The Clash of Athletics and Christianity

As an athlete, you are closely involved with your teammates and their culture. What happens when that culture does not involve a Godly agenda?

Before we answer this question, I think we should understand my experience with #Christianity and #athletics.

I grew up very involved in my church and had a close relationship with the Lord. In middle school and high school, I attended Fellowship of Christian Athletes and really had a strong basis of faith. Through my teenage years, I strayed away. My schedule was really busy and I traveled almost every weekend for soccer games. I stopped going to church and I stopped #praying and talking to God. Once I got to college, I was surrounded by churches on almost every street and felt like God was calling me back to Him.

I had always been back and forth on trying to rekindle my #faith. I would occasionally go to church but I wouldn't do much of anything else. By the time I was a junior, I was sad and miserable because I felt so empty and alone. I knew something was missing and I was in denial that it was the #Lord. Turns out, thats the exact thing I needed. But it wasn't easy to come back. Having a strong support system is always important when building a relationship, but I was spending most of my time with my teammates who, as a whole, did not have a strong base in Christianity. So how did I work on continuing my faith, and how did I use my relationship with God while being an athlete?

I had to tell myself that being an athlete was not my only #identity.

Being on a #team is hard, especially when you're so competitive. As athletes, we always want to be the best, and when we make mistakes we can really be hard on ourselves. Sometimes I had gotten to the point where I really thought I was the worst person because I was playing so bad. We tend to associate our successes and failures as an athlete with our identity as a human being, and that is where we can get into trouble. Let me give you a good example. ACL tears are really common in women's soccer, and I have seen a fair share of friends go through the injury and recovery processes. It was always hard seeing them go through a nine month recovery period that prevented them playing the game they love. Many times, I would hear some of the girls tell me "I feel so empty. What do I do without soccer? It's my life." And I could totally relate to that.

"I feel so empty. What do I do without soccer? It's my life."

When you play a sport your whole life and you begin to associate it with your identity, it is not fun to get it ripped out of your hands. Athletes are very unhappy when they are injured because it not only keeps them away from something they love doing, but a lot of times they feel like its the only thing they can do well.

This is why we need to #train our minds to remember that we are not only athletes, but daughters, sons, students, artists, and so much more.

What if we could change the way we approached how we talked about our athletic life? Instead of saying to people "I am a soccer player," maybe we can say something that does not make it our sole identity. I have always considered myself an athlete, but when people ask me what I do, I usually say "I play soccer." It is a subtle change from "I am" to "I play." When I find myself telling people that I am a soccer player, I begin to feel very one dimensional... because that's not all that I am. And I don't want any of you to think that either. Instead of being Camille, the soccer player, I want to be Camille: the woman who studies hard, plays soccer, is artistic, loves her friends and family, helps people in need, and so much more.

I challenge you to start thinking this way about yourself and your athletic life. Once you can do this, you will realize that every mistake or injury will not result in defining you as a human being. You are so much more than athletics.

So... How does having this new mindset relate to athletics and faith?

From experience, I know it is hard to be a Christian and be surrounded by a team that may not have the same values as you. I would always find myself getting caught up in things that weren't the best or not what God wanted me to do. But when we differentiate ourselves from being athletes to being way more than that, we can see the purpose of being in the position we are in today. Once I figured out that I was way more than an athlete, but instead a person who was made to encourage and touch the lives of others, I realized that I could be a part of this team and still continue having faith in God. In fact, I used my faith to be able to try to show up every day to practices and games to remind myself that every mistake I make does not matter because God will always be cheering me on in all that I do!

As a Christian athlete, we have the gift of being an example to our teammates of all the great things God can do in our lives. When I would show up to practices without God, I would be angry and worried about every mistake that I made. When I would show up to practices with God, I would have teammates approaching me and telling me that I am such a positive and encouraging person and that they appreciate it. See what I mean? We can make an impact when we stop focusing on ourselves as just athletes, but instead see the bigger picture in it all.

So, for now, I encourage you to make that step in seeing who else you are besides an athlete. Because I ensure you that you are SO MUCH MORE!

"Perhaps this is the moment for which you have been created." Esther 4:14