It was early in an otherwise non-descript conference game, when I watched our head coach jump out of the dugout and make a b-line for the home plate umpire. After a short but heated confrontation, the umpire went back to work and the coach was on his way out of the stadium. No big deal. It happens.
However, I got the feeling there was more to it this time. This was a road game, and as the team chaplain I had decided to make the trip. Normally, I tried to blend into the scenery during games to avoid being any kind of distraction or interference. My opportunities for input tended to come on bus rides, practice fields, and hotel lobbies. And, even the “preacher” could get the wrong end of the stick when dumb enough to ask, “So, coach. What was that all about?” Needless to say, I was a little nervous about tracking down the person who had just chosen to run out in front of a thousand people to challenge a man wearing full pads knowing he would definitely lose the argument.
I slowly made my way out the stadium gate and made the long walk toward the outfield fence where the team buses were parked. It was a journey that had me asking myself, “What in the world am I going to say? And, why am I going to say it?” I finally found Coach. He had climbed up to a ledge on the outfield wall where he could barely see over the fence to monitor the game. One last chance to just leave him alone. God wouldn’t let me. So, I climbed the rickety ladder and stood next to him with my forearms resting on the top of the left field wall.
After about two pitches, and what seemed to be an hour of silence, I was the first to speak. “It’s a long season. Don’t worry about it.” I opened the door.I had been chaplain for the team for more than four years, but standing on that wall was when I learned the importance of sports chaplaincy and the need for sports-minded people to minister to their own. Before another pitch could be thrown, my understanding of ministry changed forever. There wasn’t a pew bench in site, and my Bible was packed up back at the hotel.
Coach finally spoke, and he said, “I’m not worried about that. I shouldn’t have gotten thrown out.” I reminded him that it was a long season, and remembered as I was saying it, that I should just be quiet and listen. He went on, “I know. It’s just that…..I have cancer. Don’t tell anyone. We just found out this week. I shouldn’t have gotten thrown out of that game.”
I was prepared to encourage a new coach in his first season. I was ready to tell him one mistake is no big deal. I wanted to tell him the other coaches could get the win, or that maybe it would fire up his players. During my long walk to the fence, I had prepared a whole list of responses to anything he might say including my “nod and turn” move, if he looked at me and said, “Not now.”
Cancer! What do you say to that when you are perched on an outfield wall staring at a bunch of college boys playing a game? Maybe in a church office or a hospital room you could use your big words and the power of the somber surroundings to bring comfort or great wisdom. However, I was one loose nail from falling off the back of a fence, and I couldn’t have thought of a word to share if I had a dictionary.
Coach was 27 years old when we had that talk, a young age for a Division 1 head coach, and way too young to be dying of colon cancer. He coached for two more seasons before succumbing to the disease at the age of twenty-nine. He spent much of his last season in a hospital bed giving advice and getting updates as the team went on to win 40 games, the conference championship and a bid to the regional tournament.
Those two years were special for everyone involved in the program. The bus rides and dugout conversations had a different tone. Even player’s parents and school officials started walking up just to talk. They were seeking understanding. They asked me for advice. They asked me to pray.
What if no one had been there to listen to them? What if no one had been there to share about God’s mercy and grace? What if no one had been willing to offer up their prayer requests?
The magnitude of it all hit me late in Coach’s life when he rolled over in his bed to ask me, “How do I know that I know? How do I know for sure I am going to be in heaven?” He had accepted Christ as his Savior a few years before, but he wanted another moment of assurance in that dark time. It was amazing to talk about and experience God’s peace with him.
I moved away from the college that next fall, and have only been back to visit a couple of times. However, for six years, I was a volunteer pastor, counselor, and avid fan. Our chapel services took place in the softball dugout during visitor’s batting practice or in a hotel lobby before leaving for a road game. I was teased for being old because I was 30, and many players enjoyed hitting one of my practice pitches deep into the outfield. My tradition was to bring BBQ sunflower seeds and Twizzlers to every Saturday double header. I grew to love those guys and have enjoyed following their careers in business and baseball.
Sports chaplaincy can be as significant as planting a church, and similar in scope. There are so many high school and college campuses where ministers would love to have that kind of access to athletes. There are professional sports organizations that have very little if anything to do with the local church. Sports chaplaincy can be a means of taking the Gospel to a special group of people that may not be reached any other way.
What makes a good sports chaplain?
1. Prayer and Calling
“I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.” Isaiah 48:17 NIV.
