Wheaton College

The following was taken from the Wheaton College Men’s Soccer website. It summarizes their experience here in Germany.

“Team finished its competitions portion of the German trip undefeated! But most important to Coach Bean and his players are the many friendships developed with players from the other teams we played. Also the great relationships with the players’ host families, the kids from the Cafe’, PE Classes, and clinics and with the GEM missionaries that will continue to grow even though the team is returning to the States.

They also were successful in creating numerous opportunities for the Greater Europe Missions missionaries to meet and build relationships with people they would not normally have the opportunity to meet. Lord willing and guiding, we pray that many of these individuals will find their way to the new Köln church plant and come to know Jesus as their Savior. We may need to wait until eternity to see some of the spiritual fruit from this experience. The Team has been faithful in seeking to serve for Christ and His Kingdom!”

Please continue to pray for the Wheaton College team- pray they have a wonderful season and remember what God did through them in Germany!

~Adrienne

Chicago Eagles

The Chicago Eagles, a part of Missionary Athletes International, came to Germany to serve in 2 churches in the Stuttgart area. The team indicated that the churches were a perfect match for them. Despite the hardships the team went through- such as their coach suffering from an injury- the team continued to have a postive attitude. They were focused on serving the churches and community in an effort to have Christ glorified. The Chicago Eagles left an impact that will be felt in Stuttgart for years to come.

Please continue to pray for the Chicago Eagles as their summer program continues!

~Adrienne

Can I be proud to be German?

Yesterday was the first rainy day since the beginning of the World Cup and it gave me a chance to slow down, walk through the streets of Stuttgart and reflect on the World Cup and Germany.
I’ve never thought how much fun it could be to be German! I bought the first German flag of my life and for the Germany games I painted my face with the German colors. Like everybody else here I enjoyed the freedom that the World Cup gave us to be German, finally.

During the last four weeks I was able to talk with many other Germans about the World Cup and their thoughts on our identity as a nation. There’s a deep longing for a national consciousness and a renewed German identity in people’s hearts here. Even though most of us were born after World War II, we still find it very hard to express positive feelings about our country. It is sad that we can only celebrate our country after soccer games.
In the past four weeks, this has also been a personal journey for me. I learned to accept to be German and even to see some good things in that. God also reminded me that His grace for Germany is bigger than all the bad things of the past – and that He is a forgiving God. He can make all things new!

The people of Germany are celebrating the 3rd place of the World Cup at the moment, they are calling the German soccer team already “Weltmeister der Herzen” – “World Cup winners of the hearts”.
But my prayer is that we develop a healthy national identity that goes beyond soccer and the World Cup. This is only possible because God loves us so much and he chose to die for all of our sins! Please pray that the people in Germany would accept God’s amazing grace and that we start to live in our true identity, that God has given us as a nation.

~ Daniela

German fans watching their team playing

The Final Stretch…Bus tour

We had another good day here in Paderborn. A highlight for our team was the kids who came today, some of the most enthusiastic of our whole trip! They were clamoring to get into the bus and onto the street soccer court all day. Now three weeks into the trip the 2-hour setup can sap the energy out of you, so the reaction of these kids was rewarding.

Back at the church tonight we took time to pray for the kids. Most of them had come from communities not open to church or had parents who were highly skeptical. In our devotion a couple of days ago, our bus team looked at the power of God. Some questions we pondered included, “Do we really believe that God can change people’s hearts?” and “Does the gospel really have the power to change this world?”

It’s been tiring going from community to community. Currently, we all wish to finish well in these last three days in Berlin, a city that is evolving more so than any other city in Germany.

Please pray for our team that we would not only bring smiles and a fun easy going energy to these next sites, but believe in our hearts God has the power to do immeasurably more then we could ever hope for!

~Zach

The Closing Conference

The Chicago Eagles, Wheaton College, and AIA North America gathered back together at Klostermuehle June 19-21. It was a time to share about what God had done in the ministry sites all over Germany and also what God was doing in them personally.

Dave Lennander, pastor of Rock Berlin, came for the first evening of the conference. He summarized the feelings of all the pastors the teams worked with, by saying that his church was blessed and encouraged by the soccer teams. Dave said that he was encouraged by the soccer players’ attitude to do whatever needed to be done. He spoke about the school visits, camps, clinics, and games the players took part in. Dave said that he was happy to see people come to his church who had never before stepped foot into a church.

The soccer teams have departed Germany. Please pray that they would travel safely. Also, pray that God would continue to remind them of their time in Germany and the great need they have seen here.

The Tour Bus is still on the road! There is a full schedule ahead, so please pray for energy for the team. They will be traveling until June 30th.

~Adrienne

Cologne Bus Tour update

It is our last day in Cologne. I am writing from the city center in an internet cafe.

In less then one hour we gave over 350 DVDs and 100 Bibles away! Today there is a match in the city of Cologne, England vesus Sweden. The city is bursting at the seams with people and there is already a German match being played in Berlin to add to the mayhem. We have been amazed by what God has done in the last three days here.

