“ARE YOU IN THE GAME?”

It’s been a long time since my last blog post, I know, but being gone on the Mexico mission trip for a week and then dealing with a load of church business when I got home, I simply haven’t had time to put anything together.

Now I’m excited to get back into it though. And our speaker at YUGO this year has given me some great material to delve into for my next four posts!


Richard Sharp, from “Operation Mobilization,” inspired us each morning at chapel with the topic of bringing the gospel to the whole world, using soccer/the soccer field as the analogy to get his message across (so very appropriate, with the World Cup happening...). With his charming British accent, engaging smile, and relational style, Richard hit us hard each day with challenges that were relevant, biblical, pointed, and practical. I’ll try to be as faithful as possible to his well-crafted presentations.

First of all, every day as he began his teaching time with our mission team (we were the ONLY group at the YUGO camp this year - too many churches afraid to send teams because of the media’s hype about gang and drug violence), Richard tossed a soccer ball randomly to people while asking the question of the day.


He expected an honest answer too! So on the first day, he asked this of us: “Are you in the game?” How would you respond? That’s what we heard, without yet knowing the context of the question nor the theme of the week. We were definitely intrigued!

Before delving into his topic, Richard first did some other reflective work with us on that first day. He asked us to write down what our biggest hope and our biggest fear were for the week of ministry that lay ahead of us. This made us put all of our cards on the table, right from the start; what we were thinking, concerned about, preoccupied with. We shared our answers with the group, and the results were very insightful. From there, Richard reminded us about our role as “evangelists” in the coming week, and the picture he drew formed (what else?) a cross. The horizontal part represented “making friends.” The vertical part represented “introducing our best friend, Jesus, to our friends.” Where the two come together is the “sweet spot,” where the connection is made and our friends also encounter our best friend and want to join in our camaraderie with Jesus too.

Then Richard went into the main focus of the day which, again was: “Are you in the game?” He talked a bit about soccer, and then he drew a large soccer field on the board.


Next, he read Acts 1:8 to us:

“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Richard said that this is God’s “game plan” for His Church, and that the soccer ball is “the gospel.” Back on the board, he described how the goal area is like the local congregation (Hilmar Covenant Church), the penalty area is like the nation (the United States), the half of the field on the side of the defending team is like the regional area (Canada & Mexico; nations around us), and the far half of the field is the entire globe (the whole world). Comparing this to what we read in Acts, Hilmar Covenant = Jerusalem, the United States = Judea, the nations around us = Samaria (and like the Jews in Jesus’ day, many Americans don’t much like “those people!”), and the global world = the ends of the earth. Culturally speaking, the local and national areas have the same culture, the regional areas have a similar culture, but the global world areas have a separate culture.

God’s game plan is that we, His people--His players--are to GO to ALL of these areas and cultures! The gospel is to go everywhere - to every part of the world, just as in the game of soccer, the soccer ball goes everywhere on the soccer field. So when Richard asked us “Are you in the game?” he was trying to find out if we are fully engaged in the game that God wants us to play; fully obedient to what God desires and expects from us.


He pointed out that most churches only stay in the goal area, self-absorbed and comfortable in their own little home territory, never stepping out and getting into the game at all. Some churches do go farther and get involved in spreading the gospel beyond their local congregation, which is better, but it is still quite easy and, again, is not really playing the game at all. A few churches step out into the more uncomfortable and challenging regional areas and seek to reach people who are different and who require certain sensitivities and different approaches in order for the gospel to impact them. However, this still takes place in only part of the world - on just one half of the soccer field.

In order to play the game of soccer though, you must play on the entire field! And in order to be fully in God’s “game” of bringing the gospel to every tribe and tongue and nation, we must go all the way, everywhere, “to the ends of the earth!”

Richard underscored this by showing how the book of Acts itself describes the progression of the gospel message (which was intended by God to continue for all time). Acts 1-7 describes the gospel being proclaimed locally and nationally (Jerusalem and Judea). Acts 8 and 10 show the gospel moving out into a wider region (Samaria, Ethiopian eunuch, Roman centurion Cornelius). Finally, in Acts 13, Paul and Barnabas set off to take the gospel to the then-known world.

This presentation was deeply convicting to me, and it had a strong impact on the rest of our mission team too. I reflected on the ways I am “in the game”--and the many ways I am not participating fully in it. Now, it’s true that I’m a total failure at soccer! My interest, skills, techniques, understanding of the game, and commitment to it are nil. I’m definitely not “in the game” of soccer. But I am a Christian! And for us who are, the gospel is the core of who we are! As essential and as indispensible as the soccer ball is to soccer. If we claim to follow Christ - if we claim to be soccer players - then we must have great facility, familiarity, appreciation, and experience with what is necessary to be “in the game” (i.e. the gospel - the soccer ball). If we aren’t thoroughly familiar with them, comfortable with them, skilled with them, or if we utilize them poorly, we will be ineffective participants “in the game,” whether it is the Christian life or soccer itself.

It won’t be easy. Jesus never said that it would be, and soccer coaches guarantee that to be a great player it is going to be mighty tough, in every way (physically, emotionally, mentally). Perhaps that’s why there are so many lukewarm Christians and mediocre soccer players! When the demands of these “games” get more intense, most of us tend to pull back, ease up, and ultimately step out of the game, becoming “armchair experts” instead! Thinking we know all about the game and how it should be played, but not actually particpating in it, only watching from the sidelines.

Richard talked about how, in our Christian lives, we tend to want an “out” when things get uncomfortable, unfamiliar, tough, and tragic. But God never said He would take us out of the hard difficulties that we face in life. Instead, God says: “I will take you through this!” To do so, we are made “FIT” to handle the process: F = FOR you (God says He is always for us), I = IN you (God says He dwells within us, through His Holy Spirit), and T = THROUGH you (God will triumph over the difficulties through us). Our attitude, then, needs to always be a “FIT” one so we can be fully engaged “in the game” and be ready for whatever comes our way.


I hope you’ll spend some time this week chewing over these concepts and applying them to yourself. Again, how would you answer the question: “Are you in the game?” Can you say, as we were asked to do at YUGO: “Lord, have your way in me.”

Next week: “Are you on the team?”