You cannot succeed in any ministry or endeavor without the direction and strength of God. You should feel the same passion and urgency in your heart for sports minded people just as you would feel for children in orphanages in Africa.
2. Consistency and Commitment
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.” Colossians 3:23 NIV.
It takes a great deal of time and effort to earn trust and the right to share. A sports chaplain must be committed to “be there.” Showing up when you feel like it is ineffective. Your schedule must in many ways be adaptable to the schedule of the athletes and coaches. Your actions will mean so much more than your words, particularly in the early stages of your ministry.
3. A Good and Willing Listener
Do you know what everyone’s favorite topic of conversation is? Themselves! A good sports chaplain has a genuine interest in the lives of players, coaches and fans. You must be willing to be an active listener, not just letting people talk, but working hard to process what they are saying and interacting with the information. Remembering specific information, dates, names, and other items, can be an effective sign of concern and attention.
4. A Knowledgeable Mentor, Teacher and Pastor
Presence and listening take the majority of a chaplain’s time, but there still must be proper preparation and ability to take advantage of teachable moments. A chaplain is a representative of God and a minister of Christ’s love. Being a good sports chaplain is more than just being a friend. Chaplain’s have the opportunity to provide pastoral and mentoring services.
5. A Servant Attitude
“In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the Lord Jesus Himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” Acts 20:35 NIV
Good chaplains are givers without expectation of return. You should not be concerned with special privileges, recognition or reimbursements. You are giving of yourself for the sake of the players and coaches.
6. An Eternal Mindset
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy…But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.” Matthew 6:19-20 NIV
Do you look at a person and wonder, “heaven or hell?” Are you concerned about the eternal destiny of those around you? When God calls you to be a sports chaplain, He is entrusting lives to you. Small comments and short conversations can have an eternal impact. A devotion that seems to get little response from the study group may change a life forever. Sports chaplains watch a lot of games, but they are a part of a serious business.
What does a sports chaplain do?
1. A sports chaplain fills the role of pastor to the sports organization or team. This role can only be assumed by invitation from the group and involves earning the right to shepherd through good communication and healthy relationships. As a “team pastor” the sports chaplain is responsible for communicating salvation in Christ, initiating prayer, and introducing the Word of God to the group through study and preaching.
2. A sports chaplain can be a volunteer counselor for the sports organization or team. WARNING: Legitimate counseling is not just giving opinions or advice. It is unethical to represent yourself as a trained counselor if you are not licensed or do not have the appropriate training and experience. There are many opportunities for sports chaplains to guide players and coaches, but this must be done prayerfully and with honest disclosure of your knowledge and experience on the topic of discussion.
3. A sports chaplain can be a friend and mentor for players and coaches. Your time with a team or organization can allow you the opportunity to grow close to many of the people you are ministering to. It is not unusual for sports chaplains to be asked to be a part of weddings, special events, and non-team related social occasions.
4. A sports chaplain should be one of the biggest fans of the team. You may have grown up rooting for or playing for another team, but in many cases sports chaplains are considered a part of the team they are ministering to. The team is now your team, and you should be one of the biggest fans of each of the players and coaches.
5. A sports chaplain may have the opportunity to fill a coaching or administrative role with the team or organization. As a chaplain and servant to the team you may be able to provide sports or administrative assistance to the group. You may be able to participate in practice, organize events, or perform other duties that are helpful to coaches or players. You can offer to do any of these things after appropriate relationships have been established, but must never impose yourself because of a personal desire to participate.
What are some of the opportunities to serve as a sports chaplain?
1. You may represent your local church with the approval of the church staff, and reach out to local recreational leagues, high school or college teams.
2. You may be called out because of your specific experience in sports to minister to serve with one of your former teams or with a local team in the same sport you played.
3. You may have the opportunity to serve in a sports organization. There are currently organized ministries operating in motor racing, professional sports, horse racing and other large sporting organizations.
4. Organizations such as Athletes in Action and Fellowship of Christian Athletes provide sports chaplains for many of the professional sports teams throughout the United States.
5. Several pastors and cross-cultural missionaries have discovered the opportunity to serve as a sports chaplain because players or coaches attended their congregation or Bible studies. These chaplaincy ministries can be an extension of the local church.
6. There are cross-cultural missionaries that have used sports chaplaincy as a church planting tool. They use sports as a means to establish a legitimate platform for being in an area, and then they use growing relationships and Bible studies to establish small group meetings.
