Sports and the Kingdom of God
It’s easy to see how church services, equipping forums, Bible studies, and prayer meetings advance the kingdom of God. But what about sports and recreation?
For years, Second has had a strong sports program, one that God continues to bless and expand over time. Far more than merely meeting physical needs and providing kids and adults alike with the opportunity to let off steam on the court or the field, the 2PC recreation and sports department aims to accomplish the broader mission of our church: to Retell the Gospel, Reimagine the Church and City, and Repair What Is Broken.
“Essentially we’re just taking the vision of the church and asking the question, ‘How can we use sports to carry this out?’” explains new Director Chris Devine, who is both a longtime 2PC member and a deacon. “We’re not creating something separate from 2PC and its vision. We’re a ministry of the church seeking to carry out the vision that the Lord has given the church in the context of sports.”
Before Chris transitioned to this role a few months ago, he served for 15 years with Campus Outreach. But Chris and his family are no strangers to the 2PC Sports department. Their kids have participated in sports at Second for the past seven years—trying their hand at everything from basketball to baseball to soccer. “Our family loves sports,” Chris shares. “I mean, we have a whiffle ball field in our backyard.” Plus, his wife Jen teaches Pilates and trains Pilates teachers. Combining his and his family's love for fitness, the people of God, and sharing the gospel with others, Chris's new role is a great fit.
“The 2PC sports ministry program has been a huge blessing and benefit for my family,” he shares. “I’ve built a lot of relationships through it. We love the mission and vision of this church. This is where our life is. We live a mile away. And we enjoy sports—so it was a good overlap to move into this role.”
Growing Together on the Field and in the Bleachers
In terms of the relationships Chris has built through his family’s involvement with 2PC sports, they simply emerged through the shared activity of weekly practices and games. "There are people on Elaina's soccer team that I’ve walked up and down the halls with for 10 years, and we talked more in two weeks at soccer games than we had in the last 10 years at church.”
In addition to strengthening relationships among 2PC members, Chris and the 2PC Sports team want to see God use sports as a vehicle to form unlikely friendships among people who might not otherwise come together. For example, 2PC Sports recently hosted a Football Jamboree in which four different high schools practiced together on our campus. One of the four schools was White Station, with whom 2PC has a long relationship. For the past 15 years, we've hosted the team on our campus for a weekend football camp each summer.
The ministry also recently co-hosted a free, gospel-centered basketball camp with a non-profit organization called Six Twelve Camps. The goal was to offer a camp that reflected the surrounding zip code. With 60 spots available, they hoped for a relatively equal percentage of those spots to be filled by kids from 2PC and PDS, kids from Orange Mound, and kids from Binghampton.
“What would it look like to take people who wouldn’t normally be together, and who aren’t necessarily in the same schools, and use sports and the gospel to bring them together to do something meaningful with one another?” Chris and the founder of Six Twelve Camps asked. Not only did the Six Twelve Camp accomplish bringing different groups together, but it was also a great opportunity to host kids and families on our campus who aren’t normally here.
Inviting Our Neighbors to Come to Us
Through sports at Second, there are many people spending time on our campus that wouldn’t otherwise be here. In fact, of the 1,000 people who participate in 2PC Sports leagues throughout the year, 62% don’t belong to our church. Some aren’t members at any church. To maximize this opportunity, the Sports department is asking themselves how they can build programming that fosters community beyond participants simply coming to Second on Saturdays for an hour and then leaving.
“If you look at the map of the city, Second is right in the middle,” Chris points out. “It is just amazing to have these facilities right here in the middle of the city. There’s no shortage of opportunities. How can we be servants of the Lord and other people? How can we be stewards of what the Lord has entrusted to us?”
One way we that can steward this opportunity is by committing to live missionally as Christ's disciples—not only when we're on mission trips abroad or serving with non-profits in the city but also when we're watching our kids shoot hoops, guard the goal, or go long. God can do a lot through seemingly “little” efforts like engaging in conversation with parents sitting near you on the sidelines. Plus, in the near future, 2PC Sports is planning to offer some recreation opportunities geared not only toward kids but adults and families. The goal of these offerings (which would include pickle ball, biking, and golf) would be to have fun, build community, and facilitate outreach.
Thanks to relationships he built with non-2PC parents during the Spring sports season, Chris had the chance to show compassion and share Christ with parents who confided in him about various difficulties they were facing, such as hardships at work or health issues. Imagine how God might build His church through sports if every 2PC member involved got to know the other families participating and sought out ways to share the “reason for the hope that is in [us]” (1 Peter 3:15).
Blessing Our Neighbors by Going to Them
In addition to being intentional with the neighbors that God has brought to our church campus, Chris and his team are seeking to be intentional to bring the church, through sports, to our neighbors. In the Spring, 2PC’s Baseball Night at the University of Memphis was by far the best attended Memphis baseball game of the season, so much so that they sold out of hot dogs in the first inning! Afterwards, the university’s athletic marketing department reached out to Chris and asked how they could partner with 2PC Sports to repeat the event annually.
In the future, they also plan to hold a 2PC Soccer Night at a Memphis men’s soccer game and a Memphis women’s soccer game each season. Who knows how God might use such reciprocal relationships with our neighbors to bring "His kingdom come, His will be done, in [Memphis] as it is in heaven"?
Finding Your Place
There are several ways members can get involved with 2PC Sports. If you have kids, sign them up for soccer or flag-football this Fall—the deadline is Tuesday, July 19! If your child has a special need, contact Shine Coordinator Audrey Hamm, who will assist with finding the right team and organizing any necessary accommodations. If you don’t have kids, consider spreading the word to your friends and neighbors who do.
Beyond that, consider coaching! “When over 60% of your participants aren’t members,” Chris says, “it’s really helpful to have coaches who are members and committed believers to welcome them, build a relationship with them, and be their entry point to the church.” And if head coaching feels “out of your league,” you can serve as an assistant or a helper.
"Our prayer,” Chris says, “is that the Lord would use sports to build the Church, whether that be 2PC or other churches in the city—that He would use sports to build His Church.”
Learn More & Get Involved:
- Sign up for fall sports
- Contact Audrey Hamm for special needs registration and accommodations
- Learn more about joining the 2PC Fitness Center
- Contact Chris to express interest in coaching
From left to right: Chris Devine (2PC Sports Director), Nancy McQuillen (2PC Sports Administrator), Dale Brady (2PC Fitness Room Coordinator), and Jaylen Thomas (Recreation Desk Staff)
Not pictured: CJ Carter (Recreation Desk Staff) and Shayla Wolfe (2PC Sports Coordinator, to join the team mid-August)