Isaac Gray315 West 4th Street Alexandria, IN 46001

1-765-724-7228 |isaacgray147@yahoo.com

Professional Objectives

To gain experience working in a ministry that will challenge and grow me to effectively communicate and interact with others while working in the diverse arena of sports. Through this position, I desire to become a more effective minister of the Gospel, so that I can better serve other people who will be brought into my path in future.

Education :

Indiana Wesleyan University; Marion Indiana 2010-2015

Bachelor of Science in Sports Ministry Bachelor of Science in Intercultural Studies GPA of 3.33/4.0

Employment History :

Twin Lakes Camp & Conference Center

Maintenance Intern August 2015-Present

Maintaining and enhancing the campo Improving living areas through construction on cabins and other camp buildingso Maintaining electric, plumbing, and other systems and enhancing camp grounds

Camp Counselor May 2015-July 2015

Leading and caring for kids ages 8 to 18 for a week Facilitating camp activities: Low & high ropes courses Developing lesson plans and teaching and scheduling activities

Pioneer College Caterers; Marion, Indiana

Student Supervisor Sept. 2010-Aug. 2012

Sept. 2013-April 2015

Coordinating and supervising student workers and cafeteria practiceso Ensure food is labeled correctly and pleasing to the eye o Train new student workers to be proficient at their assigned jobs

Coordinated with Pioneer Directors and customers to ensure top quality service and dining experience

o Assess possible problems during meals and analyzing solutions for them

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o Coordinate with other student supervisors to review and address any issues or problems that have arisen during meals or other points throughout the week

Catering various events at the University

Indiana Wesleyan University Campus Mail, Marion, Indiana

Student Mail Worker Aug. 2013-April 2015

Sorting and delivering mail correctly to IWU departments Scanning/sorting/delivering packages Printing university mailings

Experience

Gap Year Worker; Glasgow Scotland September 2012-July 2013

Programming and running of variety of clubs and activities for people of all ages in the community of Glasgow

Taught Rugby at local primary schools Helped run school assemblies and clubs for local primary and secondary schools in Glasgow Helped with children’s ministry at a local church and helped with programming

Soccer Coach; Ambassadors Football June 2014-August 2014

Helped run four different soccer camps for kids aged 6-14 Helped organize and set up camps every week and did daily set up Helped kids ages 6-8 learn fundamentals of soccer and techniques Taught and helped out at local churches that sponsored us with programming and service Played competitive matches against local teams

Certifications

Low & High Ropes Courses

Food Safety

References

Jim Sandberg; Pastor; Tabor Independent Baptist Church, 10500 S County Road 300 W, Muncie, IN 47302; 1-765-759-5304; known for 12 years

Scott Burson; Professor; Indiana Wesleyan University, 4201 S Washington St, Marion, IN 46953; 765-677-2092; known for 5 years

Dan Daily; Program Director; Twin Lakes Camp & Conference Center, 1451 E. 200 S, Hillboro, IN 47949

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Biblical & Theological Basis for Rugby For Christ Ministries

Kingdom Rugby is a non-profit organization that is based in Bloomington, Indiana. We believe that there

needs to be firm basis in Biblical scripture and in sound doctrine when it comes to doing ministry, no

matter in what context of ministry that someone is in. This area is not taken lightly and there is has been

much thought and prayer and research to produce what we believe is the theological and Biblical basis

of our sports ministry.

First and foremost, we believe it is vital that we state what we believe to be our Biblical/Theological

basis as a sports ministry.

1. We believe in God the Father, Jesus Christ His Son, and the Holy Spirit and that all three are

eternal

I Corinthians8:6 “Yet for us there is only there is only God, the Father from whom are all

things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things

and through whom we exist”

John 14:16 “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, to be with you

forever”

John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word

was God”

2. We believe that Jesus being fully God and fully human came to this earth, was born of a virgin,

lived and died, and then rose from the dead after three days and then ascended into heaven.

Isaiah 7:14 “Therefore the Lord Himself should shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall

conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel”

Philippians 2:8 “And be found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming

obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross”

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Mark 16:6 “Don’t be alarmed” he said. “You are looking for Jesus of Nazarene, who was

crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him”

3. We believe that God has called us to fulfill the great commission that He gave us in the Bible, to

share His Gospel to the ends of the earth and with all people, and to share the Light of Christ to

others in this world.

“Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given

to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the

Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have

commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

4. We believe that God can use anyone in any context to be a light for Christ and by either words

or actions, share the love of Christ to others, no matter how young or old

Psalm 92:12-14 “The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of

Lebanon; planted in the house of the LORD, they will flourish in the courts of our God.

They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green”

I Timothy 4:12 “Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example

in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity”

Philosophical Basis for Rugby For Christ’s Ministries

We believe that out Biblical and doctrinal beliefs comes the philosophy on which we use to help us to

operate our ministry to the standard that God calls us to uphold. We believe that our philosophy needs

to be based in Scripture and that we allow the Holy Spirit to influence and work.

1. One way that we believe that God has called us to do as non-profit organization is to share the

light of Christ and spread and preach the Gospel to all people and nations, wherever it be

through our words or actions

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Psalm 96:3 “Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the

peoples!”

2. Another way that we believe God has called us to serve is by allowing God to use in whatever

way He sees fit, wherever that be leading someone to commit their lives to Christ for the first

time or by helping them go deeper in their relationship through Christ by discipleship and

mentoring

Luke 15:10 “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of

God over one sinner who repents."

Proverbs 27:17 “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another”

3. A third way we believe that we are called to come along side the people that God puts in our

path, especially youth who are under so much negative influence, and walk along with them in

life, helping them to grow or come to know relationship with Christ.

Galatians 6:2 “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ”

4. Finally, we believe that it is important that in all things we accept instruction and continue to

learn and grow with our relationship with God, even through times of correction and instruction.

II Timothy 3:16-17 “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for

reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be

competent, equipped for every good work”

Methodological Basis for Rugby For Christ Ministries

We at Kingdom Rugby belief that our Doctrinal/Biblical & Philosophical basis determines the methods

that we use to run our sports ministry program. Below are the ways that we as a ministry believe that

we can accomplish what God has called us to do.

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1. Competitive Travel Team : We believe that one way we can accomplish what God has called us to

do is by competition. We believe that Christians can use competition to further the Kingdom of

God and spread His name. We have competitive travel teams (for ages 13-18) that travel

throughout the year and play other teams in the league. Players are expected not just to

compete, but help organize and run outreach events and to share the Gospel

2. Summer Camps : Throughout the summer months, we’ll have Christian rugby players/coaches

come from across the United States and from other countries as well and will travel throughout

the US and put on summer camps for kids and teenagers and teach Rugby as well as present the

Gospel and make sure that there are churches in place to disciple and teach the kids once the

camp is over

3. Clinics : Throughout the local school system in Bloomington and surrounding areas, RFC hosts

clinics for people in the local area to come out and improve their skills, or learn how to play

rugby for the first time.

4. Community outreach events : We believe that it is good to be out in the community and making

a difference for Christ is important and that we should not neglect the people God has put in

proximity to us. We believe that having events such as tournaments or dinners are just a couple

of the ways that we can share the love of Christ and build relationships with people.

