Today (Wednesday) is
Day # 13
of Our 65 Day Journey!
(I think. The lights are out and I can't see the calendar.)
Welcome new followers!
Beth77....answering your question at the bottom of this post.
I have a very special story for you today. One of my friends sent it to me and I wish everyone could read it.
(Don't worry, there will not be a test later. ;) )
IS IT JUST A FOOTBALL GAME?
(This is a true story.)
There was an unusual high school football game played in Grapevine, Texas.
The game was between Grapevine Faith Academy and the Gainesville State School.
Faith is a Christian school and Gainesville State School is located within a maximum security facility.
Gainesville State School has 14 players.
They play every game on the road.
Their record was 0-8.
They've only scored twice.
Their 14 players are teenagers who have been convicted of crimes ranging from drugs to assault to robbery.
Most had families who had disowned them.
They wore outdated, used shoulder pads and helmets.
Faith Academy was 7-2.
They had 70 players, 11 coaches, and the latest equipment.
Chris Hogan, the head coach at Faith Academy, knew the Gainesville team would have no fans and it would be no contest, so he thought, "What if half of our fans and half of our cheerleaders, for one night only, cheered for the other team?"
He sent out an email to the faithful asking them to do just that.
"Here's the message I want you to send," Hogan wrote.
"You're just as valuable as any other person on the planet."
Some folks were confused and thought he was nuts.
One player said, "Coach, why are we doing this?"
Hogan said, "Imagine you don't have a home life, no one to love you, no one pulling for you. Imagine that everyone pretty much had given up on you. Now, imagine what it would feel like and mean to you for hundreds of people to suddenly believe in you."
The idea took root.
On the night of the game, imagine the surprise of those 14 players when they took the field and there was a banner the cheerleaders had made for them to crash through.
The visitors' stands were full.
The cheerleaders were leading cheers for them.
The fans were calling them by their names, Isaiah, the quarterback-middle linebacker said, "I never in my life thought I would hear parents cheering to tackle and hit their kid. Most of the time, when we come out, people are afraid of us. You can see it in their eyes, but these people are yelling for us. They knew our names."
Faith won the game, and after the game the teams gathered at the 50-yard line to pray.
That's when Isaiah, the teenage convict-quarterback surprised everybody and asked if he could pray.
He prayed, "Lord, I don't know what just happened so I don't know how or who to say thank you to, but I never knew there were so many people in the world who cared about us."
On the way back to the bus, under guard, each one of the players was handed a burger, fries, a coke, candy, a Bible, and an encouraging letter from the players from Faith Academy.
What an incredible act of Christian witness and kindness and goodness that was.
Proverbs 11:17 says, "Your own soul is nourished when you are kind.."
Proverbs 3:27 says, "Do not withhold good when it is in your power to act."
Be kind to someone this week.
Be kind to every person you meet.
You might be amazed at what God will do with a simple act of kindness.
The game was between Grapevine Faith Academy and the Gainesville State School.
Faith is a Christian school and Gainesville State School is located within a maximum security facility.
Gainesville State School has 14 players.
They play every game on the road.
Their record was 0-8.
They've only scored twice.
Their 14 players are teenagers who have been convicted of crimes ranging from drugs to assault to robbery.
Most had families who had disowned them.
They wore outdated, used shoulder pads and helmets.
Faith Academy was 7-2.
They had 70 players, 11 coaches, and the latest equipment.
Chris Hogan, the head coach at Faith Academy, knew the Gainesville team would have no fans and it would be no contest, so he thought, "What if half of our fans and half of our cheerleaders, for one night only, cheered for the other team?"
He sent out an email to the faithful asking them to do just that.
"Here's the message I want you to send," Hogan wrote.
"You're just as valuable as any other person on the planet."
Some folks were confused and thought he was nuts.
One player said, "Coach, why are we doing this?"
Hogan said, "Imagine you don't have a home life, no one to love you, no one pulling for you. Imagine that everyone pretty much had given up on you. Now, imagine what it would feel like and mean to you for hundreds of people to suddenly believe in you."
The idea took root.
On the night of the game, imagine the surprise of those 14 players when they took the field and there was a banner the cheerleaders had made for them to crash through.
The visitors' stands were full.
The cheerleaders were leading cheers for them.
The fans were calling them by their names, Isaiah, the quarterback-middle linebacker said, "I never in my life thought I would hear parents cheering to tackle and hit their kid. Most of the time, when we come out, people are afraid of us. You can see it in their eyes, but these people are yelling for us. They knew our names."
Faith won the game, and after the game the teams gathered at the 50-yard line to pray.
That's when Isaiah, the teenage convict-quarterback surprised everybody and asked if he could pray.
He prayed, "Lord, I don't know what just happened so I don't know how or who to say thank you to, but I never knew there were so many people in the world who cared about us."
On the way back to the bus, under guard, each one of the players was handed a burger, fries, a coke, candy, a Bible, and an encouraging letter from the players from Faith Academy.
What an incredible act of Christian witness and kindness and goodness that was.
Proverbs 11:17 says, "Your own soul is nourished when you are kind.."
Proverbs 3:27 says, "Do not withhold good when it is in your power to act."
Be kind to someone this week.
Be kind to every person you meet.
You might be amazed at what God will do with a simple act of kindness.
Join Shawn for Thirty Days of Thanks!
Wednesday ~ Today, I am thankful for all the good, caring people who are out there....the ones we rarely hear about. Still, they live their lives walking in HIS footsteps! Each one is a special blessing. Each one makes the world a better place.
Beth 77, the post yesterday ~ The Simple Woman's Daybook is the brain child of Peggy Hostetler. You can find it here. She also has two blogs, The Simple Woman and The Real Organic
The Simple Woman is her older blog and I don't think she is still blogging there. The Real Organic is new. You will enjoy her writings.
And....buffet! All the way....makes people feel at home and so much easier. ;)
Blogger is still making it difficult to comment on most blogs....I can't comment here on my own...blah!!! I tried switching from Mozilla to Internet Explorer, but that didn't help. I think blogger is doing some kind of changes, as I have noticed I am not the only one having problems.
Thank you to everyone who stopped by yesterday!!! Promise I will come (and comment) ASAP!
May each of us be a blessing, an encourager, a help to someone today!
Hugs,
Cheryl
Thank you Cheryl I will check her out and both blogs. I think I went to one of themalready. It is always fun to meet new bloggers and friends in this wonderful world of ours.
ReplyDeleteLoved your football story. That is awesome and a testment of Gods love. WOW!
Blessings
Hello my lovely friend! That was an awesome story! My "boy" will be home 5 weeks from tomorrow. Not that I'm counting or anything. I can hear in his voice how much this experience has matured him. God is good! Love you!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful, inspirational story Cheryl, thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteCheryl
ReplyDeleteI love the post today :) thank you so much for the inspiration
Blessings
Rainbow
What a terrific story! Can't you just imagine the love that was on that field? I so hope some seeds were planted.
ReplyDelete