All Sport, All Summer, All Fun!

Transcription

1 SOUTH DAKOTA FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIAN ATHLETES Fall 2016 All Sport All Summer campers from Lower Brule came up to spend the day and play soccer with the Sioux Falls Campers. All Sport, All Summer, All Fun! What could be better than a summer filled with playing sports all day every day? In FCA, All Sport All Summer (ASAS) Camp kids in 1st - 6th grades have a unique opportunity to be part of a faith-based, Christ-centered sports experience where they are introduced to multiple sports and outdoor adventure activities. Local coaches and athletes provide instructional mini clinics followed by a variation of skills, drills and games. ASAS is not a high level skills camp but rather introduces kids to sports and the basic fundamentals of the game. College student athletes serve as Huddle Leaders providing guidance, direction, mentoring relationships and carry out the mission of the camp by presenting daily topical devotions to challenge and encourage kids in their walk with Christ. The camp started June 6 and ended August 12 (M-F 7:30-5:00). ASAS campers being entertained by the Creviers doing basketball/unicycle tricks. An impromptu singing of the National Anthem at ASAS. SouthDakotaFCA.org

2 THE SIGNIFICANCE OF OTHERS In one of my men s groups, we have been reading Act Like Men - 40 Days to Biblical Manhood by James MacDonald. It has been a great study, and I would like to thank the men I am blessed enough to learn from and grow with on Thursday and Friday mornings. If you are not currently in a small group or a Bible or biblical book study, I would highly encourage you to seek one out or start one. In lesson 12 of the book, James Macdonald writes about doing nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility counting others more significant than ourselves. I confess, I have read these words countless times before, but I have never fully absorbed them or given them deeper application in my life. This time around, they have struck me, and I ve asked myself, Do I count others more significant than myself? The answer is no. Some people I do, and some people I do not, which means I am failing to live out what Jesus Christ has asked of me. In examining my own heart, I continue to have much revealed and ask Jesus to continue showing me the way, every day. I want to fulfill God s calling on me in this area. In 1 John 4:20, we re told, Whoever claims to love God yet hates his brother is a liar. As we enter into this season of Thanksgiving, I want to say thanks to the men in my men s groups, to Jesus Christ for his life-saving Spirit and Word, for the people who study God s Word and deliver content through books and studies, and lastly, for all of you who support our ministry at the local and state levels. We would be unable to perform our sports ministry work without your generous and continued support. May God bless you and your families this Thanksgiving season, and may we all consider the significance of others to God and His plan! Philippians 2:3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Keith Moore Director South Dakota FCA 2

3 FLAG FOOTBALL CHAMPIONS The 2016 Flag Football season was marked by our RING of CHAMPIONS pregame programs that featured our NFL friends of FCA. Several of our FCA magazine featured stars posters were displayed each week along with their favorite Bible verse which became our memory verse and lesson for the week. Players coaches and families were encouraged to read the weekly lesson and memorize the verse. Over 760 K-6 boys and girls participated in Sioux Falls, Brandon, and our new league in Luverne, MN. This youth sports league is set apart by our commitment to share the gospel and an understanding of what it means to know and follow Christ. Each week we feature current and former athletes and coaches to speak to the teams about the weekly lesson and how to apply it on the field and in life. 3

4 SIOUX FALLS UPDATE By Ryan Ovenden - God is moving in Sioux Falls! We had a very busy Summer with a record number of campers who attended Camp Steward. And speaking of records, our wall-sit record was shattered by Isaiah Lee on the boy s side and Ellie Ripperda on the girl s side, both persevering for more than an hour! Also, congratulations to the 19 Camp Steward grads who made the All-State Cross Country team at this year s state meet! Huddles in the Sioux Falls area are rolling. We ve seen huge growth in our huddles, particularly at Edison, Lincoln, and Washington. Thanks be to God and to some fantastic volunteers and student leaders! We began the year with a new event called FUNdamentals training that helped to jump start huddle leaders by equipping them with more tools to lead a thriving huddle. About 50 middle school and high schoolers attended, and enjoyed some fun at Thunder Road afterwards. Special thanks to David Moe from Faith Fellowship for his teaching on evangelism, and TJ Carlson from Brookings for his message on #playloved. It was a powerful night! Isaiah Lee FUNdamentals Leadership Training We ve started a new event called FCA Game Day. Our first game day was at an Augustana football game, and we had head coach Jerry Olszjewski share a message. The purpose of Game Day is to give coaches and athletes in the community the opportunity to use their platform in sport to share their faith in Jesus Christ, especially with the next generation of athletes. We d like to have these events at local college and high school football and basketball games to start, but expand to other sports in the future. There is nothing more impactful to a youngster than to hear a message from the person they just watched on the field or court! Fields of Faith (October 12, 2016) was a powerful night, with our good friend in ministry John Glasser (Collision Sioux Falls) sharing a clear gospel message. We had almost 50 kids indicate they want to be trained to share the gospel clearly and effectively! Praise the Lord. Disciples are meant to reproduce themselves, and we are partnering with Collision to make that happen in the athletic community with groups starting their training in November. FCA Game Day Sioux Falls Fields of Faith 4