5. Internships : We believe strongly in the fact that God is raising up a generation of believers that

willing to serve and follow God wherever He leads, so we offer a couple of 1-year internships for

college age or recently graduated students who are feeling a call to sports ministry and who love

the game of Rugby. They will be working within all the different areas of our ministry as well as

being disciple and mentored throughout the internship.

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Mission Statement

The mission of Kingdom Rugby is too “To share the love and life changing Gospel message of Jesus

Christ through the sport of Rugby”

We believe that we are called by God to use the sport of Rugby as we the avenue to spread the

message that He gives us in the Great Commission. We as a ministry believe that Rugby can be used

in numerous ways to show others love of Christ and to spread His message of salvation, wherever

that be through words or actions.

Vision Statement

It is our vision at KIngdom that we see “Communities and lives impacted for God and relationships

formed and strengthened through the various avenues that Rugby provides”

We believe that using the sport of Rugby, God can allow us to make a difference for Him. Wherever

that be through competitive competition, camps, clinics in schools and the general community

where people can learn about rugby and more importantly, learn about Christ Jesus

Core Values

Life reflects Faith: One of our core values is that our staff and volunteers, along with you the youth

who are a part of our ministry is that their lives reflect the faith that they have, that no matter what

happens on the field or off it, that the heart and light of Christ will be evident to all those who are

present.

Excellence in Rugby: We are called by Christ to do our best and we believe that we need to strive to

do that when teaching and playing Rugby, to do everything with excellence.

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Community Focused: We are not here for the community to serve us, but for us to serve and partner

with the communities that we are in and help them reach their full potential. We want to allow God

to use us to help make positive and lasting change within the communities that we are serving in.

Partnership: We understand that God has given us specific talents and abilities to share His message,

but He has given many others different gifts to use for the same purpose. So we believe that it is

important that when we can, we partner with churches and organizations so that the Gospel of

Christ may be fully spread and that we as believers can have unity in Christ.

Growth: We want to challenge and see people grow in their relationship with Christ or come to

know the salvation that can only be found in Christ, or at least plant a seed in someone, so that in

the future God can use another to help the seed grow and mature and have another person come to

Christ.

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Organizational Chart

Leadership Team Structure

The leadership team is made up of five full time staff directors. Each director overseas a different aspect

of the sports ministry, such as the clinics that happen in the local schools or community outreach events.

They work closely with all the other staff and will meet together weekly to discuss the ministry as a

whole and deal with any potential issues or problems within the ministry.

Under the five directors, are the administrative staff, the Community Coordinators, and the Coaches of

the travel teams. These are full time staff members and their duties include the more day-to-day aspects

of the ministry and the different logistics that those aspects require. They meet weekly and meet once a

month with the directors.

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Minsitry Directors

Administration & Community Coordinators

Summer Camp Coaches/Interns Volunteers

Coaches

Travel Teams

The third level of this ministry is the Summer Camp Coaches and Interns, who are considered part time

staff, as they have certain times that they work for Kingdom Rugby. Also, along with them, are the

volunteers that are from churches or the just the community who help with such as the school clinics

and outreach events. Finally, the players of the travel teams are in this group as well, and the older

players are expected to be involved in various aspects of ministry that Kingdom Rugby does.

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Sports Minister Position Mission Description

Job Title: Community Coordinator

Job Description: The job of the community coordinators is to research the communities that they are in

and learn about what makes up the community that they are in; the people, the places, the history, and

the opportunities that are available to people.

Another integral part of the Community Coordinators job is to not just research about the communities

that they are in but to go and live in them, get to know people, and spend time just observing within in

their given community. Building friendships in the community is an important aspect of the community

coordinators focus.

A third part of being a community coordinator is to help think of, strategize, organize and plan, and

oversee different events that happen within the community. We at Kingdom Rugby want to be

intentional about being in the different communities and putting together events that benefit the

communities that we live and work in. Community coordinators will have to work with different people,

businesses, and institutions in the community to help accomplish the different types of events that we

hope to run.

A fourth part of being a community coordinator is one is able to have clear communication between the

different areas of the ministry and the community. A community coordinator needs to be able to listen

well to the ministry directors and to the people/businesses in the community and work be able to

problem solve to get the best result of the event that is being done by Kingdom Rugby in the

community.

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Spiritual Requirements: We believe that it is important that our community coordinators be called to

this position and believe that to do this position for solely the Glory of God, so we do have a couple of

requirements from a spiritual perspective with this job.

Believer in Jesus Christ

Understanding of relational ministry and how to do outreach/evangelism

Willing to disciple others

Heart for service

Preferred Skills: These are skills that are not necessarily required to have to be a community

coordinator, but after research, these skills will be very beneficial for the community and Kingdom

Rugby if possessed.

Good with administrational duties (researching, filing, gaining and maintaining contacts, etc...)

Outgoing and likes working with people

Willing to grow and be placed in new and challenging situations

Be able to problem solve and think outside the box

Salary: Salary is offered, but will vary from year to year. Fundraising is highly encouraged.

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Staff and Volunteer Responsibilities

Staff Responsibilities

Ministry Directors: There are five ministry directors who make up the leadership team of Kingdom

Rugby. They help drive the mission and vision of Kingdom Rugby as well as overseeing all the logistics of

Kingdom Rugby

Oversee each specific area of Kingdom Rugby (Coaches & Travel team, Volunteers, Interns,

etc...)

Meet weekly to discuss all the different aspects of the ministry

o Vision and mission

o Logistics

o Problems

o Events and Opportunities

Work alongside other staff members and advise them

Oversee salary and help gauge fundraising for staff

Travel to different events/colleges/conferences to speak, recruit, learn, etc…

Work on ways to partner with city and with Rugby teams

Administration: Administration staff helps with the different aspects that are involved with the different

areas of Kingdom Rugby.

Help schedule and organize events and keep track of contact info

Talk with local businesses about sponsoring

Oversee PR & marketing campaigns

Schedule rugby games

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Help summer coaches and interns with all necessary paperwork/visa requirements

Contact and file information that is needed to be kept

Update and edit contact lists

Help with fundraising and salaries for staff

Accounting

Community Coordinators: Work in the community to help organize events, games, outreach, and to

serve the community in whatever way they are able to serve.

Research the communities that Kingdom Rugby are in and learn about the communities

Build friendships with people within the community

Help strategize, organize, plan, and oversee different events and outreaches that will be

happening in the community

Work with local businesses and institutions to help with hosting and running various events

Help clearly communicate between community and Kingdom Rugby

Use social media to help spread knowledge of events and to do PR/Marketing

Be able to problem solve and think outside the box on various issues and how they can be

accomplished

Help organize volunteers and oversee them throughout the different events, games, and

outreaches that happen

Coaches: Oversee the different travel teams that make up Kingdom Rugby and oversee all the different

aspects of running a team

Run and schedule practices for all teams, as well working 1-on-1 with players and rehab

Help organize games and tournaments for the team

Recruit and scout players

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Develop and help organize/lead devotionals for the team

Help run and organize events for players and family

Disciple and mentor players

Volunteer Responsibilities

We at Kingdom Rugby highly value volunteers who we know are giving up their time and energy to help

us put set up, run, and tear down events, help paint fields, and many other little things that allow us to

be able to run things smoothly. However, we do still hold our volunteers to the standard that we hold

our staff and players to. We want them to be passionate about making a difference in their community.

