What do Brazil, Germany, Italy, Argentina, Uruguay, France and England have in common? They've all won the FIFA World Cup.
Brazil is the only team to have played in every World Cup tournament, winning a record-breaking five World Cups!
Lucimar da Silva Ferreira, 28, a defender for Brazil in the 2006 World Cup tells of his greatest victory in life.
We Brazilians are very emotional people. So you can imagine what it was like in July 2002, when we won the world cup for the fifth time!
Right there on the pitch my teammates fell over each other in a transport of joy and couldn't believe their luck. At that precise moment, in the eyes of the whole world, we were the best footballers on the planet. What an incredible feeling.
But, even before the whistle blew to start the final against Germany, I knew for myself that I had to express my gratitude to God somehow. Whenever I experience something really great in my life I think automatically in my heart of hearts of God. Since I've got to know Him, I am absolutely sure there are no coincidences and that He means well with me.
My "Jesus loves you" T-shirt was my way of letting the world know that my gratitude was all to Him. I also wanted to express that other people can experience the same wonderful things with God that I have.
Since my personal relationship with God began I realized more and more which values are really important in life.
A lot of football fans often think that we professional players are happy because we earn a lot of money and can buy what we like. But, that is a great mistake! The things that can really make you happy can't be bought for all the money in the world. Now I'm talking here most of all about the feeling and the knowledge of being "at home" with God and not having to run around searching for the meaning of life. For several years God has been a real Father to me. He is my best friend and constant companion. He is always at my side-whether in the Champions League final against Real Madrid, where we lost, or in the victory fever of the World Cup final. He will still be with me when my name is long forgotten.
I am grateful to God for so many talents and gifts and that I can play on such a great team with so many really gifted players. But my own personal way to happiness and contentment came only through doing what the Bible says: "Give yourself to the Lord; trust in him and he will help you." (Psalm 37: 5 GNB)
Lucimar's story is taken from the "Word Cup Special Salvation Army Magazine," printed to spread the good new of Jesus Christ in Germany.