SOUTH DAKOTA FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIAN ATHLETES

South Dakota Fellowship of Christian Athletes1601 E 69th Street Suite 301Sioux Falls, SD 57108

SouthDakotaFCA.org Facebook.com/SDFCA @SouthDakotaFCA

Fall 2014

The 8th annual FCA Sports Camp was held at Black Hills State University, June 24th-28th. Over 300 students attended and participated in basketball, football, volleyball, cross country, track and field, golf, tennis, soccer and swimming. This year’s camp theme was ALL IN. The camp verse was Colossians 3:17, “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”

In our culture today, the word “whatever” has become a word to indicate apathy, an attitude of “who cares,” or a negative response to something we don’t like and are tired of hearing. In scripture, it indicates obedience or blessing. It indicates our total dependence on God. It really means ALL IN. Campers were encouraged to be transformed by the Holy Spirit in the use of the word “whatever.” Now whenever, or wherever, and they hear that word, they are to smile, look up and remember that they’re ALL IN with Jesus.

FCA CAMPERS ARE “ALL IN”

FCA VALUES INTEGRITY • SERVING • TEAMWORK • EXCELLENCE2

It’s encouraging that, contrary to popular belief, we do not have to be perfect to do God’s work! When Jesus chose his twelve disciples, he chose men with weaknesses, very ordinary men, just like you and me. They were fisherman, tax collectors, and political zealots; we are servers, entrepreneurs, construction workers, and nurses, to name only some. Most of us are not extraordinary at all, but just as He turned His disciples’ weakness into strength, according John MacArthur’s words in Twelve Ordinary Men, “producing greatness from utter uselessness,” He can surely do the same with you and me.

Acts 17:6 speaks of men “who have turned the world upside down.” They were ordinary men made extraordinary, but how? Oswald Chambers writes, “All of God’s people are ordinary people who have been made extraordinary by the purpose He has given them.”

I agree with Chambers when he writes, “Discipleship is built entirely on the supernatural grace of God... though Peter walked on the water to go to Jesus…he followed Him from afar on land. We do not need the grace of God to stand crises, Oswald writes, “human nature and pride are sufficient; we can face the strain magnificently; but it does require the supernatural grace of God to live twenty-four hours in every day as a saint, to go through drudgery as a disciple, to live an ordinary, unobserved, ignored existence as a disciple of Jesus. It is inbred in us that we have to do exceptional things for God; but we have not. We have to be exceptional in the ordinary things, to be holy in mean streets, among mean people…”

So, what does being exceptional in the ordinary things, in my mean streets, in your mean streets, look like?

Once again, I was provided the answer this past Sunday, when I was given a good reminder of what Colossians 3:5-10 and Ephesians 4:22-24 instruct, to put off our old selves and put on the new, to

“Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.” Colossians 3:12-15.

It looks like Jesus.

WHAT CAN GOD DO WITH YOU?

Keith and his wife Kristie have five daughters, Isabelle (12 ), Ava (10), Lucy (8), Ruby (6), and Ivy (2).

FCA VALUES INTEGRITY • SERVING • TEAMWORK • EXCELLENCE 3

Fields of Faith is a nationwide student-led event where students challenge their peers and to read the Bible and follow Jesus Christ. An athletic field provides a neutral rally point where a community can come together to worship, pray, read scripture and share testimonies. We will host Fields of Faith locations across the state and encourage you to bring your families, youth groups, coaches and athletes.

Locations in South Dakota: Wednesday, October 8th

Aberdeen/Northern State • 7pm Swisher Field

Brookings/SDSU • 7pm Coughlin Alumni Stadium

Sioux Falls/USF/Augie • 7:30pm Riverdale Park

Testimonies by Augustana Head Football Coach, Jerry

Olszewski and USF Head Football Coach, Jed Stugart

Vermillion/USD • 8pm Dakota Dome

JOIN US FOR FIELDS OF FAITH

You’re invited to FCA Day at Bob Young Field as the University of Sioux Falls takes on Southwest Minnesota State on Saturday, October 18th at noon. Help us cheer on our All Sport Camp Huddle Leaders and join us after the game for a special meet ‘n greet with USF coaches and athletes.

The FCA section will be north of the 35 yard line.