Matthew 25: 40 "The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of

these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.'

Volunteers are expected to help with…

Helping set up, run, and tear down different events and outreach programs that Kingdom Rugby

does in the community

Help work with different activities within the different categories in games, practices,

tournaments, for the travel teams

Assist Community Coordinators with contacting businesses and other institutions

Promotions

Pray and lead prayer teams

Assist and do whatever needs to be done to the best of their ability

Best Practices

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Public relations

Know what is newsworthy : Don’t waste the media’s time, not everything that one does is

worthy of news, if you only send press releases when it is actually something big, it will make

you stand out. Also if you make sure it benefits them the news person, it will help your

reputation.

Be concise : Keep it short and to the point, don’t add a lot of filler words, just keep it short and

sweet

Be timely : It is important to realize that it takes a bit of time for news that get sent in to be

processed and decided upon, make sure when you send something in, that the news has time to

process and add it

Use AP style : Use their style that the news people use, it will help them be able to read and

process what you sent better and faster and will show that you respect them.

Frame the Story : Don’t lie, but try to reflect positively. You have control on how the story is

shaped, try to make sure story is positive, but be honest about what is happening

Be honest : Tell the truth, do not lie

Leverage social media : Social media has become an easy and free way to do public relations, be

sure to use social media the best way that you can to get what you are doing out there

Be professional : Make sure that things are done to the highest standard

Quality of quantity : Make sure that things are done well and that when you do public relations

it when it is something important. Do not bombard the media with tons of things that are not

important.

Be relational : Make sure that people can relate to what you are saying.

Marketing

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Know your target audience : Make sure you know the people who you most want to participate

or invest. These people may change depending on the situation; make sure you know who are

marketing too.

Be Strategic : Make sure you make good strategic decisions, make sure you do research through

things such as a SWOT Analysis that help you understand what would work best, be strategic

first and then develop creative aspect.

Build a brand and integrate it : Design and create your own logo, name and mission, vision, color

scheme. Make sure that everything fits together and works together, even for parent ministry if

applicable. These things will help you be recognizable.

Be Creative : “Less is more”. You do not always need some crazy complicated brand scheme;

sometimes a simple brand layout is best. It might be advisable to recruit/hire someone to design

for you.

Be Concise : Ties in with creativity. Let your brand be clear and to the point.

Grab attention : Be creative and find a way to grab people’s attention. Discovering a hook in

which to draw people in can be very beneficial.

Be first or last : If you’re the first to market something, set the tone, and if you’re last, have the

last word on the subject. Need be first in some sort of category (and you can create your own

categories if need be).

Be repetitive not redundant : Don’t say exact thing over and over, Create and use different

talking points that allow you to cover the same material in a new way.

Be Cost effective : (Most likely will have limited budget)

Maximize social media & WOMMA : Social media is a free and easy way to get your brand or

name out there, use it to your best advantage. Also WOMMA (Word Of Mouth Marketing)

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allows others to tell people who can tell the story or talk about the brand. This allows there to

be less bias, which increases credibility among people.

Call to Action : Persuade people to do something. Leave them with the desire to make a

difference or to change something.

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Brochure Content

Cover of the Brochure: Brochure would be tri-folded with information on the inside.

Content Inside Brochure

What is Kingdom Rugby?

Kingdom Rugby is a non-profit rugby organization that is committed to furthering the name of

Christ through the sport of Rugby. We see sports as an opportunity to grow and fellowship with

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believers and to fulfill the great commission. We are also committed to being involved in the

community and playing Rugby to the highest standard.

Dates of callout meeting?

If you are interested in playing rugby or just learning about the sport of Rugby please attend the

following callout meetings

o October 7th—6 p.m.

o October 21—7 p.m.

o November 5th—7 p.m.

Location TBA

Outreach day in the community

We believe in being a part of and giving back to the community is really important and we want

to do that so please consider joining us for one of these events or if you are able, please think

about volunteering

o Keep the City Clean (Rugby style!)—October 23rd

The different competitive teams will be in the park this Saturday cleaning up

trash and will be planting trees, flowers, and will finish the evening off with a

friendly rugby match between a couple of the teams, please come join in or

watch the fun!

How to get involved

Please email kingdomrugby@gmail.com or call 1-765-777-6565 for more info about Kingdom

Rugby and how you can get involved

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Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 30, 2014

Contact:Isaac Gray Kingdom Rugby, Bloomington, Indiana 123 Main StreetBloomington, IN 2387874Phone: 1-765-777-6565http://www.kingdomrugby.org

Former All Black Rugby Player Michael Jones to Speak about Combining Faith and Sport

Bloomington, IN—Kingdom Rugby and Indiana University have started a partnership which will begin in January 2015. The partnership will consist of former and current Christian rugby athletes who will host sporting events that promote both the sport of rugby and ministry. On January 15 th, the first event will take place at Assembly Hall, on the Campus at IU at 6 p.m. The event is open to anyone in the community to come and admission will be $10 per person and $5 dollars per person if persons are part of sports team in attendance.

Kingdom Rugby and Indiana University have agreed to host these events at Assembly Hall. These events will consist of former and current Christian rugby players sharing their testimonies and talking about how to share the Gospel in the world of Rugby. These events will also include workshops such as coaching and practice techniques. It was also include viewing parties of the Rugby World Cup which takes place in 2015.

Kingdom Rugby and Indiana University are excited for this partnership and believe it shall continue to grow stronger and both are looking forward to raising the awareness for the sport of Rugby.

For more information about Kingdom Rugby in Bloomington, please visit http://www.kingdomrugby.org or contact Isaac Gray at 765-777-6565.

123 Main street Bloomington, IN 2387874 (765) 777-6565 info@kingdomrugby.org http://www.kingdomrugby.org

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SWOT Analysis: First Wesleyan Church of Lancaster

Strengths

The church of Lancaster has solid givers and you will have steady budget for the sports ministry. A

second strength is that this is a completely new ministry within the church, there are not expectations

on how it should be run, so it allows you room for error and to help figure out what will work and what

will not work. Also have support of the church.

Weaknesses

One possible weakness of this church’s sports ministry is the congregation participation. They do not

really get involved in a lot of church related outreaches outside the Sunday morning service and Sunday

school and only about half the congregation regularly attend, this can lead to the issue of having enough

volunteers when you want to run an outreach event. A second possible weakness is that since you the

church do not have space of its own to use for events, the sports ministry must rely on outside places to

accommodate them.

Opportunities

One opportunity of this sports ministry is that they have a good relationship with the Ohio State

University that they can partner with OSU to run certain events. Another opportunity this sports

ministry has is that since the church has a good reputation within the community, the sports ministry

will be able to use local facilities and schools for different things. This sports ministry might help add to

the church membership as well.

