Bolder for the Lord – Steven Souza

May 12, 2017

“A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.” —Proverbs 31:1-12

 

Mikaela is the number one person to remind me what’s important in life. My wife keeps me grounded and helps me focus my eyes on eternal things.

 

Just a few weeks ago my week was starting off extremely well, then I went back to New York and had a really bad series. After the game I texted Mikaela, feeling defeated I wrote, “Man, I’m right back to where I was last year.” I was really struggling with how I performed on the field, but Mikaela challenged me, saying, “I thought we were going to play this year with joy. Don’t let a couple of games determine where your joy lies.” Her ability to see the big picture and take the stress off of me like that is irreplaceable.

 

Over the past year I’ve been able to watch Mikaela become an incredible mother to our son. What she does for Micah is amazing—she’s strong, nurturing, caring, and loving to him in so many ways that continually impress me. It’s hard to leave my son home while I go on the road to play ball but knowing that he has a great mother there to care for him gives me so much peace. Her servant heart and strong work ethic shows me that Mikaela wants to honor the Lord in everything that she does.

 

I watched Mikaela’s faith take a giant leap once she became a mother. She was already growing in her walk with Christ, but when she had Micah, I think she realized that it was going to take a lot of faith to trust the Lord to take care of him as well as to give us the wisdom to raise this child so her dependency on Him deepened.

 

As a natural people-pleaser (which can be both a good and a bad thing), Mikaela has recently become much more bold in her faith. She stands firm on the truth of the Word while also being extremely kind-hearted. I’ve seen her speak the truth of the Gospel among the other wives and mothers on the team, boldly sharing what Christ has done for our family.

 

Knowing that my wife is in a great community of strong Christian women who are diving into the Word and growing closer to Christ together makes the season a lot easier for me. I don’t like leaving her when I go on the road and I know it can be extremely lonely to be in an area far from home, family, and friends. But knowing that my wife is growing in community with other wives on the team through Bible study and fellowship, makes the season a lot easier for me—I know I’m extremely blessed.

 

It’s very attractive to see your wife and the mother of your child grow bolder for the Lord. I know there will be many different obstacles and challenges that we face throughout our years, but I can’t wait to see how Mikaela builds upon the firm foundation that she has and increases her love for Christ, our kids, our marriage, and our life.

 

—Steven Souza

 

Steven Souza is a regular contributor of The Increase, providing monthly articles and opinions.

 

Check out Steven’s full profile on The Increase Baseball: http://theincreasebaseball.com/author/steven-souza/

 

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