Sport and Recreation

Introduction

Sport and Recreation has an essential role in forming and maintaining the fabric of our communities and our society overall. A vibrant Sport and Recreation culture can provide social benefits far beyond the sporting field – to underpin happy, healthy, cohesive and resilient communities.

Sport and Recreation must position itself as a leading player in achieving these social benefits – where physical and mental health, social inclusion and community connectedness are at the heart of our policies and programs. It must lead the way in the fight against obesity through preventative health, promote inclusion of all sections of society and play a leading role in building and maintaining strong communities.

From the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries, Government of West Australia – Minister’s Sport and Recreation Sector Briefing – March 2018

It has been said that Australians love their sport and this certainly appears to be true considering the amount of time they devote to either involving in or discussing sports. It can also be said that Australians love their recreation, sport often being one form of recreation. You could be forgiven for thinking sometimes that Australians seem to work in order to have leisure, spending large sums of money on holidays, equipment of various types, travelling, accommodation and eating out.

God laid down a principle of rest from labours when He rested after creating the earth and all on it, however He also laid down a set of life principles in the ten commandments that He gave to Moses on Mount Sinai. It is so easy to forget these principles when we get caught up in the thrill of ‘doing our own thing, our way’ when supposedly free from the normal daily cares and responsibilities in our time of leisure.

Sport

Sport… includes all forms of competitive physical activity or games which, through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants, and in some cases, entertainment for spectators. Hundreds of sports exist, from those between single contestants, through to those with hundreds of simultaneous participants, either in teams or competing as individuals. From Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sport

Recreation

Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The “need to do something for recreation” is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for enjoyment, amusement, or pleasure and are considered to be “fun”. From Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recreation

Praying for the Sphere of Sport and Recreation

LET US GLORIFY GOD IN THE SPHERE OF SPORT  AND RECREATION

The Truth  “I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forever.” (Psalm 86:12)

Sport and Recreation in the Australian Government

Pray for Senator the Hon Bridget McKenzie

• Senator for Victoria
• Deputy Leader of The Nationals
• Minister for Regional Services, Sport, Local Government and Decentralisation.

Pray for:

• Australian Sports’ Commission
• Sport Australia
• Australian Institute of Sport
• Find Your 30

The Australian Sports’ Commission.  ASC is the Australian Government’s statutory agency responsible for distributing funds and providing strategic guidance and leadership for sporting activity in Australia. From 18 September 2013, it is an agency of the Australian Government within the portfolio of Department of Health.

The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) is the best known division of the ASC. The AIS offers more than 700 scholarships to talented junior and senior athletes. The institute also offers athletes access to expert coaching, world-leading sports science and sports medicine services, state-of-the-art sports facilities, and opportunities for national and international competition, work and study.

Find Your 30 is all about finding practical ways in which anyone can work half an hour of activity into their day. There are simple solutions, like walking the extra block to work, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, and getting the whole family active together.

“Sport participation by Australians is becoming increasingly passive. Australians need to put down the remote control and mobile devices and head outdoors for a half-hour walk.” Dr .David Hughes, AIS Chief Medical Officer

Pray for the Sphere of Sport and Recreation:

1. Let’s pray that God will raise Christian Athletes
2. Let’s pray that God will bless all nations during the World Masters Games and other tournaments around the world.
3. Let’s pray that God will touch the heart of all national and international Athletes to seek Him and know Him.
4. Let’s pray for all people attending this event that God will bless each one of them and infill them with the Holy Spirit.
5. Let’s pray that God will touch all sports ministers and open their eyes.
6. Let’s pray that God will bless all finances invested in the domain of sport and recreation so that all will glorify Him rather than men.

Strategies and Objectives in Prayers

From Dr Mark Tronson, former team chaplain of the Australian Cricket team – https://www.pressserviceinternational.org/mark-tronson.html

• Advance a ministry which integrates the adopted core values while introducing people to the person of Jesus Christ and; therefore, “Winning Souls, Not Just Games.”
• Integrate the Sports and Recreation Ministry into the Outreach Department. Isaiah 52:7
• Enhance the efforts to invite non-churched friends, neighbors or co-workers to a non-threatening environment that will result in the ratio of un-reached people to approximately 20% of the total participants. Matthew 5:13
• Continue the specific offerings of seasonally appropriate sports such as basketball, volleyball, softball, and fulfill the overall vision of the Sports and Recreation Ministry. This is accomplished through CFC-sponsored leagues. Philippians 2:3,4
• To promote fun, fellowship, acceptance of everyone regardless of athletic abilities, and mutual care through the various teams in each respective sport. Psalm 28:7
• Create an alliance to support and/or participate in Church-sponsored compassion ministry outreach events adopted through each sport offering. Hebrews 12:1
• To direct the passion for sports into the same passion for following Christ daily. Matthew 4:19
• Incorporate a devotion time focused on biblical truth into all sports activities. Luke 18:1
• Provide opportunities for the sharing of life transforming testimonies. Luke 18:9-14
• To nurture a cadre of coordinators and team leaders for the various sports throughout the year who will so grow in their spiritual maturity that they become uniquely qualified disciple-makers in their area of influence. Philippians 4:9
• Establish expectations for the daily study of God’s Word. Psalm 119:105
• Communicate the needed discipline of daily prayer. Matthew 6:5-15; 7:7-12; Luke 3:21; 5:16; 6:12; 9:18, 28; 11:1; 23:46; John 15:4-5;
• Encourage the value of being in a small group. John 17:20
• To offer a seminar(s) in which coaches are educated in the manner that enables them to be a powerful Christian influence. Matthew 28:19

Also

• Pray for Sport Chaplaincy Australia http://www.sportschaplaincy.com.au/
• Encourage any persons leading sporting activities/teams to see themselves as chaplains and encourage them to do chaplaincy training to maximise their role.