Threats

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One possible threat is the church reputation in the town. The church has a good reputation, but if the

sports ministry does not hit the ground running, it could damage the reputation of the church, because

the people who are familiar with the church have expectations on how the sports ministry should be or

operate, might not understand the process and growth of the sports ministry. A second threat would be

the competition level. Lancaster is a sports enthusiastic town, and depending on how competitive the

sports ministry is, it could lose some interest in town.

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SWOT Analysis: Kingdom Rugby

Strengths

One strength of Kingdom Rugby is that it is a non-profit organization so they are established in the

community and have a system in place that allows them to run efficiently and smoothly. Another

strength of Kingdom Rugby is that they do have their own fields, which allows them to host games,

practices, and some events at these fields. A third strength would be that they have a lot of different

ways that one can get involved with the ministry, so it helps them appeal to wider range of people.

Weaknesses

One potential weakness is that there is several different areas in which Kingdom Rugby operates, there

can be an over emphasis of one particular aspect of the ministry and the other areas may diminish. A

second possible weakness is that it can be harder to get church support since it is a standalone non-

profit organization.

Opportunities

One opportunity is that Bloomington is quite a big sports town, which means that there will more than

likely be quite a bit of interest in the sport of Rugby. A second opportunity is that there are a lot of local

businesses that can sponsor and get free marketing, and help support the work Kingdom Rugby is doing

in the community. A third opportunity is that Kingdom Rugby has several different ways of doing

ministry which allows them to appeal to more people in Bloomington and surrounding towns.

Threats

One threat would be that since Indiana University is located in Bloomington, there is a huge emphasis

on American football and basketball, which could result in less interest for Rugby. Another threat is that

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one aspect of this organization is competitive Rugby, could stand opposed to churches in the area, if

they view competition as not the focus of doing sports ministry.

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Best Practices

Raising Support

Avoid “crisis” fundraising : Try to raise support to plan for the future. Do not raise support by

acting like or only trying to raise support when you have a crisis and have to make ends meet.

Be clear : Be honest and clear about how much you need and what your goals our.

“Investment” rather than support : Understand that some people are not able to do ministry in

the same way that you are, but let them know that they can have a part in the work you are

doing

Don’t leverage people : Do not try to make people give you money; allow them to decide how

they want to invest in you.

Be humble : Do not be prideful when presenting about what God has called you to, rather focus

on what God has been doing through you and the ministry, and keep focus on Him!

Be passionate : God has given you a purpose and a passion for what you are doing, communicate

that.

Be relational : Try to relate to the people you are talking too. Do not come across like you do not

care about what you are doing.

Make presentation come alive : Make it interesting. Do not just drone on and on, put present

and use tools that allow you to capture and keep people’s attention.

Ask for kingdom not for you : Make it clear that you want to further the work of God’s kingdom;

the investment is not for your own personal gain.

Focus on opportunity & benefits of giving : Show the people you are talking how giving would

benefit them and how they can help others through what you are doing

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Mission is life transformation not programs or events : Communicate that the point of the

mission that you are doing is to see people come to Christ and accept Him into their hearts, not

about having the coolest, biggest, and most expensive programs or events.

Educate (History, vision, mission, values) : Be able to communicate the history, vision, mission,

and values of the agency of that you are with. You need to do own research and learn what

these things are. Some people might have no idea what the purpose of your agency is unless

you can tell them clearly

Presentation length : You should not present for longer than 15 minutes. You will start to lose

interest if you talk for a long period of time.

Ask the person how you should follow up : Be intentional about wanting to follow up, but make

sure to ask how they want you to follow and when they want you too. Make sure and

communicate that they have control and it does not feel like you are forcing them into a

decision.

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Fundraising Letter

Dear Friends,

As you all know, I love the sport of rugby and have always wanted to use that love for the glory of God. Well, I have great news!! I had the opportunity to apply and interview for a coaching position at Kingdom Rugby and have just received word that I have been offered the full-time coaching position with them coaching one of the competitive travel teams. It is amazing how God has been able to use the passion I have for the sport of rugby and is allowing me to use to further the Kingdom of God!! He has confirmed that this is His will for my life currently through scripture, counsel from others, and prayer.

Kingdom Rugby is based out of Bloomington, Indiana and was founded in 2007. They focus on sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the sport of Rugby so that people can come to know Jesus Christ as their own personal savior, and begin a relationship with Him. They also want to see communities impacted positively and transformed, which can only happen through the power of Jesus Christ.

Kingdom Rugby has several different strategies when it comes to sharing the Gospel, but the avenue that I have been chosen to do will be through coaching. As a coach of Kingdom Rugby I will have the opportunity and privilege to teach and help deepen the relationship with Christ that the future players I will coach have. Other aspects of this job will include:

Help organize games and tournaments for the team Recruit and scout players Develop and help organize/lead devotionals for the team Disciple and mentor players

While I am very excited for this opportunity and that I have been offered this job, I do not want to embark on this adventure alone. I would love if you guys would consider partnering with me. Most importantly, I would love for you all to become part of my prayer team, and if you feel called, part of my financial team as well. Even though this is a paid position, I will still need to raise about $5000 a year to cover some of the costs that I and the other coaches will have to take on, by becoming coaches of traveling teams.

Please not the response card and the endorsed envelope. If you have any questions, please contact me. I would love to talk and meet with you personally and answer and explain more about Kingdom Rugby and its mission that I have the privilege to now be a part of. You can also contact me at 1-765-777-6565 or by email at coachissac@kingdomrugby.com

May God bless and keep you all!

-Isaac

P.S. All tax deductible checks should be made payable to Kingdom Rugby and will be forwarded to us.

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Key Topics

Is competition good or bad in a sports ministry context?

This is a question that has been debated back and forth for a long time within Christianity when

it comes to approaching sports ministry. The opinions on this topic are quite varied and each sports

ministry has a different take on what is right and what is not.

An argument for why competition is good within the context of sports ministry is that there

needs to be winners and losers, because kids today need to learn how to fail and sometimes are

greatest learning and growth can come through reproof and correction. Another point that is given on

this side of the argument is that competition drives excellence, and it will help kids develop excellence

not only in sport, but in spiritual aspects as well.

An argument against competition within the context of sports ministry is that competition is not

the point of the sports ministry. It is more important to focus on the ministry aspect of things, and just

use sport as a means to accomplish that goal. Some people are also concerned that competition brings

out the worst in people, not the best and it would be better to just play the sport with a focus on

improvement and developing the spiritual side of the people who come to the sports ministry.

My own viewpoint on this issue is that competition is good for the sports ministry context,

though I do understand the other side of the argument. I believe that competition can be really good for

us when we do sports ministry, and I have heard stories personally from others in the sports ministry

field, that reason they were able to witness and share the Gospel with others was due to the fact they

were competitive and could play and beat other teams.

How would you attempt to persuade someone in your church of the value of sports ministry?

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I would attempt to persuade them by pointing out that sports is one of the universal languages

of the world (other being music) and because of this, sports can have an huge impact on others for

Christ, because it will attract people who may not necessarily be open to the Gospel through more

traditional methods of ministry.