We have had several conversations with people about faith, spirituality and the person of Christ. Most are suprised yet grateful that we are here and have enjoyed talking with our staff. Tonight we plan to watch the game in several open-screen cafes and cheer on the teams. This is by far the most hectic area we have been to, but our team is more composed, more dependent on each other and God to work through all the snags and holdups each new location brings.

Please continue to pray for unity and for visible works of God to encourage us during hard times. I cannot convey the blistering pace we are on, the energy required, or the trust we need in God to be effective! ~Zach

Soccer Teams return to Klostermuhle

The project team is back at Klostermühle, preparing for the soccer teams to arrive. Tomorrow the soccer teams, coaches, and staff come back to the conference center for debriefing. It will be a time of fellowship and sharing in what God has done in and through them over the past two weeks.

Michele Braceros, one of the team members, said that she cannot believe how fast the time has gone. She said that she is really looking forward to hearing the stories. She is praying that God is preparing the soccer players hearts to be open in sharing what God has done in their lives.

Pray for safe travels for the soccer teams, as tomorrow they are traveling from their ministry sites to Klostermühle.

~Adrienne

Time is Flying!

It is really hard to believe that the soccer teams aspect of the project is almost over! God has moved in mighty ways over the past two weeks. It will be exciting to hear the stories of what the soccer players have seen.

Please pray for the soccer players and coaches as they are wrapping up at their minsitry sites. Pray that they will enjoy the last day with their host families and church communities. Pray that they would follow up with any conversations before they depart.

The bus staff is halfway through their part of the project. Today they were in Kreuztal, outside of Siegan. They were set up in a large sport complex. There were volleyball matches, go-cart races, plus the playstations and street soccer unit! The kids were loving all that there was to do.

Continue to pray that the bus staff would have the energy to persevere. They are encouraged and are doing a great job. It is taxing, however, to have to be on the move all the time.

Thank you for all your support and interest in the World Cup Project. It is neat to see God uniting everyone in reaching the world for Christ!

~Adrienne

Wheaton College Making a Difference

Wheaton College has been working with a church in Cologne for the past 9 days. They are the only team to stay with the same church for the whole 10 day part of the tour. The following is the update posted on www.wheaton.edu from Joe Harding.

“The Team has been busy with elementary school PE classes in the mornings, youth soccer clinics in the afternoon, two games against soccer clubs, the Cafe’ ministry and of course the guys find time to walk the streets of Köln a little too. Our day starts at 7:30 am (some need to be at school by 8:00 AM) and we leave for home from the Cafe’ after the last game, which has been about 11:30 pm. The Team is doing something all the time, however, we get a day off on Thursday!

On Sunday, the team participated in the morning service of the new church plant that GEM missionaries Adam (Wheaton ‘95) & Bethel Gascho (Wheaton ‘95), Jared & Lori (Moody ‘01) Bridges, and Carsten Meisner are starting. Justin and Matt assisted Lori with the music for the worship section of the program and Steve Rigby shared his testimony before Adam Gascho preached the sermon. The whole team was a part of the service in some aspect.

Mike Shearon (Wheaton ‘95), serving with AIA Canada has joined our group and has encouraged our players in many ways. Mike is leading our team’s devotional and spiritual growth sessions each day. He has challenged the players through study of the Scriptures to explore where they are in experiencing the fullness of Christ’s death so they might truly live in Jesus strength now and be able express His love to others. He also has encouraged them to know more completely what it means to die to self for the glory, pleasure, and will of the Lord.

We have played two matches against good German soccer clubs and have won both of them. The team is working together very well. The games have been on dirt fields and our players have adapted quickly. Our ball control style, strong tactics, and physical conditioning has given us the advantage in every game. After each game we stay at the club house and have a meal with the players from the other team and watch a World Cup game. The language has been a little problem, but once again the players go out of their way to find ways to communicate with the other players. Coach Bean is pleased with all aspects of the trip so far! The team’s spirit and desire to serve Christ in any way is our primary goal and thus far we have been able to maintain focus and are achieving our objectives.”

Continue to keep the team from Wheaton College in your prayers. Pray that God would continue to give them strength and endurance to keep up with the busy schedule. Also, please pray that God would continue to protect them from injury.

~Adrienne

AIA North America team in Berlin

AIA North American traveled to Berlin for the second half of their tour. Jon Vanhorn sent the following update:

“We met the pastor of Rock Berlin and watched the match last night at the church. We went to a local school and spoke with physical education classes in the morning. We had a great time interacting with the kids, talking with them, and sharing about our lives. We weren’t able to share Christ, but we did invite them all to a soccer camp we are doing tomorrow. At the soccer camps, we will be able to talk openly about Christ.”

“This afternoon we went to two different parks where there are enclosed soccer fields. We played pick up soccer with kids that were there already playing or walking through the park. We played for a few hours, against about 30 people total. We were able to talk a little with them about our faith. There was one kid from Sweden, who was a Christian already and was visiting for the World Cup. We invited him to church to watch the game tonight and also to the soccer camp tomorrow. Hopefully we will be able to see them again and share with them. We are also going back to the parks two more times this week to play and talk with those we come in contact with.”

Please continue to pray for AIA North America. Pray that they will continue to have positive conversations with people they come in contact with!

~Adrienne