For When You Need A Cheerleader

You...Yes, you.You, who spent over twelve hours watching basketball this weekend. Filling water bottles, finding uniforms, driving to tournaments. Watching coaches almost get technicals and seeing hearts that were hurt. It was tiring. It was long.And there was nobody saying thank you.You, who made that call to her and excitedly shared an opportunity to travel far and breathe life into the lives of women who wonder about their worth at all. You were excited to use your gifts for Him who made you."Maybe you should really be staying home," is all you got back.You, who prayed with a group, prayed in your closet, prayed for a miracle, and you have still not heard from your teenage son.But you remain faithful.You, who talked about a way that you thought the children might connect to a message more - an illustration that God have given you to make His Words clear to a bunch of ten year olds. You told him about it hoping to see a glimmer of excitement too.You got a nodding of the head and then he just turned around.You, who missed that party, that concert, that first dance, that field trip because of work commitments or you just plain forgot it.And you cannot forgive yourself.You, who changes the smelly ones, holds the crying ones, and reads story upon story or maybe even the same one. Again and again. By yourself.Because you are doing this alone.You, who works hard all week putting in extra hours, double checking that report, planting that extra vegetable, freezing that meal for a neighbor: preparing, planning, and providing for your family, making those calls, commenting on posts, writing those words.And in the end, it just seems to be expected.I am far from the days of playing volleyball for cheers or acting in a fifth grade play for applause, but I still need a cheerleader. I still long for the applause.Friend, you may not hear the applause verbally, but you can know it in our minds. We can feel it in our hearts. I wish I could come right through the screen and do a cheer for you (I am afraid I would pull a muscle and scare you.) So let me just tell you today:You matter.What you are doing is worth it.You are seen.And one day, the Greatest Cheerleader who would rather die than live without you will take his pierced hands from His Holy Robe and applaud.Let's join hands and cheer for each other!What fun thing can I cheer for you for and pray for you? Please tell me in the comments.  And if you have some creative ideas on how to cheer and encourage someone else, please share them in the comments and you might get chosen to be highlighted in a future post!