HEY CARDINALS NATION!

Welcome to our Athletics Department Newsletter. By subscribing, you will get any and all information about Concordia Athletics sent straight to your inbox every week. These will be going out every Monday.

Here’s what to expect in today’s newsletter:

• Blog

• Weekly Recap

• Quote of the Day

• Cardinal Toolbox

• Upcoming Events

• Read Time: ~ 5 minutes

🔨 BLOG

“DEVELOPING A PLAN IN ACCORDANCE WITH GOD’S WILL”

Our motto for everything that we want to do as Cardinal Athletics is “BUILD”. I’ll talk about it plenty throughout the years, but for our athletes, the idea of building is extremely relevant - both in their sport and in life.

Many people have a vision for the work that they want to do. Yet, they struggle with how to turn their life’s blueprint into actionable steps. They want results right away. They want immediate completion of the build. They forget that the building process is a journey.

God does not want us to adopt a spirit of fear about our future. He holds the power over our lives. This gives us the means to build a life for His glory. It inspires hope to build.

We read in Proverbs 16:9, “The heart of man plans his ways, but the LORD establishes his steps.” We are called to plan our ways! Develop a blueprint for using your unique talents and abilities to glorify God! Understand that God will guide your steps through that plan. And that plan is going to change.

But those that work in accordance to the LORD’s purposes are promised of His support and assistance through the build.

Now, one of the key principles to successfully putting your blueprint into actionable steps involves understanding and embracing the journey. The end result of what you are building isn't some immediate event. It’s a continual journey that stretches over many years. In the instance of building your life on Christ, it stretches over a lifetime.

It's like taking a road trip. You don't just suddenly arrive at your destination. Instead, you make your way gradually. You experience different terrains, weather conditions, and sometimes even take some detours.

It's the same with understanding the scope of your blueprint. The journey is filled with experiences, lessons, and redirections. You need to take this into account when developing a blueprint for your life.

Every worthwhile journey begins with a step. What matters is not the size of the step, but the direction. When your steps are aligned with God's Word and are directed to seek His kingdom and righteousness, they will lead you towards His plan. It's not about the speed!

It’s not about the destination you want to get to, but the joy of the build. It’s not about what you want to build, but about how it will come to glorify God. God uses the building process to mold us and to refine us. If the blueprint that you are developing just comes for your own self-absorbed reasons, it isn’t worth building.

Embracing the journey involves building resilience. We’ll talk about the mindset of the build in later chapters, but understand that you are playing the long game. You should not be striving to build something in just this week, month, or year. There will be obstacles along the way, but these should not deter you from pressing forward. Instead, they should strengthen your reliance on God. Rely on Him alone to establish the steps that need to take!

The building process requires patience. Just like a building isn't constructed in a day, your blueprint won't materialize overnight. It takes time to lay the foundation, to build the walls, to install the roof, and to add the finishing touches. The same is true for your life's blueprint. Patience isn't merely about waiting - it's about maintaining a joyous attitude while you wait.

These are all excellent qualities to develop in our athletes: embracing the journey, staying resilient, and practicing patience. It’s through the gift of athletics that we’re able to help mold our kids into kingdom builders for God’s glory.

- Coach T

💭 QUOTE OF THE DAY

🧰 CARDINAL TOOLBOX

My grandfather was a principal. This is something that he wrote for his students on their first day of school.

I think this is something that our student-athletes can get a lot out of. Give it a read:

⏪️ WEEKLY RECAP

Volleyball pulled out the brooms twice this week and got two sweeps! They’ve moved to 3-1 on the season. District play starts on August 31.

Football also had another successful scrimmage this past weekend on the road at San Antonio Castle Hills. They open their season this week on August 25th on the road against Cedar Park Summit.

‼️ UPCOMING EVENTS

VB @ Waco Live Oak: JV @ 5:00, V @ 6:00 Address: 400 S 4th St, Waco, TX 76706

VB vs Georgetown Grace Academy: JV @ 6:00, Varsity @ 7:00 Address: 500 Immanuel Rd. Pflugerville, TX 78660 (NOTE: This is at Zion Lutheran in Walburg NOT at our normal home gym!)

FB @ Cedar Park Summit: Starts at 7:30. Address: 100 N Vista Ridge Blvd, Cedar Park, TX 78613

🏅 LOOKING FOR MORE WAYS TO SUPPORT CARDINAL ATHLETICS?

If you are looking for more ways to follow along and support our athletes, here are a few more things we do:

1. Interested in Sponsoring an Edition of our Newsletter? Shoot an email to our athletic director [email protected] and he will point you in the right direction!

2. Follow us on Social Media. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for updates throughout the season!

We pray that your day is full of reminders of God’s love and faithfulness. May you faithfully build your life on Christ.

“But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in my weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” - 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

To God be the glory,

Coach T