Fantasy Evangelism (2014 Revision)

Fantasy Sports are a huge part of the sports industry in the United States. Various estimates I read value the industry at $2-5 billion per year. Most of that is advertising revenue on the various fantasy sports websites. Last weekend I attended a Buffalo Bills preseason game and one of the four scoreboards seemed dedicated to giving fantasy updates from around the league... for PRESEASON GAMES!!!!!!

So I got to thinking about how churches could use fantasy sports that so many of our male members are involved in as an evangelistic tool.

I can't believe this is a real thing!!!!!!!

In 2013 I worked in a couple of leagues to build community by having weekly awards. They were both ESPN leagues. At first I tried to use the message feature built in to the ESPN website, but it didn't work very well. I think guys go to the website to work on their team, not chit-chat about the season.

My other league was a 20 team league, which was a bit crazy. But another player started a Facebook group for the league members to discuss trades and trash talk. It had a lot more interaction. I suspect this worked better because people come to Facebook to chit-chat so are more willing to engage.

Within in the Facebook group I published weekly "awards" that I felt met my goal. It's not like all 20 guys commented on the post each week, but the awards created some continuity. They helped us keep track of how other teams were going. And they provided an opportunity for some more trash talk.

Here's the list I used:

• Most Points Scored (Season)
• Most Points Scored Against (Season)
• Worst Winner (Weekly winner with the lowest score)
• Biggest Loser (Losing team with the highest score)
• Blowout of the Week (Matchup with the greatest winning margin)
• Keeping it Close (Matchup with the smallest winning margin)

I also tried to include a weekly Trivia Tidbit. For example, "3 teams have an 8-3 record. 3 teams have a 7-4 record. 3 teams have a 6-5 record."

You may come up with different ways of creating relationships. It's my hope that my experiences might spark your creative juices. Just keep in mind that fantasy sports can be about a lot more than just winning.

Here are 10 Fantasy Football Commandments that I came up with last year that might also help out your fantasy league be an evangelistic tool.

1. Use your imagination when inviting people to your league. Perhaps the unchurched husband of your members would like to get involved. Have you met a guy at the local diner or coffee shop who might like to get involved?
2. Make sure you have a draft party. I know most drafts can be done on the computer, but remember the goal is face-to-face time. So take the time to get together and write it out. It's more work, but it will be worth it. Maybe use the church building or even better for building relationships would be using someone's home.
3. As commissioner work hard to keep the emails and online comments (trash talk) going throughout the year. It's so easy to just let the league run on auto pilot. Community will only be built through intentional interaction.
4. Do you have a church Christmas party or special event you can invite the unchurched participants to attend?
5. Develop a list of awards so everyone still has an interest in participating. 
1. Have a vote for the most creative team name.
2. Keep track of the biggest win by an underdog.
3. Longest winning/losing streak.
4. Highest and lowest weekly scores over the course of the year.
5. Team with the most injuries.
6. Team with the most single digit losses.
7. Anything else you can think of.
6. Have physical trophies for the winner, runner-up, and maybe consolation winner. This will provide continuity from year to year. You could even have a plaque somewhere in the church if you want to go all out.
7. You MUST have an end of season awards night. Bring everyone together and eat lots of guy food.
8. Plan to watch a final or the Superbowl together. Many people have standing plans for the Superbowl, but it could work great for an earlier playoff game. 
9. NEVER have a league prayer meeting for your fantasy teams!!! Did I need to include that?
10. FOOD! Involve food whenever you can. It just makes all the get togethers work better.

If you can apply most of these suggestions, there's a very high likelihood that you'll know these guys a lot better at the end of the season than the beginning. Only God knows where that relationship will go from there.

I'm always looking for additional ideas, so please leave a comment if you have any.

Room to Grow

On Sunday Rory McIlroy won his fourth major golf championship: The US PGA Championship. In doing so he out played crowd favorite and winner of multiple majors, Phil Mickleson. He also staved off another up and coming young golfer in Ricky Fowler, and withstood a charge from world #4, Henrik Stenson.

