Former WNBA participant Charlotte Smith stated she spent numerous hours taking pictures hoops in her mother and father' yard since she was 7 years previous. When she wasn't on the court docket, she spent extra of her youth enthusiastic about Jesus.
Being the daughter of two religious Christians, one in every of whom was a pastor, laid the inspiration of Christianity that was etched into Smith's coronary heart and thoughts lengthy earlier than she ever laid fingers on a basketball.
“It's onerous to even rely the variety of hours I've dedicated to my craft. As a result of I do know virtually day-after-day I went to the court docket or my grandma's yard or our yard someplace to play basketball,” stated Smith, who performed over eight seasons within the WNBA and is now the ladies's basketball coach at Elon College in North Carolina. he remembers in an interview with The Christian Publish.
“Once I consider my mother and pop, I consider their faithfulness and their dedication to non-public relationships with God and their ministry. My dad at all times stated, 'I don't research the Bible to evangelise. I research the Bible to stay.” Each had been nice examples for us and laid the inspiration of our religion.”
Born right into a close-knit household in Shelby, North Carolina, Smith describes her household as an total glad unit throughout her youth. However the household additionally struggled with poverty for a few years, which it hid.
Smith, whose testimony was just lately featured within the film “I Am Second,” stated she vividly remembers ready in lengthy traces for presidency meals help each week for groceries to offer for her household.
Getting into her early teenagers, Smith stated she typically dreamed of escaping poverty and turning into knowledgeable athlete like her uncle, former NBA participant David O'Neil Thompson, who performed for the Denver Nuggets and Seattle Supersonics earlier than being inducted into Naismith Basketball . Corridor of Fame in 1996.
Though she accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior as an adolescent, Smith stated her life motto shortly modified from “residing for God” to “ball is life” when her desires of turning into knowledgeable athlete grew to become her major objective and Jesus took again seat.
“Basketball was primarily a approach out of poverty. I bear in mind when my uncle would come residence for the summer time and I might see his actually cool camper that he had. I imply, that is earlier than RVs had been tremendous standard. And simply to see all of the issues he had accrued via wealth,” Smith recalled.
“For me, I didn't know what it was going to appear like as a result of there have been no ladies's skilled leagues within the States. I grew up as slightly lady considering, 'Effectively, I'm going to be like my uncle; we're going to play within the NBA,” she continued.
“Basketball was additionally simply an outlet from the issues that surrounded us in our neighborhood, not that it was tremendous messy. However I imply, there was lots of medicine and alcohol and lots of life that I didn't wish to be with for the remainder of my life on this neighborhood.”
Smith later joined the basketball staff at Shelby Excessive Faculty in North Carolina. She performed school basketball for the College of North Carolina Tar Heels from 1991-1995.
Throughout her highschool and school years, Smith stated she put extra distance between herself and God when she grew to become concerned in “sexual sin.”
“I believe lots of sexual temptations stem from a misunderstanding of your id, your worth, and your value. I believe all of us sooner or later wish to be acknowledged, we wish to really feel cherished, we wish to really feel valued, we wish to be valued and honored. And for me, I believe lots of that comes from feeling like I needed to embody a sexual side in relationships to validate the connection. And that's the place I struggled,” Smith stated.
Smith has discovered success on the court docket. In 1995, ESPN named her the Nationwide Participant of the Yr. Throughout her school profession, she recorded 2,094 factors and 1,200 rebounds. She was additionally the ACC Rookie of the Yr in 1992.
After school, she performed skilled basketball in Italy, the place she was named Most Useful Participant of the 1995-1996 Italian All-Star Sport.
Whereas residing away from her household in Italy, Smith started to really feel alone on most events, eager for somebody or one thing to fill the void that even basketball victories couldn’t fulfill.
“Being abroad was an isolating time. When you consider being abroad within the Nineteen Nineties, there was no social media. Lengthy distance calls had been very costly on the time. You didn't spend lots of time on the telephone,” Smith defined.
Throughout this time, she stated she spent lots of time “simply immersing myself within the Phrase of God and drawing nearer to Him on this interval of isolation.”
“I believe what greatest describes my religion journey is shedding layers. The nice factor is that God is aware of our hearts, even when our actions should not at all times in step with what we think about a Christian way of life,” she stated.
Smith stated she discovered extra about Jesus' loving and forgiving nature the extra she learn the Scriptures and informed CP, “I simply needed to give up to Him. I surrendered to permit Him to excellent me in my stroll with Him.”
“I might fail to stroll, fall after which rise up. It was a strategy of shedding. It's like an onion if you peel again the layers. It wasn't like I gave my life to Christ and did all the things completely. No, I used to be nonetheless scuffling with sexual sin,” Smith added.
“My stroll with God was a stroll that concerned, 'Lord, I wish to hand over all the things to let you assist me.' As a result of we are able to't do it with out His assist. Subsequently, we have to be actual and clear about our religion in order that different folks will say sure to Jesus and permit him to excellent their stroll.”
In 1996, Smith started enjoying for the Colorado Xplosion within the American Basketball League. She earned All-Star honors whereas enjoying for Colorado and likewise the San Jose Lasers within the ABL.
Smith was chosen with the thirty third decide within the 1999 WNBA Draft by the Charlotte Sting. She performed with them for six seasons earlier than enjoying with the Washington Mystics in 2005 and the Indiana Fever in 2006.
Throughout that point, Smith continued to revive her relationship with God.
Smith additionally discovered success on the court docket after her enjoying days. In 2011, she was employed as the top ladies's basketball coach at Elon College and earned her spot because the winningest coach in program historical past, compiling a 195-163 document over 11 seasons.
“God is my hope, my pleasure, my energy, my mild, the love of my life. God means all the things to me. There’s not a day that I’m not in communion and communion with God. And as a basketball coach, I attempt to mannequin what it means to be a Christian. I attempt to mannequin what it means to be a lady who values and understands her id,” Smith stated.
“I additionally inform my staff the reality by telling them, 'Basketball is a part of what you do. That's not life.” You understand, they are saying 'the ball is life'. That's not life. It's a part of life. And your true id is mounted within the data of God.”
“My recommendation to anybody scuffling with idolatry in sports activities or sexual sin is to easily ask God to point out you the place your coronary heart is as a result of there’s a saying within the scriptures that claims 'the place your coronary heart is, there your treasure is' (Matthew 6:21). Ask Him to show you to worth what issues most to Him, and He’ll reveal your coronary heart to you.”
Nicole VanDyke is a reporter for The Christian Publish.