Empowered Faith: Navigating Life's ChallengesShembull

# A N X I E T Y As we approach competition, anxiety and worry often burden us. I’m sure you wonder how you’ll perform, how good your opponents are, how well we know the game plan, and more. While these are legitimate concerns, they can serve to hinder our performance as athletes. In Proverbs chapter 12 and verse 23 we read, “An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up.” Anxiety seems to coat our hearts with lead and turns our legs into limp spaghetti. Suddenly, doubt, confusion, and frustration weigh us down. All these lead to a performance on the court that’s far less than our best. There is also a great promise in this verse. It says that a kind word cheers one up. Encouragement is a powerful tool for the athlete. A simple word, a kind expression, a well-timed compliment can put a charge into a teammate or a coach, thus lifting the weight he’d been carrying. As you pray and prepare tonight, ask the Lord to help you see just the right moment to encourage your teammate who’s being assaulted by frustration, doubt, or discouragement. Your kind words could cheer him up and make a great difference in the competition.