EMAIL 1
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Subject Line: Navigating Life and Our Kid’s Sports
Dear Parents,
For many of you, your life and family calendar are probably filled with carting your kid(s) around to practices, games, tournaments, and matches of all different types. It can be a lot of fun but, if we’re honest, it can be exhausting too. As a parent, you may need to take a little time to evaluate what a life overrun with sports is doing to your kid(s), their development, and their faith.
If your family is into sports or you think that someday they might be, this month’s resources for parents will help you better lead your family as you navigate all the things that come with being involved in, when it comes to your kid’s athletics. As your Children’s Ministry leaders, we want to come alongside you, equip you, and minister to you and your family as your kid(s) are engaged in sports. So, make sure that you check out The Online Parenting Class and the Toolbox Resource we have for you that is entitled Huddle Up. These resources will give you an opportunity to have a little fun with your kid(s) as you talk together about the role sports play in your family’s life, how faith can integrate with sports, and encourage your kid(s) to grow in their faith through sports while also living out that faith on the field of competition.
To watch this month’s Online Parenting Class video, click the link below.
[ INSERT LINK TO ONLINE PARENTING CLASS VIDEO ]
You can do this! We are always here for you if you need us.
Cheering you on,
[INSERT LEADER’S SIGNATURE HERE]
EMAIL 2
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Subject Line: Let Them Play
Dear Parents,
We all know that we live in a culture that is saturated with sports. We watch sports, we talk about sports, and many of your kid(s) play some level of sports or have friends who do. Being on a team or learning how to master athletic skills can be incredibly beneficial for our kid(s). They learn so much, meet new people, and get to experience the thrill of competition. But often, being involved in sports can become a chore for your kid(s). How can you lead them to enjoy their experience and just play? Remember, your job as a parent is NOT to push your kid(s) to be the best they can be in sports but to use sports as a vehicle to help them become the men or women God has created them to be. It can be a heck of a journey, but if you can keep it all in perspective, sports can be a place where your kid(s) grow in their faith and live that faith out in incredible ways.
Check out this month’s blog article, “Church & Sports—Finding Balance,” and the Toolbox Resource entitled Huddle Up for some much-needed encouragement, some conversation cues to open up discussion, and some practical ideas as to what you can do as their parent to help your kid(s) learn how they can navigate sports, especially in relation to the church and their faith.
And if you haven’t watched this month’s encouraging Online Parenting Class Video, you still have time. To read the blog article or watch the video, click on the links below.
[ INSERT LINK TO M2P PARENTING BLOG ARTICLE ]
[ INSERT LINK TO M2P ONLINE PARENTING CLASS VIDEO ]
We are in this together! Let us know if there is ever anything we can do for you or your family.
Praying for you as you lead at home,
[INSERT LEADER’S SIGNATURE HERE]
M2P September KIDS Parent Video Script
For most of us as parents, we get to a point in life where we think, OK, I wonder if my kid is going to like sports. Sports are a prominent part of our culture, other families around us are a part of sports, maybe we were involved in sports as we grew up, and it’s often kind of in our face in a lot of different ways. We have these moments where we either talk to our kids about signing them up for a lesson or a team, or we just do it. It seems like most of us believe that there is an inherent benefit for our kids in playing sports, so we want to see if they like it and decide to make sports a part of their lives.
Then, if our kids stay involved in sports, there begin to be layers of things that we have to figure out and deal with. Sports can quickly begin to dominate the family calendar. Sports can trigger lots of emotions, good and bad. And hey … let’s be honest … we, as adults, can get wrapped up in the emotion of what it means for our kids to play sports.
As someone who grew up in a big sports family, as a parent who has helped my kids navigate sports for a long time, and as someone who has been a high school coach for almost 25 years, I’d love to offer you some suggestions for when it comes to leading your kids through their sports journey.
First … Don’t overload your kids when it comes to sports. Don’t fill their calendar with lots of commitments from teams at an early age. Kids still need to be kids. You may think that you could have the next Michael Jordan, Tom Brady, or Lionel Messi on your hands, but chances are you don’t. Sorry to burst that bubble. Like I mentioned, I’ve been a high school coach for over two decades, and I have seen way too many kids get burned out from sports by the time they get to late middle school or early high school. Don’t let sports overly dominate your family calendar as your kids are young.
Similarly, when it comes to sports, let them play. What I mean by that is don’t put too much pressure on your kids to be great. Just let them be a kid and enjoy the moments. So many teenagers and young adults are crumbling today because of the pressure they feel to perform, and this often starts at an early age in the area of sports. Do whatever you can to help your kids enjoy what they are a part of instead of looking at it as a chore or something that weighs them down. Remember that you’re not their coach… unless you are. And, side note, if you are, keep the coaching for the field or the court, not the car ride or the kitchen table. I heard a great encouragement years ago from a guy named Ted Williams and the Change the Game Project. He encourages parents that the only thing you need to say to your kids after an athletic contest is this. “I love to watch you play.” That’s it. Don’t talk about their technique, what they did right or wrong, what they could’ve done better, or anything when it comes to their performance. Just let them know that as their parent, you love watching them play and you are proud of them.
And when it comes to faith, find ways to help your kids begin to integrate their faith into their sports at an early age. I can remember being in the car when my kids were going into practice or tryouts or something, and I would ask my kids if I could pray for them as they headed into event. I would ask them what I could pray about, and then we’d pray.
Finally, talk to your kids about what it looks like to live out their faith on the field or on the court. That can be as simple as encouraging the other kids, being a good listener and follower when it comes to the coaches, and being kind in the midst of their competition. Kids can learn to do their best and compete while still showing respect to their opponents. Help your kids internalize what Paul says in ________: Whatever you do, in word or deed, do it all for the glory of God. If our kids can learn to truly play for God instead of themselves (or for you), they can have a tremendous impact on those around them.
Finally, think about what you want to celebrate when it comes to how your kids experience sports. Maybe don’t focus on celebrating how many goals they scored, shots they made, plays they made, or whether they won. Maybe celebrate that time, or they helped another kid up off the floor when they fell down, or when they encouraged someone who was struggling. If we can celebrate the way they are growing in their character instead of how well they perform, maybe their character will develop in a deeper way than it would otherwise.
Sports can be a big part of your family’s life, and the experiences can be great. They also can take over and dominate and send us all down a worldly path that leads us away from a real faith in God. So take some time to think through how you want to help your family, and specifically your kids, experience sports in a good and healthy way that helps them grow in their faith and not be drawn away from their faith.