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rom its beginning, the heartbeat
of Columbia International
University has been “To Know Him and
to Make Him Known.” The motto is
embraced not only in the classroom, but
also on the soccer field and beyond. In
January, 18 members of the CIU Rams
men’s soccer team and three coaches,
traveled to Guatemala to make the
Lord known through soccer, service and
evangelism.
Before departing, each team member
raised his own support for the eight-
day, Christmas break mission trip.
While there, the team conducted
soccer clinics for kids, played soccer
matches, ministered in local churches
and partnered with local organization
“Building Houses Building Lives” to
construct two houses for needy families.
For some players, one of the most
memorable moments of ministry was
visiting terminally ill children at a cancer
hospital called UNOP (Unidad De
Oncologia Pediatrica).
“We served them dinner and shared
the gospel which then led to a time
of prayer and worship, junior Ethan
Chandler said. “During the time of
prayer it was amazing to see people be
truly touched by the Holy Spirit, being
met and comforted by God in their grief
and brokenness.”
The team also worked closely with Casa
Aleluya, a children’s home in Guatemala
that cares for 400 orphaned, abused,
and mistreated children. The team
shared the gospel with the children
using J316 balls. J316 balls are colorful,
wordless evangelism tools that serve as
conversation starters and visual aids.
“We purchased 100 balls to take into
the communities where we ministered,”
Head Coach James Whitaker said. “We
left them pretty much everywhere we
went but we left a bag of balls at each
of the places we did a soccer clinic
since a soccer ball is such a precious
commodity over there!”
Despite language and cultural barriers,
soccer was a common ground on
which the team could relate to many
of those they encountered. The team
was also blessed with two bilingual
players who helped with translation,
junior Abe Vazquez and freshman Paul
Grandacarpio.
“At the beginning I was really nervous
because I had never done something
like that before and I knew it was a
great responsibility,” Vasquez said.
“Once we got there and started
translating, it was actually really good.
I wasn’t nervous anymore but I was
really excited to be able to help my
SOCCER
GOAL:
By Brittany Bradley, CIU Student Writer
Spread the Gospel
in Guatemala
F
18
CIU Today
Summer 2015