McIlroy has now won 3 consecutive tournaments including two Majors. He is undoubtedly the hottest golfer on the planet and deservedly the #1 player in the world.

McIlroy is a golf prodigy and has had consistent success since first swinging a golf club at age 2. This photo montage by the BBC does a good job of tracking his career to this point.

In total, Rory has now won 4 Majors, joining Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, and Bobby Jones as the only players to win 4 majors at the age of 25 of less. As Tiger Woods has now not won a major since 2008 Rory looks like the player most likely to assume Tiger's spotlight. This article and it's graphs provides a good summary of the immense challenge that lies ahead for Rory if he's to catch either of them.

Tiger won his last PGA Championship in 2007. At that time Rory was 17. He was a talented golfer who already had an impressive list of accomplishments, but he didn't even turn professional until later in 2007. As Tiger lifted the trophy at Valhalla in 2007 no one thought a 17 year old amateur golfer in Northern Ireland might have a legacy to one day match Tiger and even Jack Nicklaus.

But there were some people who believed in McIlroy's potential. His parents, his coaches, his friends all supported his dream of becoming a champion golfer. They invested in his career at an early age. They spent money on him. The spent time on him. They passed on their experiences and helped him improve areas of his game that had deficiencies. While Rory appropriately gains all the credit for his play and accomplishments the culmination of his practice, focus, and skill, it's intriguing to consider how much of this would have been possible without the support and encouragement he's received throughout his life.


I wonder if sometimes our expectations for young people in our churches are too low. Look around your church. Is there a chubby faced 17yo who might one day make a mighty impact in this world for God? Can you see that person? Is anyone spending time with that person and helping them grow? I wonder how many 17 year olds we leave to find their own way in life because we don't purposefully pass on our experience and help them improve life skills where they have deficiencies.

Many churches invest heavily in their youth and have vibrant youth ministries run by fantastic youth ministers. But I wonder if you, the reader of this blog, make a spiritual investment in the lives of any young people? Are you more likely to ask a teenage boy about trying out for the football team, or his backswing, than you are to pray with him? Do you ever pray with him?

Young people in the church need to know that they're valued. We do this not just by throwing money at them, but by letting them know that we care about them and believe that God has a role for them in His mission. We equip them and help them identify their spiritual gifts. We give them opportunities to participate in the work of God now as training for the rest of their lives.

Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.  Ephesians 4:12-13

BONUS MATERIAL: Since I started writing this post news has broken of Robin Williams death. As a tribute, here's his explanation of the origins of golf. :-)

That Wasn't Me ... Or Was It?

Ray Rice is one of my favourite NFL players not playing for a team I support. He's a dynamic playmaker and I try to get on my fantasy football teams whenever I can.

But that's changed.

In February, video emerged of Rice dragging his unconscious fiance (now wife), Janay Palmer, out of an elevator in an Atlantic City casino. They had both walked onto the elevator but then Janay was dragged out unconscious.


Even Rice's lawyers at the time conceded that a "physical altercation" had occurred, although they chose to describe it as "minor".

So let's call a spade a spade. Although we don't know exactly what happened in that elevator. Ray Rice pushed or hit his fiance that whether as a result of the blow or from hitting her head on a hard surface she was knocked out. The not-so-technical names for this behaviour are: domestic violence and assault.

There. is. no. excuse.

Throughout his first six years in the NFL, Rice had no record of any off field bad behaviour. In fact, Rice had been the public face of anti-bullying campaigns in and around Baltimore.

This track record makes Rice's behaviour in that elevator appear very much out of character. However, the physical and emotional damage to Janay is still very real whether it's typical or not. We should not underestimate the hurt that one act can cause.

Last week the NFL announced that Rice would receive a 2 game suspension for his actions that night. This means that he will sit out the first 2 games of the 2014 season against division rivals Cincinnati and Pittsburgh.

