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12.04.2012

Roller Coaster


"How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me? Consider and answer me, O Lord my God; light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death, lest my enemies say, "I have prevailed over him," lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken. But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me." 
Psalm 13


These past 7-8 months have been a roller coaster for Matt and I.

Let's jump back about 8 months to when this all began. As you know Matt is going to play professional basketball. He signed with an agent back at the end of March and we have been waiting patiently for a call that a team wants to sign Matt. We heard many different things during the time after signing with his agent about where Matt would possibly play. Many different leagues and teams showed interest, from the NBA to Turkey, Holland, France, Cyprus, Israel, Poland, Ukraine, Bulgaria, and a few others. So you can probably imagine the excitement from both of us when we hear that Matt is getting looks from so many different places!

As months passed we began to grow more and more anxious about where Matt would play, and ultimately where we would be living for the next year. Matt would talk to his agent but none of the teams made any official offers. We actually had decided to officially accept a contract from a team in Holland, but the door was soon closed less than 3 hours later when we received a call that told us the team gave the offer to someone else. So obviously the Lord did not want us to be there! We continued to pray for God's will to be done, and for Him to place us where we could best serve Him.

As the overseas' seasons were growing closer we still did not have an official offer on the table. A lot of interest, but no contracts. So now you can really understand what we mean by this being a roller coaster! Every week a couple of new teams would be interested, and later that same week they would not make an offer. This was our life for about 5 months! (Also, during this time we were planning our wedding so you can imagine the madness.... lol)

In the beginning of September we decided to switch agents in hopes that someone else could get Matt a job. The new agent talked with some overseas teams but it was really too late, they had already finalized their rosters for the year. This is when the NBA Development league came into the picture. Matt had some interest from NBA teams and this led to interest from some NBADL teams. Matt's agent worked hard and got him into the NBADL draft where Matt was picked in the third round by the Rio Grande Valley Vipers! We were ecstatic! We were going to be in Texas (although still 9 hours from Dallas.. This state is huge!) and Matt was now going to be able to begin doing what he loves for a living!

This is where it gets really crazy. A week and a half into training camp Matt was released from the Vipers due to an overload of guards at camp and a few guys were being sent down to the Vipers from the NBA. So just when we thought the roller coaster had come to an end and things were going to settle down we are thrown right back through another loop.

Now Matt's name is in the available player pool for the D League and he is working out with the Texas Legends in hopes that they will sign him soon! (Prayers are appreciated!).

Now your probably wondering, "how have you remained sane through all of this?" Well.... we haven't haha. But I would like to share how we have grown in our relationship with Christ, and trusted in Him to get us through this trying time.

Throughout this process we have obviously had ups and downs, but one thing has remained the same, our faith, trust and hope in Jesus Christ! Within the last 3 years I committed my life to Christ and I can honestly say that it is the best decision I have ever made in my life. I have grown tremendously in my relationship with Jesus and without this relationship I would have been a total WRECK these last few months. When we give our lives to Christ we are not guaranteed a life without pain or suffering. But, we have a way to get through the hard times and come out on the other side with a stronger faith than before!

"More than that we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us" Romans 5:3-5

I have peace about our situation right now because I know it is in God's hands. The future and everything that is going to happen is in HIS hands. All we can do is continue to pray and put our faith and trust in the Lord. We are continuing to pray for God's will to be done in our lives. I am content in wherever He may lead us, whether it is with the Texas Legends, another team or if he has something different in mind all together. I know the Lord will always be with us and that gives me great comfort.

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" Philippians 4:6-7

I hope that by sharing our story I can give encouragement to others who are having a difficult time right now.  We know that if this is the worst thing that we have had to go through, then we consider ourselves extremely blessed!

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, those who are called according to his purpose" Romans 8:28

We appreciate all the support from our family and friends throughout this time. We are so thankful for all the prayers and encouragement we have received from everyone. 

"I love you, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies."
Psalm 18:1-3

3 comments:

  1. I am glad you shared this Rachel! I can relate to not knowing God's direction and feeling anxious while waiting! Your post is very encouraging!

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  2. I nominated you for a Liebster Award!

    ReplyDelete