Fellowship of Christian Athletes
October 1, 2023
I am coming to the end of a prolonged stay in America. I have enjoyed time with family, the opportunity to connect with new and long-term ministry partners, and several great churches here in America. I was also able to get in an average of 3 hours/day riding on our beautiful Iowa bike trails. This has been a big focus of mine to stay healthy.
I am excited to share with all of you that we just received our official contract with Fellowship of Christian Athletes. That means that Blessman International is the main service provider of FCA for the entire country of South Africa. This became a reality after Musco Lighting blessed us by donating and installing LED sports lighting at our Sports 4 Christ soccer and basketball courts. One of the ways we promote this program in our village is by developing sports leagues. Currently, there are 8 churches involved in a soccer league as part of Sports 4 Christ. Now that we have a contract with FCA, we hope to host American coaches, sports teams, and sports personalities in Africa. We hope they will mentor and encourage our young people through the discipline of sport.
The first week in October our favorite ministry partner, Convoy of Hope, will be hosting Dustin, Alex, Beth, and me at their headquarters in Springfield, Missouri. It is a time each year that they gather all their missionaries from all around the world for fellowship, encouragement, and education. It is always my favorite conference of the year. I am looking forward to reconnecting with many friends who do similar mission work from every corner of the earth. In my own humble opinion, these missionaries are some of God’s favorite children - I love fellowshipping with them.
In November, we will host the 15 to 20 Convoy of Hope African missionaries at our Shikwaru Campus in South Africa. This will be our second year to host this wonderful event. We are blessed with an incredible staff in America and in South Africa. While busy back in SA, some of our staff will attend the annual meeting of the Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ (LCMC) in St. Louis, MO as well as the first Upper Midwest Global Methodist Church (GMC) gathering in South Dakota. We have been praying for some time now for many new church partners and we are beginning to see this happening.
Prayer Request: In addition to the Convoy of Hope gatherings coming up we have 2 short term mission groups that will come to serve with us in October. Please pray for their safety and that they each will have a successful mission experience.
My next blog will come to you in early November from South Africa. A big thank you to everyone who prays for us and partners with us in any way.
Doc