On Thursday Rice held a media conference and publicly apologised to his wife. Without going into specifics (and he doesn't need to) he acknowledged that his "actions that night were inexcusable". He needed to do this.

One thing Rice said several times that I have heard other public figures say when making public apologies is the phrase, "That wasn't me."

I think Rice is doing a lot of the things that are necessary to redeem a bad situation. I wish him well in the future. I hope he continues in counseling to address the issues that lead to that violent outburst.

But I know this. Until Rice (or anyone needing to change behaviour) can own up to the fact that it was him that night, he's not going to make much progress.

I think what he means is "That wasn't typical of me. It wasn't characteristic of me. It was against my beliefs and expectations that I and others have for myself. I don't want to ever do it again." And those are excellent thoughts that I hope are true.

But it was him.

He has to own up that he was angry and violent. Maybe there were other factors such as alcohol involved. I don't know. But that was him.

Acknowledging our weaknesses, our struggles, and our darkness creates room for God to enter our lives and work his transformation. Dismissing them as mistakes, or a moment, or not the real me, means that we ignore them and continue through life not knowing how we'll react the next moment that particular fuse is lit.

For that sake of his wife. For the sake of his son. For the sake of anyone else close to him, I hope Rice can say, "That was me, but it's not who I am anymore."

This type of transformation is a key element of God's presence in our lives. In Colossians 3:7-8 Paul could write to the church and remind them, "You used to walk in these ways in the life you once lived. But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander and filthy language from your lips."


A few lines later in v 12 he continues, "Therefore as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience...."


Paul thought it was helpful for us to remember and own who we were. Only then, with God's help, can we become the man or woman God wants us to become.

(For another perspective on Ray Rice that picks up on the same phrase, I appreciated this article on www.espn.com.)

Now What?

It's over.

I hate to be a spoiler... but you need to know... Germany won!

Yes, for the first time a European team won a World Cup tournament hosted in South America.

Maybe I need to tell you because you stopped watching after the four Asian teams were eliminated. Or perhaps after the US lost. Or maybe you tuned out when England, Italy and Spain failed to make it out of the group stage.

Whatever the case, "Now what?"

Do we return to our previously scheduled Major League Soccer (US version) schedule? Do we twiddle our thumbs waiting for the EPL to arrive in August and Australian FFA Cup to kickoff in late July?

Does most of the US population return to the stupor of summer as they count down the days for the NFL to commence?  Do they know soccer is still be played in the US right now?

I find it fascinating to observe the efforts of soccer enthusiasts and organisations in the US. In a real sense they're missionaries for something they love in a generally ambivalent foreign culture. They celebrate the success of the World Cup in the United States TV ratings and plot how they can capitalise on that moment of glamour and attention.

Churches operate in much the same way. My church is currently planning a Vacation Bible School. We hope to meet many families from the community. We're trying to find ways to let them know that our event is happening and that their kids will find it interesting.

We're praying that our event will go really well and that every kid (and their parents) that attends will be super impressed by all the enthusiastic Christians they meet that they will want to come back.

Here's where many churches fail. I've attended two VBS's with my 4yo so far this summer. The only invitation I've received to return to the church for their regular kids program was the back page of a handout I happened to pick up.

It's extremely frustrating to put hours of planning and work into hosting a great event. Then we meet families from the neighbourhood or friends of our members, and we have great conversations with them every day for a week. But then the only way to continue the relationship is for them to attend a church service on Sunday morning. For most unchurched people that's a huge step.


This year, I believe my church is on the right track. Two weeks after VBS we have Worship in the Park which after Easter is our largest attended event of the year. Then two weeks after that we have a movie night that will also launch a new Men's group for dads and husbands.