Read Mark’s testimony Cricket reflections: 17 years as team chaplain at https://christiantoday.com.au/news/cricket-reflections-17-years-as-team-chaplain.html

Pray for the World of Sport

(From Sarah Righetti (née Gales) Church Relations and Guest Events Administrator, Christians In Sport UK http://www.christiansinsport.org.uk/)

When could we pray for sport at our church?

This totally depends on your church but here are just a few ideas:

1. Ask to use a slot in one of your monthly prayer meetings.
2. Run a sports prayer evening.
3. Include a few lines in your weekly intercession prayers.
4. Feature a sports prayer in your church’s prayer diary.

What could we pray for?

1. Pray for sportspeople in your congregation
   Find out who plays sport in your congregation and which clubs/teams they play for. Pray that God would help them to play in a way that honours God and to give them opportunities to speak about God with their friends.

2. Pray for local sports clubs in your community
   Do some research to find out who your local sports clubs are.Here are two websites that may help [in the UK] sports-clubs.net and Sport England [in Australia try sites such as clubsofaustralia.com.au] which includes lots of stats and figures on who is playing sport in your area. Pray that God would raise up Christians in these clubs to represent him and that people that don’t know him would come to explore Christianity for themselves.

3. Pray for sports activities you could run to engage with your community
   Maybe you’re planning to run an event to invite sportspeople to? If so, pray that God would use it mightily. Maybe you don’t know where to start with engaging with your local sports community? Pray for ideas and wisdom. There is loads of information and advice on running events in our Sports Mission Pack including tips on hosting a prayer gathering and some great Bible verses to look at. You can download the pack for free on the website.

4. Pray for sports events coming up
   Head to the BBC’s Sports Calendar [or your local sports media coverage, e.g. ABC Sports] to find out what major events are coming up. Pray for the event, for the Christians competing, for safety, for opportunities for churches to engage with it and anything else you think needs prayer.

5. Pray for sports ministries
   There are loads of organisations who are reaching and serving the world of sport. Pick a few organisations to pray for from the Sports Ministry UK website or download the Christians in Sport prayer diary.

If you’re in a sport, why not pray for three teammates who don’t yet know Jesus?

Pray for these Christian Sports Organisations

(And any others you locate in your region or country)

• Association of Christian College Athletics
• Athletes in Action
• Baseball.net
• Brisbane Churches Touch Football Assn
• Camino Real League
• Captivate 2002
• Catholic sports organizations
• Charlotte Eagles
• Charlotte Lady Eagles
• Christian Auto Sports
• Christian Basketball Association Inc.
• CHRISTIAN SPORTS
• Christian Sports Bike Assn
• Christian Surfers
• Christian Surfers Australia
• Climbers for Christ (International)
• Cricket Chaplain- Mark Tronson
• District 8 Athletic Association
• Fellowship of Christian Athletes
• Friends in Sport
• Good News Sports
• Kids Games
• Kristen Idrettskontakt
• Lower Blue Mountians Christian Car Club
• Mid-Ohio Christian Athletic League
• Midwest Christian College Conference‎
• Mission Beyond Tour
• Motor Racing Outreach
• National Christian College Athletic Association
• Northern NSW Christian Soccer ASS
• Ohio Christian School Athletic Association
• Pacific Christian Athletic Conference
• PGA Golf Chaplain
• Quest Australia – More Than Gold
• Ride for Refuge
• Sanctuary ministries – Adelaide South Australia
• Santa Fe League
• SLM Victoria
• Southern California Seahorses
• Sports and Leisure Ministry (SLM)
• Sports clubs founded by the YMCA‎
• Sports ministry
• Sports Partnership Australia
• Suburban Christian Conference
• Tampa Bay Christian Athletic League
• Teach and Tell Minstries
• The Christian Schools Sports Association of NSW
• The Goal – Soccer
• Upward Sports
• Victorian Churches Soccer Assn

Pray for Athletes

A list of many Australian athletes is available on this link https://pickstar.com.au/our-stars

Uphold each one of them in your prayers as God leads you.

Bibliography

http://www.dsr.wa.gov.au/about/plan-for-the-future/ministers-sport-and-recreation-sector-briefing

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

https://www.sportaus.gov.au/

https://www.cssa.net.au/

https://www.aph.gov.au/Senators_and_Members/Parliamentarian?MPID=207825

http://www.christiansinsport.org.uk/about.asp?section=934&sectionTitle=About

http://www.christiansinsport.org.uk/page.asp?section=966&sectionTitle=Pray+for+sport