“God took me to a place in my life where I realized that He was my identity and that sports will leave me one day. I put Jesus back where he used to be.”

These words, spoken by Fresno Pacific University alumna, Kara Verwey, at a Nov. 4 Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) meeting, may shock some young atheletes. The idea that sports cannot last forever may not have entered aspiring stars’ minds, and Verwey’s warning against allowing sports to rule one’s life was something students may have needed to hear.

“God took me through some obstacles to make me realize that I idolized sports,” Verwey said. “I thought that volleyball was my identity.”

Verwey encourages young athletes to trust God with their futures and allow him to be real in their lives. She spoke of many times in her life when she was forced to trust God, like dealing with a shoulder injury and being diagnosed with Clark’s Type II Melanoma.

“I said, ?God, you have my life. Do what you want with it,'” Verwey said. “The trust factor came in again and I wasn’t worried that I was going to die [from cancer].”

Testimonies like Verwey’s are inspiring to young athletes trying to define how much of their life they will spend focused on sports. The on campus club, FCA, gives students an excellent opportunity to gain bits of wisdom from older, more experienced athletes.

FCA was founded in 1954 by Don McClanen. It was established, “to present to athletes and coaches and all whom they influence with the challenge and adventure of receiving Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, serving Him in their relationships and in the fellowship of the Lord,” (www.fca.org/aboutfca/).

FCA made its way onto campus some years later.

“I believe that Coach Broussard started it in 1993,” Ericlee Gilmore, campus FCA adviser, said. “This is my fifth year as FCA adviser, but in college I was the president of the FCA Huddle.”

FCA meets on campus the first and third Thursdays of every month at 7 A.M. in Gilmore’s room. Students enjoy the chance to get together and fellowship.

“I’ve been in FCA since my freshman year,” Jennifer Vanden Hoek, ’06, said. “I enjoy the crazy games we do. It is a great time of fellowship.”

Students are also glad for the opportunity to bring two of their passions together.

“I joined FCA because I wanted to incorporate God with sports,” Jeremy Ramos, ’07, said. “I’ve been going to meetings now for a little over a year.”

FCA also plans special events that bring members from different schools together. Current upcoming events include the FCA Huddle Olympics, which will take place at Fresno Pacific University on Saturday, Nov. 20. The fifteen-dollar entrance fee covers lunch, a shirt, activities and a speaker, but, for an extra ten dollars, students can gain entrance to a Fresno State game.

“Right now we’re trying to put together our five person team for the Huddle Olympics,” Gilmore said. “This year gold medalist Vanessa Czarnechi will be speaking.”

For more information on the Huddle Olympics or to sign up, contact Gilmore at 299-2695, ext. 140.

For information about the FCA program, visit www.fca.org online.