$5 Adults$4 Students K-12Kids 5 and under Free

Tickets are available at SouthDakotaFCA.org

FCA DAY

USF’s Matt Young with All Sport Camp athletes.

UPDATES & EVENTS

FCA VALUES INTEGRITY • SERVING • TEAMWORK • EXCELLENCE4

UPDATES & EVENTS

Our 13th season of FCA Flag Football kicked off in August with over 500 first through sixth graders participating in Sioux Falls and Brandon. Each week, players are to memorize a verse and share in a devotional with their parents based on the week’s theme. Lessons focus on being respectful, following the Lord’s instruction, using your gifts and talents and having heart to play sports. Our mission through this program is to provide a positive environment where kids can play football with their friends without pressure or rejection. We hope that kids will learn about the love of Jesus Christ and live in His example on and off the field.

FLAG FOOTBALL KICKS OFF

Photo courtesy of Amy Lawrence Photography Photo courtesy of Amy Lawrence Photography

Photo courtesy of Amy Lawrence Photography Photo courtesy of Amy Lawrence Photography

FCA VALUES INTEGRITY • SERVING • TEAMWORK • EXCELLENCE 5

Our twelve week All Sport All Summer Camp concluded on August 8th and we had the best year yet! We had over 125 first through sixth graders involved in the program. Most attended all summer while some joined us for just a few weeks. We are so thankful to the wonderful parents who chose to share their children with us!

We ended the summer with a Family Fun Night that included supper, inflatables, face painting, photobooth and parent versus kids dodgeball games. The kids just loved showing off their dodgeball skills against their out of practice parents! We’ve enjoyed witnessing huddle leaders grow in their faith over the summer as well as children picking up their Bibles and sharing their daily devotionals with their parents. We had some tearful goodbyes at the end of camp but that is an incredible example of the connection shared between our leaders and your children. We are already gearing up for 2015 and can’t wait to spend the summer with your children again!

“I just have to say…my girls have LOVED camp this summer! We attend in Brandon and the huddle leaders are kids that not only love the Lord, but really instill the value of showing your character in everyday things. Annika and Claire have grown in their faith, regularly praying with their peers and kept physically busy, which I love! Most Thursdays and Fridays when I went to pick them up they were “dragging” themselves across the gym floor, because they’re so tired!” - Kirsten Noem

UPDATES & EVENTS

ALL SPORT, ALL SUMMER, ALL FUN

2015 Registration for Brandon and Sioux Falls locations will be available on our website SouthDakotaFCA.org starting in January. Please be sure to join our mailing list for all updated information.

FCA VALUES INTEGRITY • SERVING • TEAMWORK • EXCELLENCE6

Our USD huddle season kicked off on August 27th and will meet every Wednesday at 8pm in the Muenster University Center. We had a great meeting with 50 plus student athletes from all sports in attendance. Curt Softly did an ice breaker involving sticky notes on each members forehead and a video entitled “I will Fight.” We shared our experiences from the Haiti mission trip and talked about 1 Corinthians 16:13 “Be alert, stand firm in the faith, be brave and strong.”

The night was capped off by one of the students saying to a small group of former members “I can’t wait to see what God has planned for our group and school this year! What a great start!”

USD FCA HUDDLE UPDATE

UPDATES & EVENTS

The 9th Annual FCA SoDak Bowl took place at Bob Young Field on Friday, September 12th. The Lord blessed us with a picture-perfect day! The SoDak Bowl provides a great opportunity for high school athletes to get an inside look at what it’s like to play in a college football atmosphere. But more importantly, it gives FCA a chance to share Christ with the athletes and coaches. Before each game, an FCA Staff member led each team in private devotionals and prayer, and in addition to the National Anthem, each game was opened up with a public word of prayer. We want Christ to be the central focus of this great event. Halftime entertainment was provided by some of the FCA Flag Football teams as a way to showcase their talent to the crowd! In game action, Gregory beat Kimball-White Lake 36 to 14. Howard won over Bridgewater/Emery-Ethan 36 to 0 and Lennox topped Sioux Falls Christian 36 to 30.

9TH ANNUAL SODAK BOWL

Photo courtesy of Amy Lawrence Photography

The annual Beresford Breakfast of Champions was held at the Beresford High School gym on Friday, August 29th at 7:45 am. It was held in conjunction with the first cross country meet of the year with over 20 teams invited. Bret Merkle was the guest speaker and charged athletes and adult guests alike to trust Christ.

