When is the last time you did something for the very first time? I keep thinking about this question during our Lava Girl practices (the Lave Girls are simply the very best 8 and 9-year-old girl soccer team in the world). Everything about them is fresh and new and “first.” So far this month they’ve experienced a first practice with a new coach, a first game, a first time scoring goals, a first victory (fortunately they haven’t experienced their first defeat yet), their first time playing forward, and their first time playing goal-keeper. I’m proud of them—and I’m also challenged by all of their “firsts.”

I realize of course that as we age and mature we’ll have fewer firsts because the track of our life will be established and we’ll settle in to maintenance mode in many areas; however, for me, I want to make sure that today’s routines don’t become tomorrow’s ruts. I want to try something totally new and outside of my comfort zone so that I need to depend on God for my ultimate success. It’s good to master our occupations, and live in control of our time, but let’s never get to the place where our entire life and ministry can be run on autopilot. When we get to that place it’s definitely time to stretch ourselves and try something totally new—like maybe moving from goalkeeper to forward.