My 2013 Word

Last year my word was JOY! And what an awesome year it was! You can read about my 2012 word and download our free "find joy in the journey" printable here, go here for my 2012 highlights and then download our "find joy in the journey: how 12 women could face tomorrow just because He lives" ebook, a direct result of what God showed me on my 2012 journey to find joy, despite my circumstances!

This year God gave me a very different word. REACH. He is calling me to reach the nations for Christ, one sports camp at a time!

As you may or may not know, Worthy of the Prize is first and foremost, a sports ministry. We run volleyball team camps all summer long, partnering with high school teams to get them ready for their upcoming season. And after many years of running evangelistic sports camps for kids, we have written a sports camp manual for churches and mission organizations, giving them everything they need to run their own evangelistic sports camps in their community or on mission. Most recently, we have partnered with J316 Ministries to send evangelistic balls to orphans and kids in poor villages across America and around the world, with the hope that we will one day be able to follow up with evangelistic sports camps in those areas.

Because God blessed us with two baby boys, just two years apart, and because we have moved twice in two years, this mission has been somewhat on hold. This is actually why I branched out into other areas of ministry (things I could do from home), causing us to grow tremendously. And I am SO thankful for the glory God has brought to His name through those ministries.

BUT...I am thrilled that He is allowing me to return to my first love...sports ministry!!! And that He is giving me the GO ahead to pursue those ministries full force this year!

Will you join us?

Happy 2013, friends! May God get all the glory!!!

Go here for more information on the One Word movement and how to get involved.

About the Author: Erin Vick Franklin is the founder and director of Worthy of the Prize. Erin has a BBA in Marketing and Management from TCU and a Masters of Christian Education in Church Recreation from Southwestern Seminary. She is a published, award-winning author and poet. Purchase her book Worthy of the Prize Sports Camps: A Church's Guide to Implementing an Effective, Community-Reaching Christian Sports Camp to be used as an outreach tool for your church or mission organization, and her ebook find joy in the journey: how 12 women could face tomorrow just because He lives for inspiring stories of women who found overwhelming joy despite their circumstances . Erin is the wife of A, a Worship Pastor, and a work-at-home-momma to 2 crazy little boys, a and e.

A Legacy of Love

I would like to give a shout out to my high school volleyball coach, Joni McCoy, who was recently inducted into the Texas Girls Coaches Association Hall of Fame!!!

An honor so earned and deserved. It was truly a privilege to play for and coach with her all of those years.

This is the poem I wrote for her Reunion/Retirement party 7 years ago...WOW!! Has it really been that long?

Slow down, time. ;)

A Legacy of Love

By Erin Vick Franklin

A legacy of love

Is forever written on our hearts

 And the words will always be

Sweet memories of our days together

And the love that we continue to share

The faint tug on our hearts

Of days gone by

Remind us of that time

When we could conquer the world

So long as we were together

Our fearless leader, tried and true

The Real McCoy

Stood by our side through everything

The victories and the defeats

The laughter and the tears

Life and love

And all that we encountered along the way

She believed in us more than we believed in ourselves

Looking back

It’s just too good to be true

It’s as if it was a dream

And she made it all come true

For this we are forever grateful

 In all of life we know

There will never be another McCoy

Another me, another you

Another time such as this

But one thing remains to be true

These are the days we’ll remember forever

Congratulations, Coach McCoy! We love you! :)

These are the girls from "my years" who were at the retirement celebration - members from the 1995 State Runner-Up and the 1996 State Championship teams! We played together in the exhibition games that day and had a blast re-living the "glory days." Love you girls!

2011 Ministry Recap-- What a Year!!!

Well, I said you would not hear from me again until 2012 but I also said that I reserve the right to pop in again if I forgot something...so here I am! :)

As I reflect back over the past year, I am pretty much in awe of what God has done through this little ministry of ours and I wanted to share it with you.

Here are a few of the highlights--

1. I had the opportunity to speak at the FCA {Fellowship of Christian Athletes}girls breakfast last spring, where I talked with the girls about "worth." We discussed the difference between how the world measures our "worth" and what God says about our "worth." Of course I used fun team-building games to get my point across, which they loved! ;) The girl that spoke at the FCA end of the year banquet actually said it was her favorite event of the year!

Here is a copy of the poem that I shared with the girls. I have used it over and over again when speaking to teenage girls and young women-- but really it applies to women of any age.

Feel free to download, print and share it! Go here to get your copy.

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

2. Sarah {my sister, Director of WOTP Volleyball} and I ran 4 high school volleyball team camps this summer, giving us a chance to not only prepare the teams for their upcoming season but to impact the lives of around 125 girls and several coaches, teaching them what it means to have a good attitude, to work hard and to be a team player, while pointing them to Christ!

