Snow and Basketball

It was this weekend some 24 years ago that we loaded up and took off to the midget league state basketball tournament without a care in the world.

And only one word on our minds, "Domination!"

As we arrived at the hotel, we piled out of our parents' minivans onto the asphalt of our new home for the weekend, the Super 8 Hotel.

The team gathered for a pre-game snack and went over the game plan for Friday night's duel with the host team, the Villa Rica Wildcats.

After the hard fought victory we did what every little league team does, celebrate. With a trip to the world's greatest post-game cuisine, Pizza Hut.

As parents scurried all of us kids back into our hotel rooms we were scheduled to play the next morning in the semi-final matchup of the state tournament. But we were certainly caught off guard by what happened next.

No amount of coaching could have prepared us for this. It wasn't about defense or easy baskets!

Now it was survival!

We woke up to what appeared to be 10 foot tall mounds of white powder scattered across that asphalt landscape as far as our eyes could see!

And while the kids were screaming with excitement, parents were cringing with fear. Nobody was prepared for this. Not enough clothing. Not enough money. Not enough food. But we had plenty of time.

So we put on our uniforms, sweatpants, and hoodies with plastic bags over our shoes and trekked out into the snow-ridden landscape of parked cars, sidewalks, and street signs firing off one snowball after another.

While the players sat in hotel rooms to thaw out frozen fingers and toes, parents conjured up a plan to remedy "Destination Not Going Home." So the older siblings went to the local Ingles supermarket to bag groceries in exchange for food for our families.

In a world without cell phones and power outages all throughout the region there was certainly a heightened state of nervousness among parents meshed with the carefree spirits of their kids. Surprisingly enough not one single child went missing nor any parent arrested for being pent up in a hotel for 5 days while we weathered the blizzard of '93.

By day 3, our excitement for the snow had turned to boredom and now as parents were reeling from the dread of their homes being damaged they were being forced to entertain the kids as well. Talk about a tall task to bear!

While the state tourney had become an afterthought, I will say this and move on. We returned the following weekend with "redemption" on our minds (we were last year's runner-up) to face off against a supremely talented Ft. Stewart team. We lost. Still bitter. Enough said.

While that weekend and the subsequent days of processing the events of basketball, a blizzard, little cash flow, and concern for our homes have been engraved in our minds, maybe there's something more to consider.

We as kids were able to be carefree because our parents were responsible for our care. They let us play in the snow, kept us warm in our hotel rooms, fed us meals from the groceries our brothers had retrieved.

And here we are some 20+ years later, deliberating over significant decisions that we need to make, wondering if the world is going to come crashing down on us. And our Father is trying to say, "I've got this!"

No, it won't always go as planned. No, we may not have the best clothes, the most expensive gadgets or toys, eat at the fanciest restaurants, or run in some elite circle of acquaintances. But He does make this promise, "I will provide."

So whether it snows or rains on your little parade, remember, there's a good, good Father watching over us and caring for us in every circumstance of your life.

Whether you feel stranded on an island of self-pity or grief. Or whether you're living among the rainbows and cloudless days without a care in the world. He's there. He will not abandon you.

And maybe just maybe we will notice His presence and be more grateful for all that He's doing for us. But more importantly what He's wanting to do in us.