Thursday, May 15, 2008

Hitting the Court

Tonight will be my first real venture 'out into the community'. That is, beyond church.

I've joined a local netball team and tonight is our first match of the season after having a bye to start off with.

I shouldn't be, but I'm actually a little nervous. Partly because I haven't played netball for 10 years and I'm hoping my team don't think they've got a real doosy playing with them. I used to play when I lived in Albany and the competition was...well...what you could expect in an all-female league. Bitchy at times! I took up basketball a few years ago in Perth and quit after a couple of games because I just couldn't stand it. It was a Christian competition yet some of the girls were the most unsportsmanlike I had ever met....worse than in Albany and we were just kids then. During my first game of basketball, one of my teammates got shoved over so roughly she hit her head on the floor and was only semi-conscious after that. Then the next game, we overheard the opposition saying how small we looked and that they were predicting we'd be crap. Let me state again that this was a CHRISTIAN basketball competition.

I'm hoping this competition will be different. I know there are always going to be those who take it WAY too seriously but hopefully most will just see it as a night out with the girls and a bit of fun.

So why am I playing netball again after 10 years? Well, firstly because I enjoy the game itself and secondly, it's a good chance to meet other women outside of church. Tonight will be a chance for me to walk my talk and be a Christlike example on the court. And yes, I'm hoping that I may build close relationships with those in my team and share Christ with them. Just blogging about it makes me a bit scared because who am I to think I can bring the good news to them? But I'm not alone. I'm not going out into the community because it's trendy, rather because it's a command from Jesus himself.

So please pray that I will conduct myself in a manner worthy of Christ tonight. In the past, I have been a bit of an aggressive player, which is fine, but I want to make sure my aggression is used positively. Win or lose I don't care, I just want to enjoy my sport with the others. It's only a game!

8 comments:

bek said...

ooooooo I love netball!!

My doctor isn't letting me play while pregnant though, so I'm missing it and hate sitting on the sidelines!

Hope it went well last night! Enjoy yourself!!

Middo said...

how'd it go?:)

Anonymous said...

Wow that was an interesting Christian league you were in.

How did the game go?

Sarah said...

We lost 36-24 and I was so stuffed by the end of it. I'm still sore! I guess that's what I should expect after not exercising for over a month. But it was very enjoyable. Stay tuned for a blog post about it :)

Scott Parker said...

I haven't played sport since primary school; years ago. As long as you can enjoy yourself, whether you win or loose doesn't matter, and the sore muscles with fade.

Mark Edwards said...

I am playing indoor beach volleyball again, after a break of about 5 years....getting older has forced me to take it up again. I also coach Auskick...and that is like herding cats and is very tiring.

As to screaming, I say go for it...see it as your release! :) (Only joking!..a little!!)

bek said...

I bet I know what Christian league it was, because I refuse to play there too! Played both netball & bball there and not only are the players unsportsman like, but so are the umpires!!

Sarah said...

Screaming?

I don't do much of that at netball but when the tennis season starts again maybe I can be the next Maria Sharapova and take up grunting instead :)