But this applies to more than VBS. Anytime we have a major event planned I always ask, "What's next?" We want to do more than just make contact with neighbours. Our church still has a long way to go as we seek to provide multiple gateways for our neighbours to meet us and through us to meet Jesus. We want to establish relationships with these people and multiple events give us greater opportunities to do so.

So what about soccer?

Soccer leagues and international confederations around world have a huge variety of major tournaments scheduled over the next few years. Australia will be hosting the Asian Cup in January and hoping to break through for their inaugural win in that tournament.

Meanwhile the "missionaries" in the US have a busy schedule with the Women's World Cup taking place in Canada in June 2015, and the Gold Cup starting a few weeks later in July. Then another major tournament is scheduled for July of 2016: The Copa America Centario (Pan-American Cup).

The Pan-American Cup will be "the single biggest tournament the United States competes in prior to the 2018 World Cup. The Gold Cup is fun and all, but what will happen in 2016 promises to be special. All ten CONMEBOL nations will be participating and they will rope in six CONCACAF nations including the United States, Mexico, the latest Caribbean champion, the latest Central American champion, and two other nations based off finishes in the 2015 Gold Cup. A tournament like promises to be unique in that a Pan-American Cup such as this has never been attempted before."

You can see a full schedule of major international tournaments for the next 4 years at THIS excellent page.

BONUS VIDEO: What did the head of the Football Federation of Australia think of the Socceroos World Cup campaign? What are his hopes for the future? Watch the video HERE.

Reflections of A Soccer Newbie

Hi. I’m new around here. But you can tell that if you just listen to me for a little.

I am just learning about socc…um…this sport. I know baseball, football (my kind!) and basketball well enough, but I’ve never really spent much time with soccer. I am drawn to soccer because the World Cup has stimulated national pride, and it is a slow sports time of year for me. I guess I want to give something else a go. Another reason why I’m interested is because of friends who know and love soccer. Most of my friends who are interested in soccer are the kinds of people I like to be around, so I’m giving this a shot.

The experience of getting in to soccer reminds me that there is often a big learning curve when trying anything new. The language of soccer is full of terms I don’t understand. For instance, who else calls their lineup a “side” or the uniforms a “kit?” The tactics of soccer are new to me as well. I am still trying to understand what the difference is between a 4-4-2 and the “diamond” that the USMNT is fond of forming. On the surface, soccer is the simplest sport on the planet, but there are textures and layers that make this a deep, cerebral sport as well.

So what is making me stay with it?

1. A welcoming community. My friends who are in to futbol have accepted a neophyte like me. During matches I often text a friend or two who are more than happy to talk to me about tactics and some of the “game within a game” moves that are being made. I really enjoy their insight and it makes it fun for me.

2. Enthralling stories: The more I watch and learn, the more I find out about the stories around the game. Today, I watched a grown man bite another player. This was unusual behavior for sure, but within a few minutes I learned that this was the third time he’s done this! Sorry Suarez. You are going to have to walk alone on this one. Then there are the stories I am learning surrounding my USA team like the Donovan decision, and the sometimes enigmatic Jurgen Klinsmann. Dempsey is a hero with a broken nose. Altidore is a tragic figure. Bradley is playing for redemption and on and on. I am interested in the matchups and the matches more because I am learning the stories surrounding the sport.

3. High stakes: The World Cup has the highest stakes of all the sporting events in the world. With soccer being the world’s most popular sport, the World Cup provides all the drama one could hope for with the highest international honors. Who couldn't want their country to do well in this tournament?

My experience as a soccer newcomer makes me think about those who are new to following Jesus. I have been a Christian my whole life. I cannot remember a time when I did not know about Jesus, but I understand that following Jesus can make one feel like an outsider with a steep learning curve! The language we Christians use can be dense. We do things that don’t make sense. We talk about sacrificing time on Sundays for worship where we do things like sing publicly. Who does that? We intentionally step back from our maximized lifestyle by committing to give of our finances to others. This doesn't make sense. We believe that we can have direct access to God in prayer. And then there are complicated doctrines that make PhD candidates sweat. Following Jesus can be complicated. I get it.