3. At the end of the summer, Big A and I attended the MOPS {Mothers of Preschoolers} National Convention for the 3rd year in a row, where we sold a ridiculous amount of products, including our 2011 {mops mom} shirts...

and several of our popular matted prints designed for us by 517 Creations, including the {Blessings} print, based off of Laura Story's song, Blessings. Go here and listen to her song if you have not heard it. It will change your life.

**We added the scripture reference because it really compliments the song. Lyrics are from Laura's song, not the Bible.

Download your copy here.

It was absolutely incredible to hear the stories from the women at the conference {in addition to the ones we have heard online} about how this song/print has impacted their life in times of trial. I had the privilege of speaking to tornado victims, women who had experienced miscarriages, women whose husbands had lost their jobs, women who lost loved ones and women whose loved ones were struggling. The list goes on.

What an amazing opportunity to minister to these women in their time of need.

4. I had the opportunity to counsel kids at our local {FCA} "Fields of Faith" event where around 1000 were in attendance and over 200 prayed to receive Christ!!! This event took place at 650+ locations around the country on the same night. Just think if all of the other locations had similar numbers! Unbelievable!

5. My book was published this fall!!! It is overwhelming to think back over the process of how this all came about. It has been a long road and several years since God gave me the vision for these camps and this manual. It is still hard for me to believe that it happened and is actually now in print and available for purchase.

My prayer is that every church/mission organization will have the opportunity to use this guide to implement an evangelistic sports camp for kids as a community-outreach or on mission. It is so easy to run, just like buying VBS {Vacation Bible School} materials and implementing one at your church. You just need someone to coordinate the details. Consider buying one {and giving it to the ministry leaders} for your church to use Summer 2012. 

Purchase your copy here and I will even sign it for you! :)


6. I had the privilege of not only going into partnership with Josh Hamilton's company Scripture Art Designs, but of posting this incredible story about him and the impact he has on my friend Payton {an 8 year old baseball player with cystic fibrosis} and the lives of those he comes in contact with.

7. We played a small role in helping bring 11 children home to their forever {adopting}families through our {Chosen Child} Adoption Program, with more on the way! I look forward to sharing their "gotcha" stories over the next few weeks. Email me at worthyoftheprize@yahoo.com if you need help raising $ for your adoption. We are changing up the program slightly in 2012 and are looking for new families.

We also played a small part in rescuing "Brady" from a mental institution in Eastern Europe {and uniting him with his forever family}, where he was sent after being abandoned at birth because of his down syndrome.

These are just a few of the things that God did through Worthy of the Prize in 2011!!!

I can't wait to see what he has in store for next year!

And now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever! Amen. {1 Timothy 1:17}

{Coaches Corner}: 3 Things I Learned from the World Series + A SALE!!

So I have been in mourning the last few weeks...over the Texas Rangers World Series loss.

Seriously.

It brought back memories of when we lost the 1995 Texas 5A High School State Volleyball Championship...lots of similarities.

And I was once again reminded of these 3 things:

1. The best team does not always win.
2. It is always easier to be the underdog; the one with nothing to lose.
3. Sometimes, no matter what you do, it is simply not meant to be.

BUT...what a class act organization from the top down {management, players, coaches}! I am SO proud to be a Rangers fan! We will be back and I have no doubt we will bring the trophy home with us one of these days!

God has a way of bringing things full circle. Even though it was a devastating loss as a player in 1995, the team that was supposed to win it all {my senior year, last chance}, He allowed me to return to the 2005 Texas 5A High School State Volleyball Championship and win it, as a coach, 10 years later!

God is good. All the time. Try to remember that.

And if you are a volleyball coach, be sure to check out the HUGE SALE taking place on the Worthy of the Prize facebook page! ALL of our in stock volleyball products are 1/2 price + we are offering free standard {first class} shipping!

Need a banquet or Christmas gift for your players/coaches? These make great stocking stuffers, secret santa, Christmas, player/coaches gifts for any volleyball lover! We can ship immediately! First come first served!

Goodluck to those of you still in the playoffs! WIN IT ALL! :)

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!

2010 Summer Team Camps

Sarah and I ran 4 high school volleyball team camps this summer and they were a HUGE success!

Between Covenant Christian, Hyde Park Baptist, Martin and Seguin we had a total of 105 campers!! Wooohooo!

We had a wonderful time working with the players and coaches from each of these schools...we want to wish them a successful 2010 volleyball season...we are looking foward to next summer already!

We sold alot of Fit Bands and Fit Cards at each camp and as a result have been invited to set-up a table at 5 pre-season tournaments this fall and also have a lead on a potential store opportunity!

So exciting!

A BIG thanks to Sarah for all of her hardwork in setting up and running these camps with me!

If you want to get your team on the schedule for summer 2011, contact Sarah at worthyoftheprize@yahoo.com asap...our schedule fills up fast!

Volleyball Team Camp

I am pleased to report that our summer is filling up FAST with volleyball team camps!!

