Resources
 Articles
Evangelism
in Sports and Recreation Ministry
By Cindy Bledsoe
For sports and recreation ministers who seek to change lives through
sports, it is of great value to have specific information on how and
when people actually come to a relationship with Jesus Christ. This
information can serve as a strategic guide for sports and recreation
ministers as we seek to design programming that will effectively
facilitate evangelism. The Barna Group, which is considered to be one
of the leading research organizations regarding faith and culture,
gives us valuable information on the topic. Based on their research, I
have proposed some key points in designing an effective evangelism
strategy for sports and recreation ministries. I hope you will find
this helpful.
Key Point: 1
Sport and recreation ministries should have a broad program offering
incorporating all ages but with a special focus on children and teens
up to age 18. According to the Barna Group “a substantial majority of
the people who accept Jesus Christ as their savior do so before
reaching their 18th birthday.” The Barna study further indicates that
“nearly half of all Americans who accept Jesus Christ as their savior
do so before reaching the age of 13 (43%), and that two out of three
born again Christians (64%) made that commitment to Christ before their
18th birthday. One out of eight born again people (13%) made their
profession of faith while 18 to 21 years old. Less than one out of
every four born again Christians (23%) embraced Christ after their
twenty-first birthday.” (The Barna Group) Taking into account that a
substantial majority of people accept Christ before their 18th birthday
tied with the fact that many sports and recreation ministry
participants fall within this age group provides a unique opportunity
for evangelism in the sports and recreation ministry field. It is
absolutely vital for ministries to see not only the opportunity for
evangelism, but to make it a priority in their ministries.
Key Point 2:
Sports and recreation ministries should actively seek to work with and
equip parents in the spiritual development of their children.
Ministries should also make it a priority to minister specifically to
parents and their own spiritual development in addition to a family
focus. According to the Barna Group “among Christians who embraced
Christ before their teen years, half were led to Christ by their
parents, with another one in five led by some other friend or
relative.” (The Barna Group) Relational evangelism emerges as the most
important avenue for evangelism to the pre-teen age group. Coaches,
instructors and peers will also have a significant role to play in the
evangelism process alongside parents and sports and recreation
ministries should seek to equip these individuals in evangelism
methods. A great resource for this is the book "The Game Plan" by Tim
Conrad. Parents and their children can read and discuss this at home
and it is a great resource for church leagues.
Key Point 3:
Relational evangelism is a key strategy for effective evangelism to
people between ages 13 and 21. The Barna Group research shows that
“among people who accepted Christ when they were between age 13 through
21, one out of five credited a friend with bringing them to Christ, and
a similar proportion said their parents were responsible for their
decision. One-fifth also recalled an event as the trigger for their
commitment. One-sixth of the people saved as teens (16%) listed a
relative other than their parent as the primary influencer. Ministers
were cited by one out of every ten Christians who accepted Christ
during the 13-to-21-age bracket, while media and special personal
situations were listed by only 1%.” Some sports ministries still rely
on "big event" style evangelism as a key strategy in their ministries.
This entails inviting a Pro athlete as a speaker, handing out tracts,
etc. Although this can have a positive impact, the research clearly
shows this is hardly the most effective strategy to follow. Rather
sports ministries should focus on developing year round ongoing
missional leagues which are led and coached by youth advisors/ministers
and general parishioners who can naturally invite youth to participate
in youth groups, etc. It is interesting to note that relationships with
friends have become just as important as relationships with parents as
a force in the decision making process regarding belief in Christ with
this age group. Sports and recreation ministries should enable
believing peers and parents in evangelism as well as coaches,
instructors, etc. Events also have the opportunity for great impact
with this particular age group. Therefore, events designed specifically
to reach this group should be incorporated by sports and recreation
ministries.
Key Point 4:
Sports and recreation ministries should focus on team sports as a way
of reaching the adult age group within their ministries. Team sports
provide the perfect avenue for relationships/ friendships to be build
within which the gospel can be shared. According to the Barna Group
“Adults who accepted Christ as their savior generally responded to
different stimuli than did younger people. The most common precipitant
was a friend (19%), followed by mass media experiences (14%), a live
event (14%) or a relative (13%). Ministers were responsible for leading
one out of every ten adult converts to Christ while parents of adults
were named as the evangelistic influence by one in twelve (8%) of these
believers.” (The Barna Group). Relational evangelism again features as
a mainline strategy and should be supplemented by events that will draw
and engage this age group.
Key Point 5:
Sports and recreation ministries should be positioned as one of the
primary evangelistic avenues of the church. According to George Barna
"the weekend church service is no longer the primary mechanism for
salvation decisions; only one out of every ten believers who makes a
decision to follow Christ does so in a church setting or service. On
the other hand, personal relationships have become even more important
in evangelism, with a majority of salvation decisions coming in direct
response to an invitation given by a family member or friend." (The
Barna Group) The relationships that naturally form within the sporting
context provides unique and numerous opportunities for people to come
to Christ. Sports and recreation ministries should feature as a key
part of the overall evangelism efforts of the church.
Reference:
"The Barna Group - Evangelism Is Most Effective Among Kids." The Barna
Group - Barna Update. Web. 26 Feb. 2010. <
http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/5-barna-update/196-evangelism-is-most-effective-among-kids
>.
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