Threes

The team played a great game last night. We had superb pitching performances, solid defense and consistent hitting.

It could have been the "milk-man" uniform we wore last night. The white jersey with white pants that have blue piping down the side. Even though it looks similar to a milk-man or a county jail inmate's garb, I think it looks cool and so do the boys. 

Whether you are the head coach, assistant coach or a parent in the stands we all deal with "coaching up" our own kid. As parents we all face similar issues in this area.

Coaching/teaching your kid is full of ups and downs. Some may argue more downs that ups.

Parents just want what is best for our kids.

• We want them to do well because they can. 
• We want them to do well because we know they will enjoy it so much more. 
• We want them to succeed because we don't want them to endure the pain of failure.

However, coaching /teaching our kids is often received by them as criticism. Our kids get defensive and hurt (at times) when we correct them. I believe that deep down our kids really just want to please us (and play ball).

Last weekend in one of the games I yelled out "Let's go threes" from the third base coaches box.

Weird.

Really weird.

My number in high school was 33 (which happens to be my sons number). When I heard myself say that, it brought back memories of my coach and parents saying that exact phrase.

Has time flown by so fast that I now have my own "threes" that I'm coaching up?

Coach Coen, my high school coach, was the first to call me "threes". Looking back, I can appreciate what a great coach he was. He always expected us to play our best. But he never was degrading or rude in his coaching style. Of course he got angry and intense at times but that is different than just being plain mean.

Coach Coen will never know the impact the life lessons, he taught me over 20 years ago, has had in my life. Or the fact that I use the same lessons he taught me when I coach my players.

I am a big believer in positive affirmation. You will have whatever you say. Telling kids they are great, that they are improving, that you are glad they are on your team really builds kids up. Certainly there are teaching moments that you have to correct kids. Having laid the foundation of positive words in their life helps those times of correction.

Without positive affirmation, coaching points are received as a never ending list of items the kid is struggling with.

Last weekend, from the third base coaches box, I was reminded just how important it is to tell my kids that I am proud of them. And yes, even that I love them.

Telling the Greatest Story Ever Told Through the Greatest Game Ever Played...

There is no better example than this one....It is God himself speaking:

2 Peter 1:17
And he received honor and glory from God the Father when God's glorious, majestic voice called down from heaven, "This is my beloved Son; I am fully pleased with him."

Don't you think Jesus already knew he was pretty good? If anyone could have gone without positive affirmation from his father it was Jesus Christ.

Regardless, of whether or not you believe in Him as the savior of the world, you at least  have to give Him credit for being a prominent historical figure. After all, He has two major holidays honoring him. And rather than just having a photo calendar of Himself , the entire way we mark history is relative to when he was born.

Bottom line: His dad spoke words of affirmation into His life in front of other people.

Try it with your own kids. It's kind of weird at first but after a while you will get used to it.