Spiritually Athletic

By Dr. April O'Neal Chestnut

A coach, athlete, parent of athletes, and fan, Dr. O'Neal Chestnut discusses how athletics helped her overcome challenges in her own life. Today in sports, the stress level is high for various groups and individuals in athletics. She shares her experiences in the athletic arena and how sports align with her faith and endurance on her Christian Journey. How to persevere and be resilient in your sport and life. The release of this book comes from a life and death circumstance, and with the uncertainty of what was going on in a faint, the Holy Spirit revealed to her serenity and the spiritual rim, and after the last faint, she uttered words. In the entire circumstance, she could fight and keep the faith. Many will be able to relate to the book and hope to be an uplift to the student-athletes, coaches, and everyone in the athletic arena through trials and tribulations.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Dec 16, 2022
• ISBN: 9781667881348

Book preview

Little League

Little League gave me some of the best years of my life. Softball in Montgomery, AL, was a big deal, especially in the league I played for. I played at the sportsplex right up the street from my house. Our family practically lived at the softball field. It all started with my oldest sister’s games, and I knew I wanted to play softball. The girls would be cheering and singing. She is a home run hitter. Scoot back, scoot back, scoot back! She was a home run hitter, a hotshot hitter, and a pitcher; she had a monster glove. When I say, monster glove, that means nothing got past her. She was an all-around great player who inspired me to follow her path. I think what I liked most about softball, at my young age, was getting on base and cheering.

I was always ready for games and practice, whether my game or my sisters’. I was always prepared to head to the field. Also, I enjoyed the concession stands, especially the popcorn in red and white paper containers. It almost tasted better than the movie theatre popcorn. I have to add that after the games, we received free small Cokes and Sprites. That was a big deal because I felt I had worked hard for it. I remember being five years old when I was on a team called the Pink Panthers. I was up to bat, and the crowd was screaming in the background, cheering us on. Surprisingly, I was not nervous on my first at-bat in life, but I’d seen my sisters play so much that I knew I was on the same dirt they are typically on, and I just needed to get on base. I was focused on getting on base by any means necessary. The coach at the time was the pitcher, and the league was called coach pitch. At this time, the bases were loaded, and the coach started to pitch.

I was excited to bat, and I knew one thing—I was getting on base. With my shirt and pants fitting large and a helmet hanging on my head, I stepped up to the plate. I was focused and ready; besides, I had seen my older sisters play all the time. I could do what they did. The coach pitched a ball. When I say ball, I mean a terrible pitch that you should not swing toward, but at that age, it was difficult to decipher. My mission was to get on base. It was a ball nearly on the ground, but I did not care. I went down swinging like I was golfing and hit the ball hard. I put my bat down quickly on the ground and took off running. As I was running, I shifted my helmet back to the center to make sure it was on correctly. There was laughter amongst the adults because I went golfing at a softball game, but my and the crowd excitement was over the top. I did what I had to do to get on base. I high-fived my coach, adjusted my helmet, and felt great. I hit my teammates in, and I was excited, and that is when my dad knew I was determined. Oh, the joy of little league sports!

Since I was little, I have been playing sports and have always loved each sport I have played. I played softball, basketball, volleyball, track, and bowling. Athletics taught me discipline, control, self-regulation, how to handle the ups and downs of games, how to stay in shape, how to push through, and how to step up to the plate during challenging times. I do not think I can list all that sports have taught me, but I can relate much of my life to sports. The overall game and concept of sports have many similarities to life, life’s journey, and how to overcome obstacles in life.

I remember training physically and mentally as an athlete and working on basic sport-specific skills and drills. Each time I practiced, I aimed to improve my game in all aspects to prepare for the competition. Sometimes, I would not know how I did something during the game, but my training helped me endure and compete in athletics on another level. We have good and bad seasons in life and have to overcome challenging circumstances. My relationship with God has helped me in this game called life. Spiritually Athletic is about athletics, how athletics and sports are similar to life situations, and how we must use our spiritual muscles to make it through this game we call life. There will be a lot of imagery from real-life game scenarios that I have been a part of as a coach, athlete, spectator, and fan. Spiritually, you must pray, read the Bible, and do much more to stay connected to Christ, to grow and help you in this life. Through this book, I will share how my life, my spiritual walk, and athletics are similar in many ways.

I believe that Jesus Christ died for our sins, and He rose so we can have everlasting life, so when I define spiritually, it is the Holy Spirit within that is impacted. To be Spiritually Athletic is to strengthen and train your spirit to defeat the enemy, its tactics, and obstacles in life. Athletics taught me about life and how to handle challenges, but my spirit, which is connected to Jesus Christ, allowed me to overcome and persevere in life.

Is Life A Game

Since a very young age, I’ve heard that life is not a game, and there is an old cliché that says, Life is not a game. —Unknown author. Life is beautiful, and when I wake up every morning, I say good morning to my Lord and Savior because He allowed me to see another day. I understand that life is short, and tomorrow is not promised, so you should not play around with your life. You should take life seriously and strive to make the best decisions with the Lord’s guidance. As a child of God, you cannot do just anything in this world and expect there to be no consequences. You can create self-inflicted pain through your choices, which can be uncomfortable. In that regard, life is not a game. However, we can learn a lot about life and how to endure and overcome obstacles through the game of sports. We can implement strategies from the sports world to help us grow in life and spiritually too. I see life as an athletic competition, or, in simple terms, a game. This is because we must have the tools to prepare ourselves to make it through life and the game. For me, a game means competition between two opponents on a court or field, and each team or individual there to win or reach their goal. No matter what sport you play, you compete against someone or something. In life, we wake up every morning and do not know what the next day may bring. The only sure thing is Jesus. We must battle with the events and circumstances that come with life, whether self-inflicted or derived from unknown forces. We must figure out how to navigate challenging times while still moving forward. Spiritually, When I think about our opponent, I think about the Bible verse:

Ephesians 6:12 states, For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

We must be prepared for battle each day and ensure we have the training, endurance, and mental toughness to make it in and out of various seasons in our lives and through the unknown forces within those seasons. In sports, you