Testimony Tuesday Initiative

Testimony Tuesday is an initiative started in 2023 by Michigan FCA. The purpose of this initiative is to be intentional about collecting and sharing the stories of lives transformed through the ministry. These may be personal faith testimonies, impact stories, or the sharing of biblical truth. On select Tuesdays, Northwest Michigan FCA will share on this web page as well as our social media platforms. Our prayer is that you will be inspired and encouraged by these stories and will be motivated to share your own personal testimonies with us and those around you. 

We are using the theme "BE A HERO MAKER!" because everyone wants to be a hero. Yet only a few understand the power in being a hero maker. A hero maker is a leader who shifts from being a hero to making others the hero in God's unfolding story of building His Kingdom on earth. The greatest example of a hero maker we have is Jesus Christ. You can't study Jesus' ministry practices without seeing Him as a hero maker. Jesus put the spotlight on God the Father. Then He put the spotlight on others around Him, who in turn did likewise for others. This is how we are obedient to His command to go and make disciples (heroes) in Matthew 28.

Every story has a hero, villain, victim and guide. There are no heroes without a guide to lead them there. There are no disciples of Jesus without someone guiding them there. Testimony Tuesday is an opportunity for others to share stories of moving from being a villain or victim to becoming a hero for Christ who is seeking to be a guide for others. All of this is so that we will live out our mission of leading every coach and athlete into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ and His Church. If you would like to participate and share your story on our Testimony Tuesday platform, please reach out to Jen Yost (jyost@fca.org).

1/9/24- Riley Scollard- Traverse City Central High School

"I grew up going to church but I never truly knew who God was. I felt like I was too sinful to pursue a relationship with God, so I constantly relied on sports to validate my worth. I felt mentally exhausted chasing unrealistic expectations of what I thought would bring me true happiness. I had a void that remained empty the more I tried to fill it with worldly things. One day during track practice I bursted out of the blocks and instantly felt a pop in my hamstring. I immediately felt a shock of pain shoot through my leg. I’ve never felt more hopeless than in that moment. I spent countless weeks of track season going through a never-ending cycle of pushing myself too early and re-pulling my hamstring. I craved validation through sports more than ever. I wanted to compete more than anything to prove my worth to myself. “What if I’m never the same athlete?” “Why am I not healing faster?” “How is my injury a part of God’s plan?” I spent countless months asking myself these questions.

During track season I realized I needed a distraction from sports, so I made the decision to attend a Christian camp over the summer. I didn’t know what to expect but I knew going to camp would be a good way to grow closer to God and deepen my friendships. I remember looking around and seeing God work through so many different people. Throughout the week I felt an immense wave of the Holy Spirit during convos with people and worship. I’ve never felt God’s presence as vividly as I did that week. I was truly fulfilled; a feeling I hadn’t experienced in a while. I was so eager to learn more about how to grow even deeper in my faith and keep my fire for the Lord burning. I knew after that week I’d never be the same person I was before. When I got back from camp I felt like a whole new athlete. I spent most of the summer training for hockey season. Hockey became so much more fulfilling because I knew no matter what the outcome is God loves me, and my hard work is a way of glorifying him.

Sports no longer define my worth. Sports change constantly; one day everything will be going your way and the next day sports can give you a different outcome, but God’s love never changes. I now realize that my worth is not defined by anything in this world. Proverbs 3:5-6 says “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths”. This experience taught me to trust in God's plan over my understanding because his plan for our lives is so much better than we could ever imagine."

5/1/23- Natalie Perrin, Coopersville, MI
West Virginia University Air Rifle Team
 

"I always struggled with understanding my own identity and finding a way to feel whole. Even though I never really saw myself becoming an athlete, I quickly grabbed ahold of that identity in rifle. It got deeper with my worth and identity being solely tied up in my score and performance. Every match was life or death because if I didn’t shoot well, it meant that I as a person wasn’t worth much.
But when I got to college, FCA showed me the love that Jesus has for me. A love that is unconditional and doesn’t change based on my performance. I learned that I am a child of God, and no matter what I shoot or what I place, nothing can take that away. Nothing can separate me from His love.
His love has changed me in every way and will continue to do so the rest of my life, even when I decide to put my guns away.
He has taught me that it is okay to surrender and give it all to Him, He can do more in me than I could ever dream of doing on my own. I realize now that He made me an athlete to draw me to Him and to accomplish His purpose here."

2/28/23- Gavin Guggemos- Kalkaska High School

“I love sports because it allows me to show what talents I have and  it allows me to represent my school. Part of sports means having good character and trying to be a better person and Jesus wants the same thing. I am excited about the FCA group because I get to meet with likeminded athletes.”

1/31/23- Gloria House- Johannesburg-Lewiston Senior

11/8/22- Aiden Harrand, Buckley High School Junior
I’m Aiden Harrand and I have 3 State titles and recently won my 4th one this year in cross country. I have grown up in a Christian home and have always gone to church and have been a part of our first FCA program since I was an 8th grader. I am part of a small school program where having a team is very rare, but this year is when things started to change. Going to my first day of practice this year, I had 6 girls standing by my side. A few weeks later when it was time for our first FCA meeting, I looked around and saw those 6 girls from practice. I realized that this year was going to be like no other. I was not only going to have a great team, but a team who was going to run though God. 

I feel that having this team that was not running for themselves but running for God opened up a different type of bond. This is the closest team I have ever had. There was so much love for each other and we have that love for God. I was able to go to Fields of Faith with my amazing team and bond in not just an athletic way but spiritual too. 

Now I brought my faith into my sport because I realized a while ago that I lost my touch with God. I soon realized that that I was training and racing for myself, but really I should have been doing it though God and for God. I took a step back and told myself that before I run again, I need to change my mindset and seeing that in those 6 girls beside me only made it so much easier. They not only helped me become a better athlete but they help me become a better follower of God. I pray before every race, telling God to take me into his hands and what happens is for a reason only he knows. He not only showed me that I am strong but I am capable of anything when I do it through him. I love my amazing team so much and I would not have gotten where I am without their help in finding my way back to Christ.