How many 90s kids have you met whose first sport they played as a kid was little league soccer? I don't know if this is true for you, but for me soccer can always be a common ground when meeting someone new (especially if the person grew up in the 90s and early 2000s.) For some reason our parents back then all thought that soccer would be the best sport for their child to play for the first time.

Why was soccer always the go-to sport for young children though? Maybe a big reason was that the parents in the 90s thought that running around a soccer field 2-3 times a week would exhaust their little bundles of energy, I mean joy. Or maybe one of the factors was the fact that soccer was cheaper than other sports. Whatever the reason, we can all reminisce over the time of little league trophies and laugh at ourselves when we ran around the soccer field with no clue what we were doing.

Unlike some kids, I was one of those kids who chose to continue playing soccer throughout my childhood and teenage years. Regardless of how long you played soccer, I believe the the biggest lesson our parents wanted us to learn by playing soccer as kids was more than just running all of our energy out. Soccer taught us about life.

1. Soccer taught me that there's always room for growth.

Soccer isn't as popular in America as it is cross-culturally, but it has been growing through the years. Teams change often with players moving to different teams or clubs, and new players are brought on, and the coach can change as well. However, soccer players learn new things with every team and coach they play with. Soccer players learn to adjust to change by learning from where they were and what they did. Soccer players look at change as an opportunity to grow.

Life is constantly changing and moving us, much like a soccer ball being kicked up and down the field.

2. Soccer taught me that life isn't always fair.

If you've played in or watched a soccer game then you understand the frustration when the ref makes a bad call. It's easy to get upset and throw a tantrum, but the good coaches taught their players not to let another person's actions control how they respond. Whether it's an unfair ref, coach, or an opponent, we can't control the actions of others, but we can choose how we respond.

3. Soccer taught me that diversity is always good.

My dad told me the story of when he learned how to play soccer. He didn't grow up playing soccer like I did, because in that time America did not know anything about the sport. It wasn't until my dad was at university when the international students from Brazil taught the American students how to play. Soccer is a bridge between cultures. It became a way to connect to people from another country and learn from one another. In soccer, it is good to learn from others because that is how you improve as a player. Playing with teammates with diverse backgrounds can help the team improve overall by teaching each other their skills and the team learns how to play better as a team.

This is the same for anything in life. At your job you may have problems or have to do a project. By learning to include your coworkers different worldview of doing things, y'all can figure out a better solution by working together and coming up with ideas that your boss (or other companies) have never thought of before.

4. Soccer taught me the importance of goals.

For a team to win a soccer game one team has to outscore their opponent. In other words, one team has to make more goals than the other team. That is the whole point of the game. Eleven players working together to maintain (and retrieve) possession of the ball so that the offense can successfully get the ball into the opposing team's goal.

Without goals there would be no points and no winner. To quote Dennis Quad from "The Rookie"when his character was trying to encourage his losing team of high school baseball players, 'If you don't have [goals] you don't have anything." Okay, so in the movie he said "dreams", but I think you understand the point I'm trying to make. If you don't have a goal, or a dream, to work for then you won't have anywhere to go.

5. Soccer taught me not to quit until the end.

The scoreboard could show that a team is winning at half time, but the team that wins the second half wins the game. You don't stop playing when you're ahead. You stop playing when the game is over. The moment a team slows down their intensity because they have more goals than the other team is the moment that the other team catches up. The team that plays the hardest and doesn't give up will most likely show it on the scoreboard.

There are times when you will lose unfairly and that really hurts, but what I said earlier, life isn't always fair. Sometimes people are rewarded and praised for something they did not earn or deserve, and maybe they got away with their dishonesty. Don't let them discourage you from doing your best and doing the right thing. You will be rewarded for your hard work if you do not give up. The unfair person may not get what they deserve now, but they will learn the hard way one day. It doesn't matter what they do. You do the right thing regardless of what you feel or what people say or do.

If your goal is to finish school, get that promotion or certification, or finish a marathon, don't stop doing your best or give up when you are half way in the race or if you don't see the fruits of your labor. Continue to work with all your heart regardless if nobody is watching or praising you.

"Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ."
-Colossians 3:23-24 (New Living Translation)

"So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless." -1 Corinthians 15:58 (New Living Translation)

"So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." -1 Corinthians 10:31 (New Living Translation)