Like most teen athletes, Tyler and Abraham prefer their sports action on the field, not the sidelines. Thanks to their attendance at a faith-based sports camp, their commitment to Jesus has also shifted from spectators to active players.
Tyler, whose passion is football, quickly emerged as a leader during JAM Camp, a joint venture between Cru® Inner City and its sister ministry Athletes in Action®.
“He's on the field and playing in the game,” said Jaye Hill, who coordinates JAM Camp. “He’s serving the Father and serving others.”
Held each summer at the AIA® headquarters in Xenia, Ohio, the camp is designed to provide sports clinics in football, basketball, soccer, and volleyball. JAM, an acronym for Jesus, Athletics, and Manhood, uses camp curriculum infused with gospel points to reach teen boys for Jesus while also instilling leadership and discipleship. Tyler and a group of other teens from Detroit traveled to Ohio to participate in the annual camp.
“We knew immediately that he would stand out as one of those tier-one kids who is locked in and at a different place than some kids.”
When Tyler first arrived at camp, Hill said he had a minimal understanding of Jesus, but his leadership skills stood out.
“You can see great qualities he already had,” Hill said. “You can see his mannerisms and the way he approached things. We knew immediately that he would stand out as one of those tier-one kids who is locked in and at a different place than some kids.”
At camp, the 17-year-old rose early to join one of the adult mentors in prayer walking the grounds and preparing the day’s lessons.
“Tyler just latched on immediately,” Hill said. “He would get up every morning and spend time with a man who was showing him something from a different perspective.”
“He’s holding his fellow brothers in Christ accountable to their faith, challenging them with God's Word.”
As in any sports regimen, practice boosts player skills and, according to Hill, Tyler has demonstrated similar improvement in his spiritual walk, thanks to the influence of the camp’s mentors and twice-monthly Bible studies launched at the end of camp.
“He’s holding his fellow brothers in Christ accountable to their faith, challenging them with God's Word,” Hill said. “I totally believe that he's turned into another person through the camp and, so far, what he's been going through with the Bible studies. He’s owning who he is in the Kingdom.
“He’s more attentive to his personal relationship with the Father. It's more than what he's learning from anyone. It's more out of the intimacy that he’s spent on his own to grow with God. It's a part of his day-to-day action. He's a great kid, doing his best to follow Christ.”
In addition to the group from Detroit, participants included Abraham, a young immigrant who moved from Africa to Ohio with his family. He enrolled in JAM Camp because of his love for soccer, a sport in which he excelled.
Coordinator Hill described Abraham as wise, observant, and intelligent. The teen also had a good command of English, which helped seven other refugees attending the camp.
Although skilled in soccer, Hill said Abraham’s true leadership emerged early when camp staff shared that memorizing Scriptures would be a key component for the week.
Abraham responded by sharing Psalm 119:11: “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you” (English Standard Version).
“We were just finishing worship and we talked about having the Word hitting your heart,” Hill shared. “Abraham spoke of it (the verse) very well … and everybody followed suit that day and they began to repeat it and repeat it.”
“We were pressing it in their heart so that they can use it when they leave …”
Just like the repetitive nature of sports drills, camp leaders used memorization as a driving force to give the teens something they could take home with them.
“We were pressing it in their heart so that they can use it when they leave because camp is great when you're out of your element, but when you get back to where you're from, can you last? Who's going to support you as you walk in this walk?”
From that point, the 17-year-old served as a role model, assuming translator duties to help the other refugees enrolled in the camp. His faith and confidence grew even stronger as a result of JAM.
“Abraham was a bridge to them with the words, with the worship,” Hill said. “He was a strong, young leader.”
Like Tyler, Abraham remained a strong influence among his peers through their online Bible study and ongoing Instagram chats with Hill and the seven refugees.
“Abraham doesn't miss a call,” the camp coordinator said.
Lori Arnold serves as the senior writer for Cru's inner-city ministry.
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