Story Time
Merlinn Beckwith
Hey teammates!
The Lord has been teaching me a lot about results. As an athlete one of my greatest motivators was to win! The thrill of winning was on my heart as for the rest of my teammates and coaches. The truth is results determined whether you move from conference games to conference tournaments, from league play to districts to regionals to state championships and whether you make the team or get cut from the team.
Are the decisions you make based on the want to win or are your decisions based on wanting to Love God and Loving others?
I can do everything right. I can put in all the work. I can execute the plan. I can fulfill my responsibility. And still lose!
Who is in control of the results?
Don't miss this--what we put in does matter. I am not saying that eating coco puffs & being a couch potato is gonna win you a championship but our responsibility is to be faithful in our part & God will be faithful to his part.
So why does this all matter?
FCA is embarking on a new journey. Our identity of sport camps, in person banquets, in person huddles, in person leadership camps, in person coaches camps have all been stripped away. The only thing that we haven't been stripped a way of is our relationships.
And guess what?
God loves relationships.
Now WHO are we investing in with our time, talent, and resources?
The WHO is coaches, athletes, donors, huddle coaches, board members, all volunteers, and FCA Staff.
Local Area FCA Blog
Abraham left not knowing where He was going but He did leave with only a promise...Sarah was old in her age but judged the one who promised her as faithful...Noah built an ark that had never been seen before...God spoke the universe into existence so that the things that are seen today came from the unseen... Promises & Faith Has God ever promised you something? Did you believe it? Back in January of this year I heard the Lord say, " I am giving all of the game back to you." What game you may ask? Soccer. After I heard this I wasn't fully convinced because that was a want...a desire...a dream...you go down the list! I had been in such a season of "laying down my wants & desires" I was speechless that God was now putting the ball in my court & giving me the opportunity to lead the play... I asked the Lord to confirm His promise... One week later a friend of mine gave me a gift and this gift was an actual soccer ball!!!! Since that soccer ball landed in my hands God has been doing a work in my heart...He cares so much about me He wants to make sure that the very promise He wants to give me does not crush me but rather BLESS ME! Think about baby eagles. The process of going from the comfort of your nest to the rhythm of soaring takes time, effort, and surrender. Just imagine...if a baby eagle went out on it's first flight without any guidance and training. It would be like swimming across a lake before learning how to swim. Baby eagles actually learn to fly from branch to branch before taking off on a big flight! This 2020 season has been lots and lots of training. Lots of stepping out in faith...risking exposure of being seen & believing that failure is far greater than never swinging a bat. Sometimes, risk looks like getting rid of your old soccer cleats moments before your soccer season starts ¬t knowing when you will receive a new pair... But before new wine can emerge old frames must go. It would have been easier to wait to get rid of my old cleats after receiving the new cleats! Remember, Sarah, Abraham, and Noah obeyed because of a promise without . Are you listening? Is God nudging you to get in position for the more He has for you? Are you willing to step out before the promise manifests in the natural? Are you willing to go through the pressure before the breakthrough? Risking my life for Him, -Mer
Are you willing to go into the wild? It's time for a change. It's time to let go. It's time to receive the new. Paving new trails is exciting yet heavy. The weight of doing things that have never been done before calls for a heart willing leave one's old life behind & stick to the new course. When the prophet Isaiah speaks, "Don't you see that I am doing a new thing?" I immediately ask the Lord to give me eyes to see. Our EYES are SO VITAL that James even talks about if the eyes are full of darkness then the whole body is full of darkness too. What's even more bone chilling is that Eve SAW that the fruit was good and pleasing to the eye so she ate the fruit & her whole body became INFECTED with darkness a.k.a SIN. BUT James does make sure that the reader understands that when the eye is full of light then the whole body is full of light!! Is God doing a new thing in your life? Are you willing to submit to His ways & His thoughts? Are you willing to acknowledge Him rather than trust in your own understanding? Are you waiting on Him so that one day He will mount you up on wings like eagles? (Isaiah 40:31) James then gives a snapshot of worldliness. What is even worldliness? It's like the fruit on the tree of knowledge of good & evil. The appearance is pleasing & good to the eye but the ingredients are far from life giving. Is there anything in your life that looks good in appearance yet is sucking the life out of you? Is God drawing you closer? Are you leaning in? Getting low before the throne? Willing to give up the things that get in the way of the MORE that God has for you? If you want to SOAR FAR in your calling then you start by asking God what's on my throne? Are you willing to obey what He asks you to remove? Every time I choose to worship God over things of this world my ears & eyes receive an upgrade to see & hear God's calling on my life!!! Risking my life for Him, -Mer
Teammates, Since I last wrote to you a lot has changed! The Lord made it clear that it was time to REVAMP our FCA Soccer Season and do something NEW and never seen before! A week ago we launched the first ever FCA Soccer League and Friday Night Lights!! We initially planned to go to 3 tournaments this fall but the Spirit led us in a NEW direction. Our 8v8 League consists of 6 Teams and 2 brackets. We have a bracket for 4th,5th, and 6th graders. We also have a bracket for 7th, 8th, and 9th graders. Each team gets to play 2-25 minute games & participate in their small group huddle. What happens in our small group huddle? During huddle, we provide an opportunity for team building, prayer, and ministering to the hearts of every player through God's word & the Holy Spirit!!! What's Friday Night Lights? A time and space for pick up soccer!!! Why FCA Soccer? Over the years, the love of the game has been crushed due to the high demand and pressure to perform resulting in a lack of understanding of what it truly means to be free in Christ!!! What's is our heart? We desire that through building relationships with our players, parents, and coaches that every practice, game, and pick up soccer will cultivate an environment of eternal joy! I am only saying these things because I have been there. My identity was completely wrapped up in my performance & the opinions of my teammates and coaches. Jesus set me free from these strongholds even as a coach so that I could go live out & share my freedom in Christ with every athlete and coach in FCA Soccer. Who are our Coaches? FCA Soccer would not be possible without the help of our coaching staff. This year we have 10 coaches who we look forward to serving this soccer season! Risking my life for Him, Merlinn
Teammates, Thank you for your prayers & generous donations! The money raised is paving the way for coaches & athletes to soar this 2020-2021 fiscal year. As a missionary coach my assignment is to engage, equip, and empower coaches & athletes to go do the work God has assigned them. "And he has appointed some with grace to be apostles, and some with grace to be prophets, and some with grace to be evangelists, and some with grace to be pastors, and some with grace to be teachers. And their calling is to nurture and prepare all the holy believers to do their own works of ministry, and as they do this they will enlarge and build up the body of Christ. These grace ministries will function until we all attain oneness in the faith, until we all experience the fullness of what it means to know the Son of God, and finally we become one perfect man with the full dimensions of spiritual maturity and fully developed in the abundance of Christ.And then our immaturity will end! And we will not be easily shaken by trouble, nor led astray by novel teachings or by the false doctrines of deceivers who teach clever lies. But instead we will remain strong and always sincere in our love as we express the truth. All our direction and ministries will flow from Christ and lead us deeper into him, the anointed Head of his body, the church.For his “body” has been formed in his image and is closely joined together and constantly connected as one. And every member has been given divine gifts to contribute to the growth of all; and as these gifts operate effectively throughout the whole body, we are built up and made perfect in love." Ephesians 4:11-16 I am looking forward to the months ahead as we continue to coach the body, mind, and heart of our coaches & athletes!!! Risking my life for Him, Merlinn
