Julia, my little side-kick Stuttgart who named me "Meanie" - I then went on to name her "mini-meanie"Let me just start off by saying that we went to Germany to serve and instead “we got served.” What I mean is that the home-stays and the leaders of the churches and ministries that we partnered with were overly hospitable and loving. They made our transition to a new country waaay to comfortable. This was a blessing and it provided for us to have no excuse but to dispense every single drop of our energy into everything we did.
About that - I’m sure most of you are curious about what we did. One of the biggest questions I get is “did you go to a World Cup game?” The answer is “No.” Remember, though, that our objective in going to Germany was not to go to a big game, although the idea was incentive. We were focused solely on sharing our lives with all the people around the world who gathered together in this small country to celebrate this huge event.
The world loves soccer and we shared that love with them. But, more importantly, we shared the love of Christ. Our first day in Haiger, a small village near Frankfurt, we visited a local elementary school. We ran clinics for a few classes where we taught fundamental skills: dribbling, passing, finishing, and then played small-sided scrimmages. We came back later in the week to scrimmage again with some of these classes. Although this was a public school, they permitted us to openly share our faith with the students. So, of course, we did.
I was concerned to not bore these kids with my life story, but to cater my testimony in a way that would fit their interest. Before we started the small-sided scrimmages, we brought the classes together and I spoke to them about how God has given us all talents, gifts, knowledge and abilities and that for most of my life I have used the gift of soccer for my own gain - to give myself glory. It was a sweet time where I got to interact with the kids and learn what their passions were and what they were about, and then show them that they can live out their passions in such a way to glorify God.
In Stuttgart we partnered with a church and held a 3-day soccer camp at a fairground set up specifically for the World Cup. Every day we had a “half-time” and my future roomie at TIU, Serena, and I shared the gospel to all of the children - the theme for the camp was “Everlasting Victory” (which we later found out didn’t translate easily in German =).
Some people get so caught up with a question that goes something like, “so how many conversions did you have” or “how many made a decision for Christ?” Although it would be incredible to know how many lives we saved, the fact is, we don’t. We don’t save people and it’s not in our job description. That is work set-aside solely for the Holy Spirit. We are called to be examples of Christ and to share Him, and I am confident that we planted seeds in a couple hundred kids’ lives that day. I will add that - we must have made some kind of impact on those children, because a ton of them arrived at a youth group that we hosted that night and nearly all of them attended our friendly match against Weidelbach FC.
When we weren’t teaching we were playing. We had a few planned matches in Haiger and in Stuttgart and then a handful of pick-ups everywhere and anywhere between. The Chicago Eagles women were undefeated during our Germany Tour and we even picked up a first place title at a Stuttgart World Cup Kick-Off 7v7 tournament.
In Germany there is a clubhouse at each club field or facility - like a bar and grill - so we would all have a meet and greet after the game, have a little bite to eat, and a few from our group would share Christ with our opponents. During the Kick-Off tournament I was able to get up in front of everyone, both players and fans, and introduce the Eagles and what we were all about. It was weird talking on a PA system and speaking in small ideas and then playing hot-potato-microphone with the translator. Using a translator may seem overwhelming, but its actually enjoyable - you get the chance to regroup yourself after comments that you make and you have time to think about what you are going to say next. Sometimes, though, the pauses cause you to forget the flow of your message. I made a point to spend time talking to God before I started to talking to groups of people - and I’m confident that the Holy Spirit did a good work through me. Another sweet perk is that you get to know the translator pretty well, and if they aren’t saved it’s a sweet chance to minister to them.
When we weren’t teaching or playing, we were watching. The very first World Cup game of 2006 was Germany vs. Costa Rica and we watched it at a community center with the entire village of Dillbrecht (where my first home-stay lived, neighboring Haiger). The activity hall was packed and all eyes were glued to the big screen projection. Germany went on to win 4-2 and the town went berserk. The pastor’s son took us in a motorcade throughout the entire city. We had paint on our faces and were dressed in black, red and yellow from head to toe. Our arms were outstretched with hands grasping flags outside the car windows that swam through the air as we cruised the country roads. Every new street added more and more cars to the party-line. Every driver laid heavily on their horns and switched on their four-way flashers. The emotion of experiencing a Germany win with Germans in the very country that was hosting the World Cup is indescribable. Older couples were sitting on their balconies and little kids were running down the street and when they saw us drive by they would stand and scream and wave their flags, smiling ear to ear. I’ve never participated in such a display of national pride, and neither have the Germans since the conclusion of World War II - but this was different. This was good.
We viewed the second Germany match vs. Poland in downtown Stuttgart at a castle for the WM Fan Fest with 40,000 people. Germany pulled out a win during stoppage time, thank the Lord - otherwise we would all have reason to fear for our safety, even our lives. When Germany beat Sweden the day after we had arrived home there was a riot in Stuttgart, fires were started and chairs were flung through windows of downtown business.
We did watch the USA matches as a group as well. It was an unfortunate and embarrassing year for us… losing 3-0 to Czech, and then playing the referee and Italy, which concluding in a 1-1 tie. We watched that game with a couple hundred people, half of who were Italian - I was not a favorite of the crowd, wearing my USA Donovan jersey #21. Finally the USA was able to score their first goal against Ghana, but again our fate was defeat. No wins, 2 losses and one tie. Not a very successful World Cup.
When we weren’t teaching, playing or watching, we were touring. The first week we experienced the quaint village atmosphere and then our second week we stayed in the suburbs of a larger city. We rode a boat on the Rhine River, walked old cities, visited castles, floated in a Gondola, and even shopped for some Birkenstocks. What can I say, but that it was a complete tour. Instead of describing the architecture and landscape, I will just let you see for yourself.
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