With the season of Lent beginning in a just a week and a half, my calendar for Wednesday, February 18 is marked "Ash Wednesday." It is on this particular day that much of the Christian world sets aside a time to receive ashes. It is on this particular day that the themes of repentance are brought to the forefront of Christian minds. The tradition of ashes going back into the ancient times when people would wear sackcloth and places ashes on their forehead as a sign of mourning. But while there is an appropriate time and place for mourning and grieving, Scripture reminds us that there is a time that comes when we are graced with an exchange - His beauty,

A man may be of value to another man, not because he wishes to be important, not because he possesses some inner wealth of soul, nor because of something he is, but because of what he is - not. His importance may consist in his poverty, in his hopes and fears, in his waiting and hurrying, in the direction of his whole being toward what lies beyond his horizon and beyond his power. The importance of being an apostle is negative rather than positive. In him a void becomes visible. And for this reason he is something to others: he is able to share grace with them, to focus their attention, and to establish them in waiting and in adoration.

With the draft now concluded and preseason camps underway, the next major event in the life of Major League Soccer is completing the new MLS CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement). The MLS CBA is the league's agreement with the MLSPU (MLS Player's Union) and usually is a 3-5 year labor agreement. The current MLS CBA is set to expire January 31, 2015. On point for this CBA round of talks are two main emphases - (1) increasing the lower and middle wages of players in the league and (2) free agency. Jeff Carlisle of ESPN FC reported that free agency isn't even present in the current MLS CBA proposal, despite many players and former players calling for a change in

At the recent 2015 NSCAA (National Soccer Coaches Association of America) Convention in Philadelphia, I was waiting in Starbucks for a meeting when I overheard a woman ask a friend to make introductions with a potential employer and influencer in the game. "Maybe if you could just introduce me," she suggested, "it could open the door for me." She was hopeful that her friend had enough influence and rapport to get an opportunity or an audience. As I reflected on the woman's hopeful tone, I realized my own meeting was about an introduction - waiting to meet someone in the new USL-Pro franchise for Charlotte, the Charlotte Independence. I was, too, hopeful for good introductions and the beginning of a trusting

The maelstrom of fan discontent surrounding the recent firing of popular, Red Bulls Head Coach Mike Petke is enough to have team executives call a town hall meeting to try and placate season ticket holders. Major League Soccer contributor Dan Itel, in his The Sideline blog, on Thursday, noted the outpouring of fan support - including a fundraising campaign to purchase billboard signage to express fan disapproval with the firing. Pundits will argue about the seeming waywardness of the move for who knows how long. The New York, New Jersey soccer club has been besieged with a history of poor decision making and the sacking of successful, popular coaches as this fan blog mentions; and, until recently, this club has been somewhat of a