I would say that sports give a great opportunity for relational witnessing and that for some

people; you need to get along side of them and build relationships with them. They need to see that you

genuinely care and want to invest in their lives, before they will become open to hearing about the

Gospel. Sports and recreational ministry are great tools to use to do that.

A third reason is that sports and recreation ministry have value is that it allows churches to

appeal to all people regardless of age and background. These ministries can be adapted for any age and

for space, which allows the church to impact people across the board and not just one or two different

groups of people.

What are the similarities and differences between church-based and parachurch sports ministry?

One similarity that both church-based and parachurch sports ministries have is that in a sense,

they still both have the same general mission in mind, which is to use athletics and athletes to share the

Gospel of Christ.

Another similarity is that both try to find the correct balance between the sports and ministry

sides of sports ministry. Both want to do sports to the best of their ability, but also want to share the

Gospel or show Christ through their actions to the best of their ability as well.

They both rely on volunteers to help them accomplish different events and programs that they

do. They recognize the importance that volunteers have. They both also have a focus on discipleship and

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growing new believers in their faith, but also growing their own faith as well, through avenues like

discipleship and mentoring.

They are also different in some ways as well. With church based sports ministry, you can

generally see a more community based sports mission focus, because the churches strategy for missions

is different than that of a parachurch sports ministry. The people working at the church sports ministry

are generally paid staff and they can also have in some cases, better follow up with people they are

working with. They can also have more of a focus on bringing people into their local church.

In parachurch sports ministry, there can be more of a focus on outreach than on disciplining, it

can be more important to meet people where they are at and help them, even if for just a short while.

Generally, people who are in parachurch sports ministries have to do some type of fundraising, even if

they do have a small salary. Another difference is that you can see a bigger variety of sports ministries,

because they in some sense have to adapt to whatever area they are working in.

Other focuses can include the structure of the sports ministry, the target audience, the

denominational beliefs of the sports ministry, and how long they work in a certain area.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of different kinds of evangelism?

The three main types of evangelism that we hear about our proclamation, confrontational, and

relational and each of these different types of evangelism have their different strengths and

weaknesses.

A strength that proclamation evangelism has is it can be used to influence large groups of

people and can a long lasting effect on people, though the outreach may last only a short time. An

example of someone who had done this type of evangelism for years would be Billy Graham. A

weakness that proclamation evangelism has is that there isn’t really great follow up. People may come

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and have a great encounter with God, but then do not have anyone to come along and help disciple

them and help their faith grow.

A second type of evangelism is confrontational evangelism. This type of evangelism is generally

done cold turkey. One person or perhaps a group of people will go to places like parks, beaches, or other

public areas and just ask people about God and if they believe in God. A strength that this type of

evangelism has is that it allows some people to get met where they’re at and allows God to use

someone to speak directly into someone’s life. Another strength is there are a lot of different ways to

approach and try to talk with someone, there are tools like the colorless book or soccer ball, or

evangelism cube.

A weakness of this type of evangelism is that it can come across as very in your face and not a

lot of people appreciate that. It can also be very intimidating to do, because you do not know how

someone will react. There is generally not a lot of follow up with people who accept Jesus Christ or who

are at least interested in knowing more.

The third type of evangelism is relational evangelism. This type of evangelism can be done by

almost anyone, because the focus about forming relationships with people who don’t know Christ. A

strength of this type of evangelism is that you have the ability to discipleship and mentor people and

help them if they have any questions about God or salvation.

A disadvantage to this type of evangelism is that it can be hard to judge if there will be a change

in the person or peoples heart who you working living along side and the focus can shift from the

spiritual and it can be just become about hanging out and being friends and not really ever confronting

someone about their need for Christ.

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Should you begin support-raising before you have decided which ministry to work with? Why or why

not?

I think that it might be start to making a list of possible contacts before support raising, and

evening having initial conversations with people who are close to you about possibly supporting you in

the future, but I do not believe it is smart to begin support raising before deciding which ministry to

work with.

One reason that I think this is that a lot of people want to know what you are doing and what

God has called you to do, before they decide to support you. If you are not really sure about what God is

calling you to do, it seems to me, people would have a harder time be willing to support you finically.

They want to see where their money is being invested and used to spread the Gospel of Christ, and they

cannot always see that if you do not know what agency you are planning on working for.

A second reason of why I believe one should wait is that once you know which organization you

are working for, if people decide to support you, it can be tax deductable for them, which is something a

lot of people want to have. If they start supporting you personally before you join a ministry, that option

is no longer there.

People also want concrete facts, they want to know what you will be doing, where will you be,

and how much will you need, and a good amount of people in my opinion, would not be comfortable

giving someone money for ministry, if they did not know what ministry God is calling them to.

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Isaac Gray

12 September 2014

Professor Burson

Models of Sports Ministries

Guest Speaker Reflection Speaker #1

Our first guest speaker for this class was Curt Weerheim. He works for the sports ministry

agency known as Athletes in Action. He graduated from Northwestern College with degrees in Sociology

and Recreation He works in the Global part of Athletes in Action and is in charge of one of the ten

regions that AIA has divided the world up in to. He is the head of the Southeast Asia region.

He talked about how AIA was started in 1966 by David Hannah. He went to the leader of

Campus Crusade and asked about using sports to reach people, the head of Campus Crusade said go for

it. He also borrowed the motto of Campus Crusade and edited it. He made the motto “Reach the athlete

today and the world tomorrow”.

Since AIA’s humble beginnings, they have grown immensely, and their goal is to get someone in

everyone of the Olympic sports and they are also in 10 to 12 major sports within the USA, a couple of

examples of those being American football and basketball. A lot of other sports ministries view Athletes

in Action as the “granddaddy” of sports ministry. This year, they were able to have 31 teams, in 10

different sports this year. They were also able to run 6 different missions projects and be part of big

sports events, such as the FIBA World championships held in Spain. AIA use about 5 different main

strategies when doing sports ministry. The first is Global events, which is like the World Cup or Olympics,

the second is Global Sports, which is the 10-12 major sports they are involved in. The third is Media,

using magazines, DVD’s, etc… The fourth is Global Church Sports, which helps local churches become

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involved in sport (The Netherlands does a great job of this), and Sports Aid, which helps get necessities

to countries that need them.

Curt has been with AIA for 32 years. He started by going on summer traveling teams in

basketball. He then joined AIA full time. He stated that “raising funds was a little scary and was also a lot

of fun”. Since joining AIA 32 years ago, he has been able to do sports ministry in various locations and

places. He has been able to work with athletes at the NCAA Final Fours, Travel to various countries in

Southeast Asia and work with teams there. He also had the great opportunity to travel to the World Cup

in Brazil this past year and work there along with some donors at various cities and was able to also

travel to 2 games, one of which was Germany vs. USA.

I thought that everything was said was interesting and good. Even though I have heard of

Athletes in Action before, I did not know how big and expansive they actually were, so it was cool to see

how they are a global movement, and not just focused in one country. I also really liked how Curt talked

about all the different sports that AIA is involved in, because I believe that allows more people to be

able to become involved. I also really liked what he said about doing sports ministry, that you do not

have to be an elite athlete or a professional to do sports ministry, but that God can use you in sports

ministries no matter who you are or what your gifts and abilities are, because there are so many

avenues that sports allow one to be in, and it does not just have to be on the field.