5 SOUTHEAST/SOUTH CENTRAL UPDATE I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 1 Corinthians 3:6 By Doug Adams, USD Chaplain/Southeast South Dakota - That particular passage of scripture sums up the ministry. The Lord continues to bless our effort to honor HIM. We now have over 20 high school huddles in our area. Please pray for our area huddle leaders. They do a great job and love what they do. We are truly blessed to have those dedicated servants. Our college and university ministries also continue to grow. We feel that the world is being impacted for Jesus Christ through the influence of athletes and coaches. Our students have numerous options throughout the week to grow in their faith and gather together in the name of our Savior. Please continue to support this ministry. Your prayers are needed as we plant seeds and watch God work in the lives of our coaches and athletes. USD Fields of Faith WEST RIVER AREA DIRECTOR SD FCA is pleased to introduce the new Area Director of West River South Dakota FCA, Lance Huber. Lance grew up in Worland, WY and attended The University of South Dakota. He swam competitively at USD. He coached at the collegiate level for over 20 years before entering into ministry. Lance says, God has certainly paved my path to serve the Lord through FCA. I am honored to bring God s word to the coaches and athletes of western South Dakota. My responsibility is to develop the best ministry to equip leaders, coaches and athletes to spread God s Kingdom. Lance s vision for West River FCA is to build a strong ministry that will strengthen in numbers and grow the Kingdom, all with the FCA platform. He feels he has been blessed with the responsibility to deliver the message and strategy God has provided to thoroughly equip the frontline, generating opportunities for leadership within West River SD. 5

6 BROOKINGS AREA UPDATE By TJ Carlson, SDSU Chaplain/Brookings Area - Brookings Area FCA has had a great start to the new school year with huddles kicking off in schools in and around Brookings. Our first event in August was the Breakfast of Champions where over 400 local student athletes, coaches and community members came together to hear from Kansas City Chiefs Chaplain Phillip Kelley. In September Flag Football kicked off and continued for six weeks on the campus of SDSU. Almost 200 1st through 5th graders came out to learn about football and be coached by our SDSU athletes and local parents. We ended the six weeks by getting the opportunity to hear from Head Football Coach John Stiegelmeier, touring the Dykhouse Student Athlete Center and playing in the new Dana J Dykhouse Stadium. October brought Fields of Faith which allowed local high school campus huddles, area youth groups and the SDSU Campus huddle to worship together. This is an annual FCA event that happens nationally. The speakers for the event this year were SDSU soccer player Nikkie Inskeep, SDSU football player Jake Wieneke, SDSU Assistant Woman s Basketball Coach Katie Falco, and Flandreau Huddle Leader Owen Parsley. We are looking forward to the winter months. God bless! Brookings Flag Football Breakfast of Champions Fields of Faith 6

7 SOUND BITES Parents and kids alike have enjoyed taking part in our All Sport All Summer Camp. Each year we get rave reviews from parents about their kids physical and spiritual growth. Here are just a few from 2016! I wanted to let you know how much Gavin enjoyed the opportunity last Thurs to help set up flag football stuff. He said he and a couple other boys were selected to help out. When he talked about it he was beaming and it was clear from the expression on his face he considered this a privileged opportunity to help and made him feel special. Thank you for making his weeks at FCA camp fun and memorable!! Have a blessed day! Landon has had such a great time at FCA camp this year. Hard to believe it s over already. Thanks so much for everything you have done and the great staff. They do a great job!! Thank you so much!!! Lisa French Leah Pena The boys thoroughly enjoyed themselves this summer. Thanks to all the staff members for providing a safe and fun experience. Shawn Noem Thanks for all of your work this summer! Kennedy really enjoyed camp- and I appreciate you also being so helpful when I didn t quite have my schedules aligned. You all have a great program and hope to see it continue. Thanks again. Have a great day! Stephanie (Fisher) VerHey We re so thankful for this program...my boys love it! Becky Roelofs 7

8 FCA President Transition After a prayerful, comprehensive and far-reaching national search, FCA has named its eighth president and CEO, Shane Williamson, from within the FCA family! After being involved with FCA for 24 years, Shane is poised to lead the international sports ministry and understands FCA s heart and soul. The Board, along with retiring president and CEO Les Steckel, believes that Shane will carry out FCA s strong vision and continue to take the ministry to new heights. Shane Williamson and Les Steckel Meet the new FCA president and CEO, Shane Williamson, and hear from our retiring president, Les Steckel on fca.org. For upcoming registration and event information, please visit our website: SouthDakotaFCA.org 8 South Dakota Fellowship of Christian Athletes 1601 E 69th Street Suite 301 Sioux Falls, SD 57108