But here’s why I think you should stick with it.

1. A welcoming community: When you follow Jesus with others you will find a community that will accept you, care for you, and show you the love of Christ. My life has been so thoroughly shaped by the community of Jesus followers that I cannot imagine me without the Church.

2. Enthralling Stories: Face it. The claim that Christians make is the biggest story ever told! We believe Jesus, the Son of God, died on a Roman cross but God raised him from the dead. This cycle of resurrection is the core story of Christians and we find ourselves riffing this tune continually. The possibilities that open up when we live resurrection are endless and engaging. Christians should tell the best stories.

3. The Highest Stakes: We believe that God is restoring all things and God is using the Church as agents of this reconciliation. Christians can sense that all time and creation is heading someplace. And we want to be a part of what God is doing!

If you are getting in to Jesus, I encourage you to find a community, hear the stories, and pay attention to the high stakes. I think you will find this the most meaningful pursuit in life!

Jordan Hubbard is the senior minister at the Belton Church of Christ in Belton, TX (in Central Texas). He is married to Debbie and they have 3 children. Jordan enjoys baseball and football (the American kind) and is just learning about futbol. He's a Dallas Cowboys fan, so he's accustomed to having his heart broken. You can check out Jordan's messages at www.beltonchurch.com and when he blogs it is at www.jordanhubbard.wordpress.com. You can also follow him on Twitter @jordanchubbard.

Building a Legacy of Success

The Los Angeles Kings became champions of the National Hockey League this year, winning the Stanley Cup by beating the New York Rangers in the finals 4 games to 1. The Kings demonstrated a strong will to win. In round one of the playoffs, they were down three games to none against a very good San Jose Sharks team. They became just the fourth team in NHL history to overcome these odds by winning four in a row to advance to the second round. In that round, they faced their bitter rivals from Anaheim, the Ducks, and were victorious in a difficult series. 

In the third round, the Western Conference championship, the Kings took on the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Chicago Blackhawks. This series went to seven games, and the seventh game went to sudden-death overtime, before the Kings won to advance. In the Stanley Cup final, the Kings showed their resiliency by beating the Rangers in five games. Three of those games required overtime and of those, two actually went to double overtime, including the Kings' final victory!

If we looked only at this season, we could say that the Kings were good. However, if we look at the recent past, we might conclude that the Kings are very good, if not great. It was not just this year that the Kings were successful. In the previous two seasons, the Kings won the Stanley Cup (2012) and made the Western Conference championship round (2013). The "dynasty" word has begun to be used about them. There is a new statistical category, called the fenwick close percentage, which basically describes scoring chances. The Kings have led the NHL in fenwick percentage for the last three seasons, winning it all twice and losing in the semi-finals to the eventual champion.

The Kings are building something great, and all the pieces matter. They have only three unrestricted free agents, so the core of the team will be able to be kept together. The Kings are also a young team, and seem to have skill in developing young prospects within their system. Although they will probably not win the Stanley Cup every year, they are positioning themselves to be successful for many years to come. The Kings are building a legacy of success.

What can your church or ministry learn from the Kings?

1. Get good at what matters. 

There is a reason that teams who lead the league in fenwick close percentage have either won the Cup or come very close to winning the Cup. The stat describes scoring chances, and if you have more scoring chances than your opponent you will most often win the game. The Kings have led this category for three years. They have focused on what matters, on what gives them the best chance to win. 

What is the most important thing your church can do to be successful? If you don't know, how can you find out? How can you center your ministry's efforts around that one thing?

2. Build for the long-term. 

The Kings develop prospects within their system, sign them to long-term contracts, and keep them. This ensures a nucleus of good, skilled young players will grow together as a team. They will learn and understand the team's system while adopting the values and culture of the club.

