Fellowship of Christian Athletes holds unite event
A group of friends enjoyed music, food, faith and friends at the Fellowship of Christian Athletes Unite Event held on Sunday, Oct. 28 at the Coshocton Christian Tabernacle.
COSHOCTON – More than 70 students, grades seventh through 12, gathered at the Coshocton Christian Tabernacle for a Fellowship of Christian Athletes Unite Event on Sunday, Oct. 28.
Deb Strasser said the FCA group plans three to four unite events each year and that the county schools are excited for the events. “The number of students coming to the weekly meetings is growing in all of the county schools. It’s exciting. These kids are amazing. When we have our leadership meetings, we ask the kids what they want and need and they aren’t afraid to tell us.” Strasser also wanted to make sure students who are homeschooled know that they are always welcome at the events.
Alex Ballentine was the featured speaker at the event. He is an English teacher and a coach for the football team at Coshocton High School. His message for the evening was about identity and finding yourself. “A big question teens have is ‘Who am I?’ and finding that answer through faith is the most stable way.” He hosts a small group Bible study for boys in 10th – 12th grade each week.
“In my third year of coaching, I saw that we could be doing more to teach the guys about family, core values, and faith. I asked a few players if they would be interested in meeting at my house and talking about it and 15 showed up the first night. I usually have 12 -18 each week.”
“They keep coming back. I may not see an impact right now, but in 10-15 years, they will hopefully still remember what we talked about. We’ve even had a couple of guys from the group get baptized because of our group. We did a series on manhood and I’ve heard students talking in the hall about what they learned in that series – about how being a man includes making good choices and being a good person. It’s been a really cool experience and the guys ask during the summer if we are still going to have small group in the fall.”
Jenna Stonebraker is a senior at Coshocton High School and this is her second year of being part of FCA. “There’s kinda a boundary between school and church and this blurs that boundary and brings us together. It’s not difficult to get kids to come to our weekly meetings. We joke about it being the doughnuts, but it’s because they like what they hear and how they feel at our meetings.”
Kenzie Potter is also a senior at CHS. “I see students stepping out and sharing their passion about their faith. God has a lot to do with kids coming back. It’s difficult to defend my faith sometimes, but it’s so important. We need to do it with love and not being rude or pushy. We hear so much negativity about being Christian in the news, but we know what it really is. Kids come and hear the Christianity isn’t about following a bunch of rules and can see how passionate faith can be.”
Potter and Stonebraker both agreed that it’s easier to share their faith in the meetings. Stonebraker added that FCA meetings allow them to step out of the Sunday morning and Wednesday evening church routine and practice more every day.
Hannah Larentz is a seventh grader at CHS and this is her first year. “A lot of my friends went to the meetings and I thought it would be cool. I heard that Jenna (Stonebraker) and Kenzie (Potter) would be sharing their stories and I wanted to hear them.”
River View High School sophomore, Morgan Welch, is a first year member of FCA. “I heard about it last year, but I thought it was only for athletes and I don’t play any sports. I wanted to be a part because Christianity is important and this group gets kids involved in good fellowship.” She also said it’s more fun to be around kids with the same interests and goals as she has. “Sometimes, it’s hard to share your faith because you are afraid you will be judged. I don’t have to worry about that here.”
Another River View student attending the event was Brandon McGuire. This is his first year. “So many of my friends were going, so I wanted to, too. It’s important because some kids may not have access to Christ or church.”
John Strasser said he was so thankful for the school districts for allowing this group in their schools. “It is wonderful – students sharing their faith with other students.”
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