Over the last two years, I have felt a call to enter the mission field. More specificially, sports mission, and even more specific; basketball missions. I believe that you can use sports to share your faith and touch and help people that you cannot do without sports. I get a fulfillment out of that type of activity that I have never felt before in a work place.
Sure, I enjoy teaching and I am a basketball coach. It would not matter if I coach or not, it is what I am, but I would love to work full time in the basketball mission field. The opportunities are there for me. I could go work full time on staff with FCA or Athletes in Action, both have asked. There is much about those jobs I would love to do except one thing.
That one thing is to raise my own funds. In other words, I have to raise my salary, retirment and money for health insurance. For me to make 40-50 thousand, I would have to raise over $100,000 from people who would be willing to support me. I just cannot do it. I cannot ask for friends and family to help pay my salary. Yes they do it now, but it is tax money, it is not so direct and personal.
Also, I have taught for 15 years. I have a Masters in Education +30 hours which means that I would take a pretty good pay cut to quit my job, or retire, and do the sports mission thing. How can I do that to my family? We have a mortgage, car payments, and two little kids. I would take a risk of losing what we have and maybe even forced to downsize (which I do not think would be bad).
Finally, I would like to work for sports missions or even work at a church, but would they allow me to continue coaching? I have heard in these situations that often they do not want you involved with one school and that it would take time away from your job that you are paid to do.
I do not feel that I am in a bad job and I am not miserable. I think it might make it easier to take that jump if I were, but I feel that I am still in a place that I have been called as a coach and teacher, or am I?
