Football and Missions

As I write this, our Associational Missionary, Bro. David Mitchell, his wife, Fran, and three football coaches from Ouachita Baptist University are in Hungary for a football camp. Now in Hungary, and in most of the rest of the world, when you say football, what they mean is the sport Americans call soccer. However there is a growing interest in Europe in the sport of "American Football".  

A few years ago, on a mission trip to Hungary, we discovered that there were a few groups of Hungarian men who were forming football teams. They didn't know much about the sport, but they were eager to learn. We happened to have with us a young man who was a football player for the Ouachita Tigers. He took the opportunity to meet some of the men and give them a few pointers. They were thrilled! The next year, we took a high school football coach and his son, a kicker, with us to teach English Camp. In the afternoons and evenings, they would go and work with the local football team. Once again, this was welcomed. Not only did all three of these men teach football, but they also got to talk about their faith in God. 

These two positive experiences led to the trip that is taking place this week. There will be three coaches from Ouachita teaching three football teams, two from Hungary and one from Romania. These coaches are excited about the opportunity before them, not only to teach their favorite sport - football , but also to use this opportunity to share with these 70 men about their faith in Jesus Christ!

We pray that God will use them mightily to share His love.