Valley View Online

Koehne's Corner
January 18th 2019

At this point I've lost count of the number of times I've been asked if I miss coaching. As most of you know I coached high school basketball for 25 years and this is my first year not on the sidelines. For me it goes even a little deeper than that. My first year of coaching was my first year out of college. I played basketball for four years in college, which had followed four years of playing in high school. But, in all actuality, it goes back to when I played for my school for the first time in 5th grade. So the really strange part for me is that this is the first time I haven’t been part of a basketball team since 1981.  

So the answer is yes; I miss coaching. I miss the competition. I miss the community within a team.  When you have been a part of something for the past 37 years it becomes a part of you. The real question for me is not do I miss it, but did I make the right decision. I believe that the answer to this question is also yes.

There is a story in 1 Kings 19 about the prophet Elijah. Elijah had run away and hidden in a cave. God had called him to do some things he really didn’t want to do. I love these verses. 
 

“The Lord said, 'Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.' Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, 'What are you doing here, Elijah?'” 1 Kings‬ 19:11-13‬ (NIV)‬‬

God’s voice isn’t always the loudest one. But when we listen it can be clear and distinct for us. I am not suggesting we'll all hear God’s voice in an audible way like Elijah did, but we need to learn to listen for it and distinguish it from the other noise. God made it clear to me that it was time for me to stop coaching basketball, for now. He has some other plans in store for me and my time. It wasn’t easy but I am trying to listen and God is showing me every day why it was the right decision. What is God trying to speak into your life? What are you doing to know His voice? My challenge for all of us this year is to listen for God's calling and guidance in our lives and to follow Him, even if it means changing a part of who we are in the process.