HOUSTON -- Sports ministries score big in reaching the unchurched, according to a speaker at the Sept. 30-Oct. 2 "Church on the Cutting Edge" conference in Houston.
"We've got to open up our mentality," said Victor Lee, a sports ministry evangelism consultant for the North American Mission Board. "We have too many closed facilities for the God squad only, and Jesus wouldn't even play in those places, I'm convinced."
Richland Creek Community Church in Wake Forest, N.C., has a sports ministry worth modeling, Lee said. The church's annual sports camp focuses on non-Christians rather than members, according to the Baptist Press.
"The first year, 17 kids received Christ, and over the course of the next year, 17 parents or siblings of those family members came to Christ," Lee said. "The point is to have a sports camp that intentionally targets lost people. If you just target your kids, that's not intentionally reaching your audience."
Lee suggested churches host sports clinics, with participants rotating through different stations receiving pointers and training on particular skills. The gospel can be shared at the end of the clinic, when participants are given a chance to respond. As many as 15 to 20 percent of participants often make professions of faith, Lee said.
Sports leagues also can be effective if designed with evangelism as a priority, Lee said. Christians should join secular leagues or invite non-church members to play on church teams.
