The American Football Coaches Convention was
just held this week in Nashville, Tennessee (USA). Approximately 4,000 American
Football coaches, mostly collegiate, but some from high schools were in
attendance for the Sunday through Wednesday activities, meetings, seminars, awards
programs, and more.
For the last dozen years I have attended this
event, simply because that is where the coaches are. To see this many of the
coaches, already in my network or those I have yet to meet, at any other time
would require months of travel and tens of thousands of dollars. On these days,
they are all in the same building.
The Fellowship of Christian Athletes was in
attendance and engaged in ministry with these coaches and their spouses in
various ways.
1.
We held a worship service on Sunday morning at
10:00. An estimated 250 people were in attendance for the service which
included a simple welcome, three worship songs (led by a man with a guitar),
prayer, and a talk by a college football team chaplain (Mitch Mason from the
University of North Carolina). The service was well done and well received.
2.
We held a Coaches Huddle on Sunday night from
9:00 to 10:15. Rather than delivering another talk from another guy at a
podium, we had the coaches and spouses (around 200) to rearrange their chairs
into circles of 6-8 people each. We then invited them to talk with the others
in their groups, answering the questions projected onto the screen. We started
with facts like their names, where they coach, and how many years they had been
in coaching. We moved on to questions like, “Why do you coach?” We talked about
the coaches from their pasts who shaped how they coach, their legacy in the
coaches’ lives now, and the legacy they’d like to leave in the lives of their players.
Lastly, we invited them to pray together, and we finished a few minutes early.
We were thrilled that many lingered in the room well beyond the parameters of
the meeting. They enjoyed the fellowship and our questions uncovered their
hearts in a way that passively listening to a presentation never would have.
3.
We hosted an FCA Breakfast for about 400
coaches on Monday morning. The program was crisp, it moved quickly, and each
part was succinctly presented. It included an emcee with introductory thoughts,
a prayer, and then breakfast. We viewed a strong video of a coach, his team,
and the impact of FCA’s 3Dimensional Coaching upon the players and the
community. We then interviewed that coach, live on stage. The program continued
with an annual Coach of the Year award, and the recipient made brief, but
excellent comments. The final part of the program was an address by FCA’s new
president, himself a football coach. The coaches left the room encouraged and
many made connections with other Christian coaches they only see at this event
or occasionally on the field of competition.
4.
We spent hours and hours at our booth in the exhibition
hall. We were favored to have a spot right by the entry doors, very convenient
for those looking for us, and even better for those not looking for us. We had
countless conversations, hugs, handshakes, trades of business cards, referrals
of colleagues, and more. We distributed hundreds of copies of books, devotional
materials, and brochures. In addition, we had a kiosk that included an iPad for
connection with our various web based resources and programs.
I would challenge you to consider where the people
you intend to serve are. Where do they gather? What would it take to be there
with them? In what ways could you serve them in that location or event? The
clinics, conventions, and other gatherings where they gather are rich
environments for ministry. Discover them and then develop a strategy. Go!
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