And pray I did

Two weeks ago Ashley told me she wanted to quit gymnastics.

There were several factors playing into this.

She has had a hard time battling back from the shoulder injury that caused her to miss her big final meet for this season. Her best friend and team mate decided to transition to competitive cheerleading. And turning 13 this month, she is becoming increasingly aware of the social opportunities she sometimes has to miss because of her strict training schedule.

To be honest when she told me she wanted to quit, a part of me was happy.

Gymnastics is time consuming and expensive. Not to mention what it does to this mother's heart when I see her miss a connection and fly off a piece of equipment knowing the landing will hurt.

But a part of me was sad too.

She has always had the goal in mind of shooting for a college scholarship. It's been something she's talked about since she was little. Plus, unlike her mama, she is a great athlete that needs a lot of physical activity.

I've always told Ashley that to stay in gymnastics she had to want it for herself and that I would never push her. But I also believe that sometimes kids do no have the maturity to make decisions that will affect them down the road so as parents we do have to help navigate them.

It is a balancing act, is it not?

So, when she informed Art and me that she was ready to quit, we told her this could not be a snap decision and that she would not be allowed to jump right into cheerleading with her best friend. We would require her to take six months off from doing any sport to regroup. We also told her that she needed to pray about this decision before she quit and that we would be praying as well.

And pray I did.

I prayed that God would give me wisdom to see His perfect plan for this decision.

Two days later, we were out at a restaurant eating dinner. Across the room we spotted a girl that used to be at Ashley's gym. She had graduated and gotten a full scholarship to Michigan State University. When she saw us, she came over to our table to say hi and ask about Ashley.

We told her of Ashley's struggles right now with gymnastics.

Then the idea popped into my head to ask her if she would take Ashley out to dinner one day and talk with her. Not to talk her into staying with gymnastics but to talk to her about coming back from an injury, and making the decision to stick with it even when your friends quit. I also wanted her to be honest with Ashley about the sacrifices she made sticking with it all the way through college and whether or not those sacrifices were worth it.

Two days later, Ashley came home from meeting with the collegiate gymnast with a fresh vision and renewed commitment. Not only does she not want to quit but she wants to one day go to Michigan State.

Who knows what the future holds. But isn't it a beautiful lesson on the power of prayer?

I had specifically asked God to give me wisdom to know how to help Ashley navigate this decision and then we run into the very person who she needed to talk with.

Coincidence? I don't think so.