When you join a team, you immediately become part of a family. FCA is a family that invites everyone with open arms. All stats aside, you sit alongside your brothers and sisters in Christ while worshipping the Father, who adopted us the second we gave our life to Him. The family culture within FCA is like no other and has affected me and my team in remarkable ways.
This past year, Coach Mike Smith allowed us to go to the FCA College Getaway despite starting a new season and needing all the practice time we could get. Before we knew it, we were on a bus to a camp that would end up bringing together over twenty girls in the name of Christ. The second we stepped off the bus and onto the dirt of the camp grounds, I knew the Ole Miss Softball team was going to come out of that place changed. As we were unloading the bus, Todd Johnson, the FCA Campus Director, came up to me and told me I would be a huddle leader. My heart started racing! I have never been good in front of crowds or leading people, so I was nervous that I would not be the best for the job. Todd had a lot more faith in me than I ever had in myself. That weekend, I was a huddle leader and even gave my testimony to the entire camp. If FCA has done one thing for me over these four years, it has been helping me
In 2015, 393 people attended the COLLEGE GETAWAY. That number increased to 500 in 2016!
Miranda Strother( 3rd row) with with her Ole Miss Softball teammates at the 2016 FCA College Getaway.
outwardly express my faith through testimony, leading, and my walk. I came in as a freshman not even being able to pray at my family dinner and now I can give my testimony to an auditorium knowing that God is carrying my words and I am just a vessel that He uses for His glory.
The FCA College Getaway helped our team understand that it is okay to be vulnerable and that God works in such mysterious ways. We can use the hardships in our life to bond with each other and help each other grow, knowing that we are not alone in our suffering. Each player on our team left the FCA College Getaway having a better understanding of who God is and how it feels to have His grace rush through our bloodstream. Getting to grow spiritually alongside your teammates is a feeling I will hold on to the
rest of my life. I am very thankful for all the opportunities the Fellowship of Christian Athletes has given me, and I cannot begin to imagine how many lives this organization will affect, even after I am gone.
Josh Lovelady sharing a devotion at a local high school.
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Since then, Josh has been a blessing to the MSU campus this fall semester. He joined the FCA Leadership team at Mississippi State in August, and is now actively involved in helping plan campus events that involve FCA. Monday nights serve as the campus wide meeting time for FCA and there’ s not a week Josh misses. Additionally, he has volunteered his time on multiple occasions to speak to local high school FCA huddles. The message that always comes out of his mouth is this: God has a plan, even in moments of suffering. Back in the spring, he questioned why God would allow an injury. He now serves as a leader amongst his peers on this campus.
For more details on these stories, visit: mississippifca. org / 2016 7