Crew on board Logos Hope signed up to play in a basketball tournament while the ship was in Barbados. The basketball club was created by a local church to protect young people from environments of violence and drugs.
Jamie Fugill (from the United Kingdom) explains, “Any sport can be used to bring people together and basketball is a great way to do that; it helps people connect to each other. Through that, we can tell people about Jesus.”
Basketball can be competitive, which gave the crewmembers an opportunity to tell the children and teenagers about things that matter, like teamwork and building relationships. The volunteers encouraged the youth to see God in everything they do, even in basketball.
“We mentioned the idea of setting up a basketball competition between their churches so there can be unity within the Church in Barbados. They could have fellowship through this,” says Jamie. It was important to him and the crew to show love and bring glory to God. “I hope that what we told them will stick in their minds.”
Sarah Farley (from South Africa) told her team that she was brought up in a Christian home. Her father taught her how to read the Bible, which gave her passion for it. She told them, “When I was seven years old on Christmas Eve, I felt touched by the Holy Spirit. I was filled with love and gave my life to God.”
Sarah also experienced hardship when other children made fun of her at school, because of her faith. Still, she continued to choose God. Through her story, she hoped to encourage her team to make the right choices in life. “It was a good experience,” Sarah recalls. “I was there for God to use me; I hope we planted seeds in their hearts.”
Dean Squires, who arranged the tournament, says, “The children had a really good time.” Dean was impressed by the crewmembers’ skill and passion. “A parent told me what a wonderful day their kid had. The kids were giving full attention to every word shared by the volunteers.”
After the games were over, Logos Hope’s team prayed with the youngsters.
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