What If? - Mariah Janda

What if? Every single person in this room has experience of what if? From something, oh, yeah. From something as small as if I don't, what if I don't go to class or skip class? Which I'm not advising you to do that, please don't. I, yeah. Anyways, or what if my life didn't turn out the way it did? I want to share three different personal experiences with you and show you the lesson of God's goodness that I've learned through them. One of the first instances I remember asking, what if was in my freshman year of high school? That season started like any other, and I was excited to start playing in high school, but the more the season went on, the more I started to lose the love for the game. Now I won't go into specifics, but the environment that the coach created was not the best, and many girls were not happy with how she treated different players. Though I don't know how much you guys know about different volleyball seasons in high school, but a player is able to play for their school and a club. That year I was going to be trying out for two different club teams, and I remember driving from my mom to the second one, and asking her what if I don't make either of the teams? I was so not, I did not believe in myself at all, and so I had to us that. Second instance I remember asking, what if was during my senior year of high school? It was right before COVID and my mom had gathered us around to talk to the family. She then told us that when she went to the doctor earlier that week for a mammogram, they found a lump. This meant that she had fishly had been diagnosed with breast cancer. Thankfully, she had that mammogram, and it was caught early, and my mom has not had a spot since. But what if she didn't have that mammogram, or what if her appointment was late, and the cancer grew? The final instance of what if was a summer before I got here. My dad had not been breathing right, and we knew he needed to go to the doctor. The next day he'd come back from his appointment and end up having to move his truck so we could get out of the garage. We have a small garage, so when I'm home, I park in the garage, he parks by me. Anyways, when coming back from his car, because he just parks it on the street, he got a call from the doctor, and immediately they said he needed to go to the ER, because he was breathing so heavy from just walking out to his car and back. So I drove him and met my mom at the ER. That was really scary. Didn't know what was going on at all. Later they found that my dad ended up having a pulmonary embolism or blood clots for those who don't know what that is. It was on his lungs and on the bridge of his lungs, which can be really deadly if not caught early. Again, thankfully surgery went well, and hasn't really had a scare since. But what if I was not home and he didn't have to move his car? What if the doctors did not call my dad right in that moment? Though these what ifs were very nerve-wracking in the moment and caused myself for my family stress, it happened the way it should have. Now I'm not saying that my mom should have gotten breast cancer, or my dad should have gotten those blood clots. But if those things did not happen, I don't think my life would look the same. If I gave up on volleyball or not believed in myself that day, and when I thought I was not good enough, I would not be here today speaking to you. I would not have been able to have a collegiate career in volleyball. Be at this great school of professors that pushed me. I would never have been in data. I would have never been in choir, and I would have never had the friends I have today. That's just a few of the pictures that I found from York. There's a lot of professors up there like Kurt Sin, Sears, and Dr. Best in DR, and then a lot of my friends. And there's a lot of pictures of people that are here that I don't have up there because I was running out of space. So just all of these people have really impacted me being here, and I'm really grateful that I was able to come and play here and experience this school because I really love it. I'm thankful that I was able to continue volleyball, find the love again, and experience my life, the way God intended me to. Now these are my parents. I love them so much, and they are just so great. They're the best people in the world, but if neither of my parents went through medical scare, I may have not valued the special times we have together as much, or realized how important life is. I do not take life for granted, and though life can be stressful at times, finding the best parts of it creates memories to look back on, and connections that may lead you to your fullest potential. During the sermon on the mound, Jesus gathered the crowds and began to teach them. In this, He says, "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, while you will eat or drink, or about your body. What you will wear, is that not more than food, the body more than clothes?" He continues by asking why we should be worried about those things when we, when He will take care of them. As He continues, He mentions, "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all things will be given to you as well." Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow we'll worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. This is Matthew 6.25-34. This reminds me that even though there will be what ifs that happen, I should not dwell or worry about it. God has a plan, and though we may not agree with that plan always, because it causes this pain, suffering, or hurt, there's always a reason for what God has planned for you, and those what ifs are exactly that. Those what ifs are possibilities that our human mind comes up with to try and rationalize an event that happened. When this happens, we need to go to our heavenly mind, God, and know that everything will work out the way it should. Thank you.