In conclusion, I think the quote he mentioned in class by Nelson Mandela is a great way to

conclude this paper, because I believe that sports and that doing ministry through them can change the

world. “Sport has the power to change the world…it has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite

people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand. Sport can create

hope where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than government in breaking down racial

barriers”.

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Isaac Gray

22 September 2014

Professor Burson

Models of Sports Ministries

Guest Speaker Reflection Speaker #2

The guest speaker was Mark DeMichael, the Indiana Wesleyan University Athletic Director. He

grew up moving a lot because both of his parents were ordained in the Salvation Army and they would

have to go to different places for work. He accepted Jesus Christ as a junior in High school. He grew up

loving the sport of baseball, but played soccer in school as well and was actually a better soccer player.

After high school, he attended Eastern Nazarene College where he graduated with a degree in physical

education. He learned how one can combine sports in ministry after college when presented an

opportunity with Outreach International to tour and play soccer. Before becoming the athletic director

at IWU, he was the baseball coach for the men’s baseball team.

One of the main aspects from the talk was that how our faith needs to reflect in our lives no

matter what we do and how can use sports to do missions, he used the Indiana Wesleyan athletic

department as an example and talked about the internal mission and external mission that they have.

He discussed how the internal mission for the athletic department on this campus is one of

spiritual growth, academic achievement, leadership development, and athletic excellence and how they

try to accomplish all of those things on this campus. He then moved into the eternal mission that the

athletic department has, and how that is reflected in the community outreach that the teams as well as

the mission trips and how those things reflect Philippians 2:1-11.

There are several examples of how the faith and mission of the athletic department is being

lived out. One of the examples that was given was that a lot of the athletes are working with Kids Hope

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through College Wesleyan and working with kids at Francis Slocum elementary. They are also involved in

other agencies as well, such as St. Martins, White’s, and Colonial Oaks.

Another aspect of sports ministry that Mark DeMichael talked about was about it takes time and

teamwork to do sports ministry and how things are not always instantaneous. The example of this that

he gave was that of the mission trip by the IWU athletic department to New Zealand two years ago. He

talked about how God laid it on his heart when he and the baseball team were on a mission’s trip to the

Czech Republic. The trip took three years to plan, and countless people helped with all the logistics. How

they needed people on the ground in New Zealand and here at IWU to make this trip happen. It was

clear example of the great commission and how God used the athletic department used sports ministry

to spread the name of God to the world.

I thought this talk was really clear and really good. I liked how Mark DeMIchael talked about the

Philosophy behind the ministry and how they as an athletic department believe what God is calling them

to do. I also then how he talked about the different examples of how sports ministry has been done in

different contexts and avenues. I also how he talked about how where the heart is when doing sports

ministry and how he said we don’t need to be an elite athlete to do sports ministry, but that we just

need to be open to God using us.

I learned that when doing sports ministry, it is a lot of the time better to have a team around

you, because in an area where you might be weak, it might be someone else’s strength. I learned that

sports ministry can take time to do, and there has to be lots of groundwork laid down, like he said, the

New Zealand trip took three years to plan before it actually happened. A third thing I learned was that

one needs to make sure one present’s sports ministry clearly, because some people might not

understand the concept, even though it seems simple to us. Finally, I learned that we need to be open

for God to use us and work in us, even when we don’t expect it.

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Isaac Gray

29 September 2014

Professor Burson

Models of Sports Ministry

Guest Speaker Reflection Paper #3

Introduction

The guest speaker was Kraig Cabe, who is the Indiana State Director for Fellowship of Christian

Athletes. He grew up only seven minutes from Indiana Wesleyan University and attended the university

as well. He has a brother who also works at this university.

Abstract Summary

He talked to the class about how he got involved in FCA and how that journey was for him and

how God worked during that time. Kraig also discussed the recent event that FCA did in Ft. Wayne called

Fields of Faith, which our class attended and how they have been in and grown within the school

system. He made sure to also talk about the Ministry Distinctives for FCA and how those shape the

purpose and the mission of FCA.

Speaker Experiences

I thought the story of how Kraig cabe joined FCA was a cool story of how God worked in his life

and brought him to where he is toda. It was really cool hearing that on the trip he got to train Olympic

teams and also got to share the Gospel with Muslims because they wanted to learn the sport of baseball

so much and how God used that sport to spread His Gospel

Also, I believe that the story of Cam (Football player who spoke at Fields of Faith) was really cool

and how we were able to hear more about his life and what God has done it. It makes his speech at the

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event seem even more real and true, because we were able to learn even more about how God has

shown up in his life and how God wants to use Him for the Glory of the Kingdom in the future.

A third story that he told that I was impactful was about how he joined and started to do FCA

work in Ft. Wayne and how it changed from not having anything to being spread far and wide

throughout Indiana and it only took him 9 months to get the support that he needed.

Personal Thought and Reflections

I really liked when he talked about the stories mentioned above, because they were clear

examples of how God was at work and how God used sport and people being willing to follow Him to

start something that now has grown a lot and how they have been able to go into areas that they

otherwise could not have if they had not used sport.

I also think that the ministry distinctives were very good and very applicable and I also liked how

he went through each on and talked about the importance of it and how it needs to work in our lives. I

think being Christ-centered is very important when doing sports ministry and I liked how he talked about

and gave examples of how sport is culturally adaptive.

Actions

I think a lot of the things that Kraig cabe said could be put into practice. No matter what we do

in life, some of the ministry distinctives need to be applied to our personal lives and not just sports

ministry. I believe that we need to be Christ-centered daily and that we need to have our lives grounded

in the truth of the Bible.

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Another is that we simply need to do what God has called us to do and that God will work

through that for His glory. A quote that Kraig said which I think sums that idea up nicely is “the best

ministry should happen when you leave and not when you arrive”.

Isaac Gray

1 October 2014

Professor Burson

Models of Sports Ministry

Guest Speaker Reflection Paper #4

Introduction

Ashley Brooks is the Resident of Sport at Cyprus Wesleyan Church which is located in Galloway,

Ohio. She started at this position in August and will be there for at least one year.

She grew up in Upland, Indiana and attended IWU where she studied Christian Education and

Intercultural Studies and played basketball on the Women’s team.

Abstract Summary

The mission statement of Cyprus Wesleyan when it comes to sport is that it wants to “Reach

families through Christ”, that is the core of the sports program that Cyprus Wesleyan runs. They

accomplish by running different sports for kids and adults during different parts of the year. For kids,

they run flag football, basketball, and soccer. For adults, they do sports like sand volleyball, flag football,

basketball, co-ed softball, and men’s softball.

They also attempt to accomplish their mission by how they run the sports program. Kids are

required to attend a service at the church every week and throughout the week will have devotion with

their time that is based on what they learned in kid’s church or what they will learn. This allows the kids

to be involved in the sport and also allows them along with their family to hear about God.

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The adults are also required to do the same. They are required to attend a service at Cyprus

Wesleyan at some point throughout the week, because Cyprus wants the sports program to be more

about than having fun with others, they want people to hear about and come to Christ.

