Cutting it where it counts - witnessing to Jesus on the pitch

You think you’re too small to make a difference? You’ve obviously never slept with a mosquito in your bedroom. And if you think you have to be Billy Graham to work for Christ then you’ve clearly never played football in the Kingston and District League Division 5 for the West Side Church 4th XI (or something similar).

It was the sort of game against the sort of team you wear two pairs of shin pads for, when Paul Cox found that there’s more to spreading the gospel than a black leather Bible and look of thunder: “The opposition had a bit of a reputation and it had been a really physical game so far, with tackles flying around. They had quite a hard bunch off the estates and a number of ex-offenders. We’ve got quite a young side and we knew we were going to get beaten.

“We were already 2-0 down when they were given a corner. It came in over the keeper and I committed the cardinal sin of coming off my post by a foot or so. On cue, one of their strikers put it between me and the post, right into the corner of the goal. But it went straight out again through a hole in the side of the net. The ref gave a goal kick. Only a couple of them had seen that it was a goal but they were pretty angry. We were already losing and it had been a niggly game, but I decided to tell the ref it had gone in. He stared. The opposition stared. Pause. Looks of incredulity all round. After a few moments, the ref came out of his daze and gave the goal. The whole team came and thanked me. As I went back to the centre circle, the guy I had been marking said sorry for all his earlier abuse. All the questioning of every decision stopped. After the game, they all came and thanked me again. And then back in the changing rooms a few of them thanked me again.

It was nothing particularly amazing that I did but it meant a lot to the players. It was just the best witness in that situation. We play them four times a season and it’s always niggly, I’ve even been chinned by one before, but next time they’ll know what we’re about as a team and what we’re like as people.”

Unfortunately, Billy Graham pulled a hamstring and couldn’t be playing for the West Side 4th XI that week and so the job of witnessing for Christ fell on Paul Cox. We’re not all called to get up and preach but we are all called to be evangelists.

“Live an exemplary life so that your actions will refute their prejudices. Then they’ll be won over to God’s side and be there to join the celebration when he arrives.” (1 Peter 2 v.12, The Message)

Paul a student on Sports Leadership and Intercultural Studies (SLICS) course at All Nations Christian College. Article written by Ed Davies

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