Bret Merkle was a football player for USD in the 80’s until he was involved in a near fatal motorcycle accident. He wrote a book called “Tragic Blessing” that details his life prior to the accident and how God allowed miracle after miracle to draw Bret closer to Christ. Brett kept the group of nearly 300 students and guests’ attention as he shared his story. One individual said, “I have heard Mr. Merkle speak before and every time I hear him, he inspires me and brings me to tears. What a great day!”

BERESFORD BREAKFAST OF CHAMPIONS

FCA VALUES INTEGRITY • SERVING • TEAMWORK • EXCELLENCE 7

UPDATES & EVENTS

We had a great summer in Brookings! Jackrabbit FCA met on Wednesday nights in June and July for Summer FCA at TJ and Kristy Carlson’s house. We were blessed to have former Jacks Jake Steffen and Jordan and Ketty (Cornemann) Paula back to share about their faith. Also, former football Coach Jay Bubak was back in the States and shared about spending the year with his family serving in Kazakhstan. We were also blessed with the opportunity to put on Power Camps in Brookings and the Pine Ridge Reservation and taught hundreds of kids about sports and the love of Jesus Christ.

Our fall has kicked off well with over 100 students at our Wednesday night huddle and numerous new student lead team Bible Studies starting throughout the week. TJ is once again leading Chapel before the Jacks football games and will continue through the season to teach the guys about being All In.

Our newest exciting opportunity is the Brookings area Flag Football league for 1st through 5th graders, sponsored by Stoneybrook Suites. Intern Cam Jones spent his summer organizing and putting together the league and on September 7th we kicked off our first night with 100 participants. The kids will spend the 6 weeks learning not only how to play football but also key values like Teamwork, Service, Excellence, Integrity, Confidence and Winning from athletes at SDSU. We are excited about the response for our first year and can’t wait to see the league grow in the future!

BROOKINGS SUMMER WRAP UP

NEW FLAG FOOTBALL LEAGUE

FCA VALUES INTEGRITY • SERVING • TEAMWORK • EXCELLENCE8

Kevin Ratzsch joined our team in August as our Northeast Area Representative and Northern State University FCA Chaplain. Kevin grew up in Bloomington, Illinois and is a former basketball player and graduate of Northern State University. Prior to joining FCA, Kevin played professionally in Europe and Australia. During that time, God began showing Kevin His plan and vision for his life. God’s plan for Kevin lines up extremely well with the vision of FCA and we are so excited to have him! As the NSU FCA Chaplain, he will be able to build FCA into the campus and community by implementing the following activities for coaches and athletes: Bible studies and huddle groups, player/coach prayer and fellowship groups, service projects, social

events, and community outreach. In order to maximize everything FCA can do, he has already begun building partnerships with churches and businesses to recruit volunteers, resources, and support. FCA will partner with churches in town to help students become fully connected with a church that relates to them and help them take ownership of their faith.

“I am very excited about what God has been doing in my life and what He is going to do through me in the Aberdeen area!”

If you’d like to contact Kevin, you can reach him through email at KRatzsch@fca.org.

GET TO KNOW: KEVIN RATZSCH

By Ted Standing Soldier - The Lakota Strykers are born! We kicked off the Summer with our first ever baseball team and had such a wonderful summer together! The team finished the season undefeated and won the under 12 Little League Tournament during the Ogala Nation Pow Wow and Rodeo. Thank you so much to Rim Rock Church and Sharps Corner Baptist for providing our team with uniforms and equipment.

In July, I brought ten of my baseball players to the Prairie Light Youth Camp on the Rosebud reservation. I was able to share my testimony with the 5th-8th grade students from Rosebud who attended the camp as well as my players. It was great to see them participate in the camp activities and be mentored by other young men who love Jesus. Each evening, we camped in Valentine, Nebraska where I was able to take the kids swimming and spend more intimate time with them along with having morning devotions. Being able to pour life and the love of Jesus into them and take them out of their home environment was a great experience for all of us. Thank you for allowing me to love on these kids in Pine Ridge and other South Dakota reservations through sports, meeting them right where they are and sharing the love of Christ with them.

FCA NATIVE MINISTRY UPDATE

UPDATES & EVENTS