Word got back to me recently that a parent of one of the middle school students who attended our FCA Weekend of Champions retreat has forbidden her to attend anything religious in the future. Your question to me might be, what happened? Well, I don't know the student or parent's name or any specifics but this I do know - We encourage the student-athletes who attend our FCA camps and retreats to live out their faith and be bold with their convictions. At the same time, every parent has a right to lead their child in whatever direction they want, whether that is to God or away from God. God has given each of us a free-will. Kind of like the religious freedom we have in America.
But this got me to thinking back on the two weekends my staff and volunteers spent at the camp with 840 middle school students, 35 high school "All Stars", 90 coaches and 185 college athletes. On Sunday mornings, the last session of the camp, students are given the opportunity to share with their peers what they received over the weekend. We call it "open mic," where 75 or more students stand in front of hundreds and share their story of how God impacted their lives in just three days.
These 6th, 7th and 8th graders come from all walks of life: rich, poor, middle class, great parents, indifferent parents, bad parents, hurting and happy. They talk about struggling with things at that age that I wasn't confronted with until young adulthood. The temptations of drugs, alcohol, pre-marital sex are not new to any generation but, quite frankly, they seem to be running rampant these days. Children's lives are being destroyed and, unfortunately, it seems that some parents are too busy to take time to find out what incredible challenges these kids are facing.
Think about this. Several times during the weekend, these children would sit down in small groups with their counselor and talk about life, talk about spiritual issues, talk about deep wounds. They would also hear about how God has given life to their peers, helping them through the daily reading of His word and quiet times of prayer. Each middle schooler had an opportunity to discover or re-discover love from a heavenly perspective and leave there with the joy and peace that they might possibly have never had before.
Imagine going back home with a bubbly new perspective on life and sharing with a parent who is possibly struggling to keep their heads above water how great God is, encouraging them to believe that all is going to be okay. One young 8th grader went home and told his mom he wanted to go on a mission trip this summer. One child went back to school and took his Bible with him. One kid decided that suicide was not the answer while another one discovered there really is a God.
At the end of the day, no matter how you personally feel about God and Biblical spirituality, wouldn't you rather hear about 6th, 7th and 8th graders discovering peace in their lives and wanting to help others? There may be some who reject the idea, but I propose that we accept and encourage this type of "offensive" behavior in hopes of making the world a better place for the future.