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Before Jesus left His disciples and returned to heaven, He promised that He would send them a “Counselor” or helper, the Holy Spirit. The word helper in the Greek means, “one called alongside.” He stands beside us to help us. That’s why we, as Christians, fight no battles and face no problems alone.
Baseball is a great team sport. Players work together to make their team successful. One of my favorite plays is when players give up their at bat for a possible victory in the end. This is an important play. The home-run hitters get all the glory, but these role players do just as much to help the team win.
Jesus knew He had a role to carry out for His team (His followers) and lived His life accordingly, preparing to take one for His team. Christ knew the plan for ultimate victory. He knew He was to be the sacrifice for our sin, that we might enjoy eternity with Him. Now that is a glory-filled event.
Common interests, passions, experiences, and skills naturally draw people together. We all enjoy partnering with others with whom we can identify. When someone says, “I know how you feel,” and you believe that he really does, a bond is formed. David and Jonathan are examples of two men who experienced that deeper connection; they were, “one in spirit,” drawn together by a shared faith (1 Sm 14; 17). Both men trusted God when no one else did, and as a result, David and Jonathan were key in God’s plan to defeat the dreaded Philistines. Both men trusted God even though the odds were not in their favor.
The life of a young person today is much different than it was 10-20 years ago. But as our campers share this week with their Huddle Leaders, it is obvious that the same problems are still there and are big as ever. Trying to figure out what life to live proves to be troublesome for many of them.
A few weeks ago, my basketball coach asked me to consider playing junior varsity instead of varsity. At that time, I made the decision that if he ultimately decided to put me on JV, I would quit playing basketball and concentrate all my focus on softball and cross-country. Just a few days ago, he asked me to play JV basketball, for my own sake--"To get more playing time." It was a tough choice, but I decided to decline his offer, hang up my sneakers and pick up a softball glove.
The United States softball team entered the 2004 Olympic Games with one thing on their collective minds — winning a gold medal. Not only did they win the gold, they dominated. They went undefeated, outscoring their opponents 51-1, surrendering their lone run in a 5-1 win in the gold medal game against Australia. "That team is clearly on a mission," said Australian coach, Simon Roskvist.
It's FCA Camp time again! Everything is set. The Huddle training done, the coaches are in place, the band is ready to rock the campers, and all is ready to begin. As a Huddle coordinator for our camp this week, I have the privilege of working beside someone who has embodied the mission of FCA for more than 20 years. She has served at more than 50 camps in various roles, and through it all her mission has remained the same.
Every day, Carol "Coke" Long works hard to uphold the mission of showing each and every camper and athlete the right path to follow. She shares with the Huddle Leaders during training that her love for God grows deeper everyday and that sharing Him with others is her primary mission in life.
Paul uses the phrase “one thing” to bring focus and clarity to his calling. This phrase appears five times in the New International Version of the Bible—once in the verse above in Philippians and four times in the Gospels:
In Luke 10:42, Jesus says to Martha, “only one thing is needed.”
In both Luke 18:22 and Mark 10:21, Jesus tells the rich man that he still lacks “one thing.”
In John 9:25, the blind man who was healed by Christ tells the Pharisees, “One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!”
To many campers, truth is a relative thing. "Being close counts, doesn't it?" they ask. Not exactly. During one of the ice-breaker games for the week, people were asked to share three things with their group, two truths and one not so true. But all three seem rather believable at times.
Finding truth can be very difficult. Students are being bombarded with many different truths today. They are told that sex is safe, drugs are fun and won't hurt you, drinking too much won't do anything to you, and so on and so on. Everybody's doing it, so it must be okay. WRONG. During today's Huddle time the campers learned what real truth is, and who He is.
How many different ways can you get to FCA Camp? Planes, trains, automobiles. Those are just a few, but they come from all directions to make it on time. Once they arrive, the games begin and the coaches find each athlete has a different way of playing their sport. Each technique is similar but has its own unique way of getting things done.
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