What's Your Purpose?

(Satay Tour Team Asst. Coach Perry Hunter, Head Coach Kelly Combs, Asst. Coach Anthony Weston, and Asst. Coach Charlie Clary)

I am a basketball coach.  Thanks to John Bradley back in 1992, I was able to figure my purpose in life.  Coach Bradley was the Henryville boys' coach at the time and he asked me one day if I would be interested in coaching the freshmen that year.  I told him I had to think about that, at 23, that was going to be a huge decision.  Did he actually want me to be in charge of a group of young men?  Wow...I just didn't know.  I thought about it and decided I would give it a try.  Before I go any further, I want to apologize to those guys because I was a complete and total idiot that first year, and well...for a few years.

Even though I had figured out what my purpose was, I still didn't know how to really do that purpose, if that makes sense.  For anyone who thought I was intense or ridiculous the last few years, they probably would have called the police those first 1-10 years of my coaching career.  I knew what I wanted to do, but I didn't know how to do it.  Many of those players from those years have thanked me for all I did, and I usually apologize because I could have done better and I am not talking about just on the court..

That gets me to the last two years.  As I started to understand my purpose even more, I was starting to understand that purpose had to lead to more than just coaching basketball.  I wanted to reach more and different people through my faith.  Last fall, I applied to Athlete's in Action and a couple of other organizations and was accepted.

That acceptance and the process helped me to decide to resign as boys' basketball coach at Henryville.  I knew there was something that I should be doing greater than what I was doing.  So thankfully to some, I resigned.f  I am not putting down being a varsity basketball coach.  So many men and women are doing a job that is under the microscope by many who wouldn't even consider coaching an elementary team.  Asked by friend Matt Denison the other night if I was finished being a head coach, I told him I just didn't know.  I will be coaching in the near future, but at what position and where is still unknown to me.

Now I am with Athlete's in Action for a basketball tour.  We are going somewhere to play that it is so sensitive, I am not allowed to tell anyone specifically where it is.  If you know me close enough, you will know where it is, but it is something I am really looking forward to.  As we finish training camp and prepare to fly out this week, I am excited.

My wife, Kristi, may be one of the most supportive wives I know.  "Honey, can I go to Eastern Europe and work camps?"  Kristi: "That's a great opportunity, you can't pass it up".  "Honey, can I go to Iceland and work camps?"  Kristi: "How cool, of course you can".  "Honey, can I go with Athlete's in Action for a tour to Southeast Asia?"  Kristi: "I will help you in any way I can."  Now my wife isn't exactly a pushover, in fact, she is the one who keeps, ok, tries to keep my humble.  She is able to say things that keep things in perspective, to keep me focused on my purpose.

I want to thank everyone who has helped me with support on this trip.  I plan on writing a journal and taking lots of pictures to share with you because I want you to feel that you are part of this trip.  I will continue to blog here as much as I can the next few weeks. 

But I think I finally have figured out not just my purpose, but how to go about doing it.  And that realization has come from so many helpful people that I may not be able to ever get around thanking everyone in the manner it deserves.