact us if you are interested!