Reed Rawlings here, four days into the tour. We are in Valparaiso, Indiana, getting ready to travel south for our next game vs. Grace College. Our trip has already been full of great stories and ministry opportunities. I will start with the Cedarville game, close to AIA headquarters, followed by the Calumet game in Holland, Indiana, then on to Chicago for an inner city youth day with former AIA staff member, Al Green.
Cedarville, OH
AIA may be the only team to never play a home game, but playing against Cedarville University is as close as we get. We had close to 50 AIA staff present at the game, which made up about a quarter of the crowd. Cedarville is traditionally one of the top teams in their conference, so it made for a competitive opener for us. The game was tight until a few minutes into the second half, when AIA stretched the lead to 15, and held it there to the end of the game, 80-66 was the final. At halftime, Jason Faulknor shared how 4 consecutive injuries plagued his college basketball experience. God used this to ground his confidence in the Lord's strength despite his circumstances, and pave the way for a professional playing career.
Holland, IN
We loaded the vans the next morning and made the 4 hour drive to Holland, Indiana, to play Calumet College. We got to the gym early and had a Bible study on what motivates us to play sports. The school's gym was under construction so we played at a convention center 15 minutes away, which hurt the attendance significantly, but set the stage for a tremendous night of ministry(more on that in a bit). We won the game easily, 93-59. Steve Janzen shared how the falling of the twin towers related to his life and the towers he built in his life that were his source of strength that came crashing down, causing him to build on the strong name of Jesus. (Prov. 18:10)
I have played on this tour many times before, when we were allowed to play D-1 schools like Kentucky, when we played and spoke in front of 24,000. This game there was maybe 50 people there. We have learned that the size of the crowd almost never translates to effectiveness of the ministry. We experienced God's spirit moving in the hearts of the guys on the Calumet team after the game. A snapshot of the team meal after the game would show almost everyone of our players involved in individual conversation about their lives, basketball, and the message of salvation through Jesus. We pray for God to water those seeds sown.
Chicago, Il. (Inglewood)
Yesterday we drove 1.5 hours north to Chicago to be a part of a former AIA staff member Al Green who runs a after school program for at risk kids. It was as much an encouragement to us to serve Al and those 50 kids. It was an energetic afternoon of praise and worship, teaching, tutoring, and fun. We prayed for Al and his staff, the vision, the kids, and drove back to our host families' in Valparaiso for the night. We are about to have team time(Bible Study) and then load up for our game tonight vs. Grace College.