Combining Christ with competition

Wednesday, July 10, 2019

This is the first in a three-part series regarding the SemoFCA Power Camp that will be held at Cape Central Junior High this week.

The message is clear as soon as the young people arrive for their day at the SEMO FCA Power Camp. There will be plenty of time throughout the next seven hours for sports, but everything at this camp has its place and time.

“We’ll have 200 kids right up here doing worship,” SEMO FCA Area Representative Mike Litzelfelner (Litz) said. “It’s pretty powerful.”

A camper works on her shooting during a drill at the SEMO FCA 'Power Camp' Tuesday at Cape Central Junior High. Tom Davis ~ Tdavis@semoball.com

The three-day camp is “powerful” and in its third year of existence keeps attracting more and more interest each time around.

The staff consists of adults, many of whom are educators and coaches, college-aged volunteers and even high school students, who serve as “huddle leaders,” and anyone of them is capable of making an impact on the participants.

“Sometimes it is the worship that connects to people,” Litz said. “Sometimes it is the message. Sometimes it is the small group activities and sometimes it is just a guy or girl that comes in and says ‘Let me tell you my story.’”

HOW the message of following the Lord’s guidance reaches young people isn’t nearly as important to Litz as the message simply reaching them.

“At some point, they are going to get a lot of touches with faith and sport this week,” Litz said. “We don’t know how they are going to get connected, but they will get connected.”

One of the camp leaders supervises during the opening day of the SEMO FCA 'Power Camp' Tuesday at Cape Central Junior High. Tom Davis ~ Tdavis@semoball.com

The campers open their day with breakfast followed by the worship session and a talk by a chaplain. The kids then separate into small groups of six or seven to discuss that morning’s message.

The kids will have been at the camp for over an hour before they begin to participate in their choice of two sports of the eight (volleyball, basketball, wrestling, soccer, baseball and softball, and football) offered.

The campers will participate in two sport-specific clinic sessions daily, with a mix of lessons on Jesus Christ mixed in.

“We saw this as an opportunity to connect with young people,” Litz said. “It is like the perfect storm for the FCA.”

Campers gather for some instructions during the opening day of the SEMO FCA 'Power Camp' Tuesday at Cape Central Junior High. Tom Davis ~ Tdavis@semoball.com

The thought of athletic competition blending well with the passivity of Christianity may perplex some, but Litz sees the two as a match made in … well, you know.

“Once Jesus Christ changes people,” Litz said, “from the inside, now the audience is no longer the audience that we see, but it is the audience for Jesus Christ. What it does is gives you freedom.”

Litz spoke of how he works with athletes who are able to step onto the field of competition and perform without fear of failure. That doesn’t always equate to victory on the scoreboard, but it allows an athlete to enjoy the act of competing.

“Once the athletes experience the fullness and the love of Christ in their life,” Litz said, “you can ask any of the athletes (SEMO FCA works with) and they’ll say that they are just playing free.”

What that freedom does not do is limit the ferocity exhibited within the competition.

SEMO FCA Area Director Mike Litzelfelner speaks with leader coordinator Nick Grassi during the opening day of the SEMO FCA 'Power Camp' Tuesday at Cape Central Junior High. Tom Davis ~ Tdavis@semoball.com

Litz was a player at the University of Missouri and works with several of the Southeast football players and no one competes with more toughness than those athletes.

“Football is clearly a gift from God,” Litz said. “(The Bible) says that ‘Every perfect gift is from above.’ I believe football is a way for man to compete and enjoy the fullness (of life).

“It says ‘Whatever you do, do it for the glory of God.’ I teach these young athletes to play hard. We should be the fiercest athletes in the world because we have no fear.”

Litz has been immersed in athletics longer than he has been a devout follower of the Word and he admits that he “is still growing” in that regard. However, what may have reached its zenith is Litz’s happiness in combining Christ and athletic competition and showing young people how closely intertwined the two are.

“I’m passionate about reaching people for Christ,” Litz said. “When God got a hold of me, it just changed everything and I wanted to devote myself and my life to helping people know what I know.”