The church, due to its size (is about 4,000 people) has to run its sports outreach ministry in an

organized way. They operate on a tier system. There is a leader of a particular sport and then there are

people under them whose job it is to help the coaches of all the teams, then the coaches are able to

have assistants as well that help them. There is emphasis throughout the system on showing Christ and

making sure that He is made known, and they also make sure that the kids and adults are improving in

the sport and having fun.

Speaker Experience

I thought it was cool how Ashley shared how she had been involved in FCA for two

summers and how now at Cyprus she can use what she learned during those summers and how

experience is helping shape her experience now. It was also cool hearing her talk about how she ended

up at Cyprus, because she didn’t sports ministry at IWU and wanted to go be a missionary originally, but

how God brought her to Cyprus and brought her into Sports ministry.

Personal Reflection

I think it was really cool hearing about how Cyprus Wesleyan runs their sports ministry

program, it is actually the most detailed and in depth view of a church sports ministry that I have ever

heard about. I know they received some push back, but I liked the fact that they want to focus on

families that are not believers and want to reach out to them, even if it means that some families from

other churches cannot participate, because they know what the purpose of their ministry is and want to

stay true to their calling.

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Application

I think a way that we need to apply this is that an organized system of doing sports ministry does have benefits and can be very effective and that one needs to stay true to the purpose of the sports m

Isaac Gray

25 October 2014

Professor Burson

Models of Sports Ministries

Guest Reflection Speaker Paper #5

Introduction

Kristina Krogstad is an Area Representative for FCA in the Ft. Wayne area. She grew up in

Madison, Wisconsin and graduated from Indiana Wesleyan University in 2012 with a degree in Sports

Ministry, though she started in athletic training. She grew up knowing about FCA, and helped do a golf

camp with them in Madison. Also, over a summer, as well as during the fall in a form of an internship,

she worked at FCA while studying at Indiana Wesleyan. She was then offered a full time position and

eventually accepted it. She now works with Camps, Coaches, Communities, and Campuses across Ft.

Wayne and beyond.

Abstract Summary

One thing that Kristina talked about was the four C’s of FCA; Colleges, Campuses, Communities,

and Coaches and how FCA attempts to target these four different areas and what does that look like on

a practical and ground level.

She also discussed the importance of volunteers and discussed the strengths of them, such as

the expansion of the ministry with less full time staff, but she also talked about the weakness of

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volunteers, such as the effectiveness of one’s ministry can suffer. She also discussed how important it is

to motivate volunteers.

Kristina also talked about what the routine was on a weekly basis for FCA where she is in Ft.

Wayne. This involves varying and different aspects of practical and visionary things. A weekly routine

features daily prayer, staff meetings, event planning, administration, and vision casting to name a few.

She also talked about fundraising and how it was for her to fundraise and just how it is a

continual process. She concluded with giving practical advice for ministry, such as how ministry is always

an uphill battle, but God is on our side and the victory as one. That clear communication is important

and that we need to be willing to face conflict.

Speaker Experience

I liked how Kristina shared her story how she got involved in FCA and how her job is always

changing somewhat, but how she adapts to it. I also liked how she very was open and honest about not

knowing everything and she still is learning about how to do sports ministry. It was cool hearing from

someone who is closer to our age and is still relatively new in the sports ministry field.

Personal Reflection

I liked hearing about FCA and what working with them is like locally and how they run on a

practical level. With Kraig, we got the broad overview and vision of FCA, but I liked how from Kristina,

we got a more daily and ground picture of FCA and how it runs. I also loved the advice she gave at the

end, because it was very practical and stuff we need to know as we enter the field of sports ministry and

ministry in general.

Application

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I think a way that we need to apply the information learned is to be sure when we enter into

sports ministry, that we have a vision, but we need to realize and see how the everyday things help play

their part in the overall ministry, also, that our spiritual growth needs to change and grow as well.

Isaac Gray

4 November 2014

Professor Burson

Models of Sports Ministries

Guest Reflection Paper #6

Background

When Greg Linville started in ministry, using sports to do ministry was a foreign concept. He started

with the YMCA and learned that ministry seemed most effective when he “had a ball in one hand and a Bible

in the other”. He has coached at six different high schools in Ohio and at Malone University during the 1980’s

and Geneva College. He has worked in both church and para- ministry settings.

Abstract Summary

One of Greg Linville’s main points is that sports ministry is seeing declines across the board and the

reasons for this. One reason he gave was that sports ministry “has not filled the expectations and promises”,

due in part to decline of Christianity in the United States. Another reason he gave was that the local church as

a whole hasn’t grown through the avenue of sports and recreation ministry. He also focused on three main

issues during his talk. The first one was, is Competition Theologically Sound?

He talked about if it is theologically sound, then sports are biblical. Though, he said Christians have

thought competition is evil and have not done it, so now at a crossroads about how deal with the issue of

competition.

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The second main issue was that of “Sunday Sports” and what are the issues and addressing and

answering the questions and agreements that surround this issue and how one’s opinion of this is dependent

on how they view things like the Sabbath, the Lord’s day, Outreach, and the view of church.

The third main issue he talked about in the realm of sports ministry was that of “gender issues.” He

talked about when it comes to this issue, our biblical foundation is will influence what we decide to do. He

did say that we need to love and show that the person has value, and “love them into a place where they can

hear and believe God’s truth”. He also said on a practical level, that we need to make recreational

transgender friendly, and not build things specifically for men and women.

He also briefly discussed the three levels of structure for sports and recreation ministry, which starts

with the “why” (Theology), the “When, Where & to Whom” (Philosophy), and the “what” (methodology).

Speaker Experiences

Greg first told a story during his background about a church that was doing a good job with its

methodology, but was also helping develop believers to full spiritual maturity and how God blessed that

ministry and how the church grew from about 200 people to 2500 people. He also told the story of Eric

Liddell, an athlete who did not race on Sundays, and because of that, there was a movie called “Chariots of

Fire” made about him and since the movie is considered a classic, he now has a greater witness.

Personal Reflections and Questions

I thought that Greg Linville did a good job talking about how we need to have a Biblical and

foundation and how that is what influences everything else that we do within sports in recreation ministry.

Though it did seem he focused a lot on the negatives of sports ministry, but did not seem (to me anyway)

give a ton of practical advice about how to change it.

Actions

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One practical takeaway is that I can start researching what is my biblical basis for wanting to do sports

ministry, because that will influence what I do. Another practical step is start searching into internships and

conferences and start building a network of people and organizations.

Isaac Gray

12 November 2014

Professor Burson

Models of Sports Ministry

Guest Reflection Paper #7

Background

Jeff Totten has a background in being a pastor and is currently a interim pastor at a church in his

hometown. He started SCORE International in 2000 and still runs that sports ministry organization with

his wife. He also teaches at a college in India and works with a businessman teaching golf and the

Gospel.