My sister Sarah has been working hard to confirm dates and secure teams, and she is doing a tremendous job!

At this point, it looks like we are going to have 4 high-school volleyball team camps in Summer 2010!

Don't worry....we still have a few spots open!

If you are the coach of an organized volleyball team and are interested in hosting Worthy of the Prize Volleyball Team Camp this summer, contact Sarah ASAP so that your team does not miss out!

Click here for the details!

To All The Coaches...

If you are a coach, you MUST read this, you will understand...hilarious! LOVE IT!

There is a thread on the JJ Huddle volleyball website in Ohio that is titled "I can't stand my daughter's coach." It has been pretty sad/funny with parents writing in talking about how bad some of their kid's coaches are. Coaches are writing in about how bad the parents are. Here is what one coach finally sent in. Pretty funny.

-I've been a coach for two decades and I want to let everyone here know...the PARENTS are right.

- I don't like your daughter.....so I put her on the bench.

- Your daughter IS better than all of the rest of my players, but I enjoy losing, so I put her on the bench.

- I definitely have favorites, your daughter is not one of them, in fact I hate her because she is so much better than the rest of the team that I am envious.

- Every loss is DEFINITELY my fault seeing that in practice I intentionally teach your daughter to shank balls, hit balls in the net, actively not communicate, serve balls out of bounds, and set a ball to a different location every time we touch it.

- It is also MY FAULT that your daughter is slow, fat, uncoordinated, short, lathargic, can't jump, and is completely un-athletic. I now realize it has ALWAYS been my responsibility to teach your daughter how to be an elite athlete despite YOUR poor gene pool.

- I am such an idiot for not realizing that everybody and everything in the world IS fair.

- I recently became sooooo much better as a coach because I began listening to all the feedback that the parents had to give me.....I don't know why I didn't listen to all of them a long time ago....my job would have been so much easier.

- I am so mean for holding your daughter accountable and responsible.What a jerk I am....I mean, how did it take me so long to realize it is NEVER your daughters fault....if all my other players would just get things right they would stop holding your daughter back from reaching her potential....I totally see that now!

- My mistake....I should definitely have kept your 5'3 daughter in the front row to block against the 6'3 outside hitter. If you had just told me the story about how she blocked that really big girl from Rhode Island at a YMCA Camp sooner, I would have known.

- I now realize what an idiot I am for benching your daughter for getting called for 7 ball handling errors....everybody knows that high school officials don't know a good setter when they see one....I should have definitely been more supportive and given her more of a chance....my mistake!

- Thank God your daughter is on my team to compensate for all my coaching deficiencies. She is TOTALLY responsible for the matches that we have won, and I now see that all our losses are due to my incompetence.

.- I am definately crippled as a coach.....I don't know why I haven't asked for your help sooner....I am sure you know bad coaching when you see it....I mean, your wealth of experience as Wal-Mart Manager speaks for itself.

By the way, have you "liked" my Worthy of the Prize Sports Ministries facebook page? We are at 800 fans! At 1000, there will be a BIG giveaway! Please "like" our page to help our ministry grow!

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!

Second Chances

I went home to Arlington this past weekend. What a wonderful thing...to go home! While I was there, I went to see my alma mater play volleyball with one of my best friends in the world, who was a high school volleyball teammate of mine. While talking, we were reminded of a dreaded day in our lives...the day we lost the 1995 5A State Championship game to a team we had already beaten 3 times that same season! In order to get to the state tournament, we had to beat the best team in the state, the defending state champions...and then upon arriving to the state tournament (we were the first team from our high school to ever make it to the state tournament by the way) we beat a team 15-0 in the semi-final game...and then we go and lose to a team we had already beaten 3 times! Crazy! It was just one of those crazy days when nothing went our way...we did not play so hot, the other team played the game of their lives, the referee missed a point for us because she spilled her coffee (that she was not supposed to have) all over the score table...the list goes on and on of things that went wrong...it was simply not meant to be...easier said than done right?

10 years later, I return to the state tournament as the assistant coach of my alma mater volleyball team! I should have been there as a player because every year they honor the team that won 10 years before! But instead, I am there as a coach...and my team wins! I received the silver medal as a player and then 10 years later I receive the gold as a coach! Crazy how things work out! Who gets a second chance like that?!!? I wonder what will happen in 10 years when I return to the state tournament as the assistant coach of the 2005 5A State Champions...

All this is to say...as I drove back to Austin last weekend...this story reminded me that we serve a God of second chances! Does that not give you great hope?!!? It does not matter who we are or what we've done, God LOVES us and wants to have a personal relationship with each one of us! Romans 5:8 says it like this, "God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us!" While we were still sinners...can you believe that God sent his son JESUS to die for you and me? And all we have to do is believe and we can have a personal relationship with Him and eternal life in heaven! It is a FREE gift...why not accept it?