How are you building for the long-term? Do you have a training system that you put people through? How could you develop such a system? (Read more on this topic HERE.)

3. Stay consistent.

The Kings are not known for making many moves. Their coach is about as low-key as you find. They are consistent and methodical. They have a plan. They focus on what they must do to succeed and they stick to that.

Does your church or ministry chase the latest fad or gimmick? Are you always looking for the "next big thing" or are you following a plan? Does your decision making process encourage change or consistency? How can you emphasize consistency?

Jeremy Hoover is the minister at the Otisville Church of Christ in Otisville, Michigan. His website is at www.jeremyhoover.com. He is an avid sports fan who enjoys biographies about athletes and books by coaches. His favorite sports are hockey, where he roots for the Toronto Maple Leafs, and football, where he pulls for the New England Patriots.

From Shadows to Spotlights

What an exciting time of year for sports fans. We are witnessing a massive collision of huge sporting events with global followings.

As I write this on Thursday, 12 June 2014 the following events will take place today:

• Day One of the US Open (golf);
• Game 4 of the NBA Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and Miami Heat;
• And in a couple of hours the first game of the 2014 World Cup will kickoff in Brazil.
• Also, tomorrow the NY Rangers and LA Kings will play Game 5 of the NHL Finals.

This all comes on the back of Rafael Nadal winning a record 9th French Open (tennis) this past weekend and in a couple of weeks Wimbledon will be upon us just as the World Cup group stage concludes.

In the meantime, other leagues (Major League Baseball, Rugby & Aussie Rules) continue their regular seasons.

As the passion for these major sporting events ramps up only to suddenly disappear when the final whistle blows, I'm drawn to compare the hype to the manner many of us approach church involvement.

As a minister I understand all to well the appeal of the latest flash marketing of a new approach to a particular ministry. We launch a new small group ministry with fireworks and a smoke machine and six months later we're pumping up our Children's Ministry, then summer hits and we encourage EVERYONE to involve themselves in a service activity over the next 3 months.

Sports organizations market themselves to capture the biggest audience at the biggest moments. The NBA doesn't care that much how many people watch the Timberwolves vs Charlotte in November, but they sure want a huge audience come May and June. Despite the marketing, the truth is that the parts we don't see, the off season, the gym sessions, the mundane games early in the season, all form the foundation for what occurs in the spotlight.

The World Cup (and Olympics) manage their biggest moments incredibly well. Because their event only take place every four years demand and anticipation builds. By limiting the number of teams eligible for the World Cup, the various qualifying tournaments also garner attention and build the momentum of expectations. Because they're national teams you automatically gain huge audiences whenever a nation qualifies for the tournament. If China or India ever qualify... BOOM...there's at least half a Billion eyeballs!!!

How big is the World Cup? Check out this chart!!!

Churches often do a great job of recruiting volunteers for special events, but what we really seek are disciples of Jesus committed to working in a ministry to make sure those highlights occur. I often get to baptise someone in front of the church after I've studied the Bible with that person several times. But I'd never have met that person if the daughter of the person she did housekeeping for didn't invite her and give her a ride to church each Sunday.

We love to watch our children perform at the end of the year and show the songs they've learned and Scriptures they've memorised and people they've helped throughout the year. But so many of those people who watch the "adorable children" and pat them on the back at the end of the year are nowhere to be found when recruiting teachers for the next year begins.

Sports (and church) can easily teach us to value the spotlight above the shadows, but God seeks servants willing to work in the shadows. Then sometimes He may shine the spotlight upon them.

Jesus himself demonstrates this value as he was born in a stable not a palace. Lived for a while as a refugee, not a celebrity. Worked as a carpenter, not a statesman. Ministered in Galilee, not Rome. Died with people cheering, not mourning. But then God revealed his deity as he rolled back the stone from the tomb and gave him victory over death.

From shadows to light.

It's how Jesus lived, and how we should also.

Don't get sidetracked chasing spotlights.