Abstract Summary

Jeff Totten talked about three main outreaches that he is involved in doing ministry with. The

first and main one that he talked about was baseball chapel, which does chapel services for different

groups within baseball. There is a group for vendors, security, etc…, one for visiting team, one for their

own team, and one for umpire. Baseball chapel also makes sure that there is someone to do chapels in

all the minor league affiliates of the major league team and also in the minor leagues; they have a chapel

service in Spanish for players from Spanish speaking countries.

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The second main outreach is the event called Home Plate. This takes place at Co-America Park

and allows fans to come to the game early and here players give their testimonies of faith and the last

player presents the gospel message to the fans. They also hand out cards with the testimonies of the

players and posters with players who are believers.

The third main outreach that Jeff Totten talked about was a retreat called “Coaches Timeout”.

This is an event for coaches and their wives a two day weekend retreat. It is an event open to coaches

and wives at any level of coaching and any sport and they help coaches be able to come to this event. At

these retreats, coaches have learned to love families better and wives have learned how to support their

husband’s ministries better. People have also become believers during this retreat.

Speaker Experience

One story that stuck out when Jeff Totten was talking how the most impactful thing he’s seen is

when people come to Christ and how he shared the story of Tony. He was able to build a relationship

over time with Tony, and because of that, he was able to do an over-the-phone Bible study with Tony

and eventually saw Tony come to Christ. It was then cool hearing where Tony is today and how is faith

influences him and others.

Another story that stuck out was the one of the Bible study and how the last couple years, the

two last players could still come together and worship God, even though one had made the Detroit

roster and the other had would have to go back to Toledo.

Personal Reflections

I liked how he clearly talked about each specific purpose of each ministry and the outcomes that

he has seen from each. I also liked how he gave us practical advice about things such as fundraising and

how to get involved. I also thought it was good how he made the point that could do things like baseball

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chapel, and still have another job in a church or a completely different field, but that it is a matter of

serving in however God calls you.

Actions

One action plan I can do is to look around for opportunities in the areas that I currently live or

will possibly live in and make the effort to start the process of becoming involved. Another action I can

do is pray and seek what type of ministry (church or para-church) and I am being called to be involved in

start thinking about what are the steps I need to start doing now to best prepare for that ministry.

Examples would be things such as fundraising, looking for sports internships or residencies, etc…

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Isaac Gray

19 November 2014

Professor Burson

Models of Sports Ministry

Guest Reflection Paper #8

Background

Joel Trainer grew up in Africa until the age of 12. He then moved to Ohio and then later moved

to Colorado. He was recruited to play for Indiana Wesleyan University’s soccer team. He had an

opportunity to work for the Detroit Pistons or continue to play soccer and was eventually led to work at

Kanakuk camps. Shay Robbins grew up in Iowa and lived for the world for about a decade, then through

his first job, a colleague started to disciple him and eventually led him to the Lord. He then was led to

camp ministry. Kanakuk was formed in 1926 and then Kids across America (a sister organization) was

formed later.

Abstract Summary

When Joel and Shay were speaking, they focus on wanting people who “Love Jesus, love

discipleship, and love sport and outdoors”. They also discussed the mission statement of Kanakuk, which

is “Developing dynamic Christian leaders through life and changing experiences, Godly relationships, and

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spiritual training”. They said they accomplish their mission statement by making sure that at the camps,

the focus is on God and not on the outside world. Another point they focused on was the importance of

making sure that the children have an safe environment, spiritual development (which is the main focus

of their programming), and then that the camp is affordable. Finally, they talked about their view of

competition and how they view from a healthy Christian view, that it is important to have winners and

losers, because the greatest growth can happened during the times of reproof and correction and that

competition drives excellence.

Speaker Experiences

I think one story that stuck out to me while Joel and Shay were speaking was the story of Nathan

Stanton, and how is life was influenced at Kanakuk, that God took someone who living in sin for this

world and changed him to someone who desires God, even though the college he is at says different.

The stories of the how Joel and Shay were both led to Kanakuk also stuck out, because even

though their stories were different, it still showed how God worked in their lives.

Personal Reflections and Questions

I really like how engaging Joel and Shay were when they spoke and how they involved us into

their discussion and through that gave us practical advice and at the same time, taught us how to do

that.

I thought it was also cool how they run the Kanakuk camps. It seemed to me that they had a

good balance of camps that were competition focused and how some are more recreational focused,

but regardless of how competitive and sport focused is, that the first focus is always on God.

Actions

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One action that we can do based upon what they talked about is learn more about Kanakuk. I

plan on attending the informational meeting that they are hosting so that I can learn more about the

camp. Another thing that I can do is start keeping a list of different sports and recreational ministries

that I would be interested in, so that I can have a database of different agencies that I can pray about

and see what doors God opens.

Resources/Bibliography/Websites

Sports Ministries I’m interested in

Kanakuk Kamps (www.kanakuk.com)o I’m interested at working at this camp because it would be good training in leadership

and it would allow me to do sport and work with youth, which are the things I want to do. I believe that it would help prepare me for oversees

Ambassadors Football (www.ambassadorsfootball.org)o I am interested in working with Ambassador Football because they are a soccer ministry

and are in many countries throughout the world. They are also located in the United Kingdom, which is an area of the world that God has laid on my heart. This past summer I did a summer coaching tour with them in the USA. Got to run camps and teach soccer.

World Horizons (www.worldhorizons.co.uk)o Not specifically a sports ministry, but in several of the countries that they are in, sports

ministry is used to share the Gospel of Christ. I have done a Gap Year Program with them and was able to use sport throughout that year to do ministry

Encompass Global Partners (www.encompassworldpartners.org)o Like World Horizons, they are not specifically a sports ministry agency, but sports are

one of the avenues that they use to do ministry. They have an adventure sport location in Japan.

Sports Ministry Links

www.csrm.org www.fca.org www. athletesinaction .org www.ambassadorsfootball.org www.kanakuk.com www.baseballchapel.org www.worldhorizons.co.uk

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Bibliography

“Recreation and Sports Ministry: Impacting Postmodern Culture” by John Garner

Additional Samples*

1. Sports Administration Portfolio Contains

i. Resumeii. Professional Evaluation

iii. Fitness Plansiv. Programmingv. Research on fitness, Rugby, and child development

2. Sports Internship Portfolio Contains

i. Lesson plans for soccer coachingii. Research

iii. Documents my summer with Ambassadors Football

*Can be shown upon request

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Action Plan

My current plan of action of what I am currently planning on doing until graduation is as follows.

I have started researching various sports ministries and shall continue to keep a list of all the various

ministries that I find, so I can start researching them more in depth and be praying about them. I would

like to make an actual list with information over Christmas break.

I have also looked at getting a couple of jobs outside the realm of sports ministry, but which

would still allow me to do ministry within the setting that I would be in, so I am going to apply and look

into those jobs and see where the Lord leads. I am planning on applying for at least one of these jobs

over Christmas break and the other I will contact in January, because that is when I was told to check

back.

I have also interviewed for a counselor position at Kanakuk when they came and visited IWU and

will in the near future (my goal is this week) to do their online application and then to spend time

praying and seeking if that is the will of the Lord for my summer.

Most of the jobs I am looking at are more just for the summer and not really anything long term,

so my goal is after the end of this semester, start looking into longer term job opportunities that are

available.

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