Eighty percent of the people in your community watched or participated in a sporting event last month. Only 19 percent visited a church. Here’s how to close the gap.

Sport is one of the few activities that brings people together, no matter where they are on the globe. Potential barriers such as colour, race, language, religion, age and gender are all forgotten on the sporting field, in the pool or on the court. Many sports organizations, agencies and local churches have long known of the benefit of being involved in sport. It’s a way to build a bridge to the community and connect with different cultures.
Great stuff, you say, but what does it mean to me? Or to my church or congregation for that matter? Consider this: a recent Gallup poll showed that more than 80 percent of North Americans watched, read about or participated in sports at least once in the last month and 70 percent in the last week. Or what about this? In 2004, Statistics Canada stated that 48 percent of boys and 38 percent of girls in Canada ages five to 17 were involved in sports.

Not convinced yet? Consider the findings of Upward Sports Ministry: while 80 percent of people in your community were in contact with a sporting event last month, only 19 percent were in contact with a church. It’s time to close the gap!

Penalties and Free Kicks
Sports ministry is using athletics and recreation to be a witness for Jesus Christ. We are called by God to cultivate the gifts, abilities and talents that he bestows (see Romans 12:6-8, 1 Corinthians 12:4-11). The court, the field, the track become an “altar” for the athlete to offer his or her talent as an expression of worship. Just as a musician has the capacity to offer each note heavenward in worship of God, the athlete offers each manoeuvre and technical skill as their “note” of praise and thanksgiving. Faith is found in word, in prayer, in song. And sometimes it’s found in a well-timed pass to a sprinting midfielder. Churches are realizing that sports can be a powerful evangelical tool. More and more congregations are offering sporting opportunities as a gateway to a deeper exploration of faith.

In his book, The Purpose Driven Church, Rick Warren states that the best way to reach the lost is to follow the example of Jesus. Jesus addressed the felt needs of the people, many of whom came to him for physical healing. But he also understood that the eternal penalty of unforgiven sin was greater than illness or disease.

Sports can provide a tool for you to meet the felt needs of lost people in your communityand point them to God’s greater plan of salvation. In most cases, the resources are already at your disposal. You may have an open gym, sports equipment, a large field or financial resources that people in your community would love to access. Why not invite them in?

From Winning Games to Winning Hearts
I know you have much work to do in your church. Isn’t sports ministry just one more program to add to the list? Perhaps, but it’s one of the most efficient and effective ministries in which your congregation can get involved. I don’t know about you, but I like accomplishing my goals, and I don’t like wasting my time, money or energy.

Courtney Cash, a minister of education at a small church outside Fort Worth, Texas, has developed a training session called Sports Ministry: From Winning Games to Winning Hearts. The following are some of her observations about the strengths of sports ministry:

• Popularity: Instead of wasting time trying to find out how to attract people to your programs, you can tap into an activity and place where the people are already gathering.
• Proximity: Relationships are built by relating to people. Sports evangelism puts you in the middle of the action and provides a context that can lead to deeper relationships.
• Simplicity: Having fun is not hard. Rolling a ball onto a field or unlocking a gym door is not difficult. There are details and planning involved with sports evangelism, but the ministry concept is simple.
• Multiplicity: Sports evangelism is easy to replicate. If you meet a group of students playing Ultimate Frisbee in the park and lead them through the process of becoming Christians, your next step is to send them back out as a witness. You don’t need a 13-week program to teach them door-to-door evangelism. You simply send them back to the park to follow the example they saw you model.
• Activity: Sports evangelism is built around activity and participation. There isn’t a lot of wasted talk or committee meetings in sports evangelism, unless you put them there. People like to play, and sports gets people involved immediately in a common goal.
• Opportunity: Sports evangelism brings Christians and non-Christians together in a non-threatening environment. Conversations about sports and games can lead to conversations about life and Christ. Circumstances and events in sports can lead to teachable moments. God uses the talents and interests of Christians to create opportunities for his work.
• Adaptability: Sports evangelism can easily be used to support many different types of ministry activities. It can engage new people, enlist people not currently involved in church ministries, provide opportunities for direct evangelism and create small group settings for discipleship. It can be used for one-on-one or team-based activities. It is not age or gender specific. Sports evangelism is the duct tape of ministry. You always need to have it in your toolbox, because you never know what need or opportunity might arise.

For further information on these programs or to comment on this article, contact Jack O’Halloran at jack_ohalloran@can.salvationarmy.org

Sports Ministry Highlight Reel

KidsGames is a multi-day, multi-group, Bible-based sports ministry for children ages 6-14. Its greatest strength is that it is a global initiative. The KidsGames manual incorporates ideas and models from the Middle East, Africa, South America, North America, the Pacific, Asia and Europe. Local KidsGames may differ in appearance, but they all have the same core elements. KidsGames operates in over 125 countries, all materials are free and hundreds of thousands of kids are reached every year. If you could take your traditional VBS program and morph it from a Ã'churchÃ" program into a Ã'community changingÃ" program, you would have KidsGames.

Kidz Turf is a one-of-a-kind program offered by The Salvation ArmyÕs sports ministry in B.C., Athletes in Action (AIA) and the B.C. Lions of the Canadian Football League. It impacts lives and builds the Kingdom by reaching hundreds of kids and adults each year. At each B.C. Lions home game, families have the opportunity to join an AIA leader and a Salvation Army sports ministry leader to enjoy an evening of CFL football, receive a special T-shirt, share dinner and experience the thrill of cheering for their favourite team. After every game, Kidz Turf leaders escort the group to a media room, where they meet various players and coaches who share their faith in Jesus Christ and how it fits into their professional sports careers. There is always time for questions and autographs with players and coaches, and the impact on a child can last a lifetime.

Major Sporting Events Ministry Outreach is another initiative that presents the gospel to athletes and their families, officials and games organizers, visitors and local residents. The programs are designed specifically for major sporting events, such as the FIFA World Cup or the Olympic Games, and are as varied as the sports they host. At ground level, Christians share the gospel in culturally relevant ways, including home-stay programs, creative arts, hospitality service, volunteering and resource materials. ItÕs an opportunity to work cross-denominationally, increasing the ChurchÕs visibility and credibility. Mission teams, sports camps and KidsGames offer local congregations the ability to invite non-believers into their church to experience fun and the love of Jesus. These sports ministries also make it possible to reach the mission field without spending huge amounts of money and to target the gospel to many hard-to-reach people groups.

by Jack O’Halloran, Sports Ministry Outreach Director, British Columbia Division

Reprinted from Salvationist, August 2007