On August 30, 2006, I traveled to Washington, D.C., to experience a day with FCA’s rapidly expanding inner-city ministry there. The ministry, spearheaded by FCA Area Representative David Kiehn, seeks to bring restoration and prosperity to the city by touching the lives of athletes and coaches in some of D.C.’s roughest areas. During my visit I met with football coaches at Dunbar High School and Anacostia High School. What I found was that change within D.C.’s inner-city doesn’t occur overnight by passing a bill or amending a law, but by reaching the hearts of its youth with the gospel.

My testimony begins in Webster City, Iowa, where I was born. My family of five—my parents, older brother, younger sister and I—lived there and in Missouri for a while until I was in third grade when we moved to Florida.

Our family was always involved in church, and I know how fortunate I was to be raised in a Christian home where I was loved and cared for. The only hang-up was that it always seemed like the churches we attended were never close to home. Because of the distance, my siblings and I had school friends and church friends, and they were always different groups. That made church and school very distinct segments in my life for a long time.

One by one, the children came.

They came from ramshackle villages and tarp-covered homes, their gaunt frames running barefoot through unkempt fields of grass to a skinny dirt road on the outskirts of town. Temporarily leaving behind their hardscrabble reality of hunger, disease and death, they lined both sides of the path to marvel at a new sight.

As an environmental biology major who once had no aspirations of coaching, Bill Blankenship is a living testament to God’s creativity. But given the journey he’s taken, it seems somewhat divine that he has landed in his current position as the head football coach at the University of Tulsa.

They don't call it the Evil Empire for nothing. You either love 'em, or you hate 'em.

For nearly a century, the New York Yankees have been establishing their status as the dominant franchise in Major League Baseball. The club is rich in both tradition and dollars and has a track record of success that makes small-market teams both sigh in exasperation and raise their fists in what is usually described as righteous anger.

Next time you are outside, take a moment to reflect on the wind. Consider how the contrasting currents of air can either wrench homes from the ground or gently spin the hairs on your arm. Consider that in one location there may be a powerful tornado and in another a gentle breeze. Both are distinct, but not separate. They are streams of air—winds that have been stirred up in different ways. The result of each is determined by the many factors that contribute to their development. And in many respects, our human condition is no different.

When Keisha and Kara Cornelius were growing up in the dusty West Texas town of Denver City, all Kara wanted was to be with the sister who was four years her senior.

For many years, Keisha didn’t understand the depth of Kara’s desire. She’d go out to ride her bicycle with her friends, and Kara — who still hadn’t learned how to ride — would run as fast as her feet could propel her in a futile bid to catch up.

Although she’s been coaching for more than 30 years, Olivet Nazarene Volleyball Coach Brenda Williams says her approach to the game and her athletes is always a work in progress. Another thing under continual development? Her walk with Christ, who, as she explains, has transformed her from a young coach just hungry for wins into a veteran coach also hungry for spiritual impact.

Champ Bailey didn’t see it coming. Nobody did — except maybe Ken Watson. “Where is Benjamin?” Ken asked his wife as the two-inch Bailey sprinted across their television screen and down the length of INVESCO Field. It was the third quarter of the 2005 AFC Divisional Playoff game between the New England Patriots and the Denver Broncos; Bailey had just picked off New England quarterback Tom Brady’s pass in the end zone — a throw meant for Troy Brown — and he was now sprinting the 100 yards toward the Pats’ end zone. “I know he’s going to be there!”

• Secure sports team for chaplain’s program.  
• Plan an initial time that introduces FCA, explains what the chaplain’s program is and the importance of commitment and confidentiality to the team.

There was a powerful calm in the air as Barton College Head Coach Ron Lievense prepared for the start of the 2007-08 men’s basketball season.

Alone in the Bulldogs’ locker room in rural Wilson, N.C., Lievense moved quietly from locker to locker, praying. He prayed not for a return of the international fame that accompanied Barton’s national championship victory a season ago, but for each of his players, that they would look to the Lord for guidance and give Him the glory in all things.

Her elementary school classmates used to mock her for her skinny “chicken legs” when she ran. But that all changed when she joined the track team in ninth grade.
 
Allyson Felix is still listed at only 5-foot-6 and 125 pounds, but she isn’t teased by those who watch her run anymore. Not since she became the fastest woman in the world.