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FCA Spokesman: Many Christian Athletes Quietly Model Positive Values

by Allie Martin
December 14, 2004

(AgapePress) - An official with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes says despite what the national media reports, there are solid Christian role models in professional sports.

The recent brawl during a Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers basketball game, along with reports on the use of steroids by some Major League Baseball players, have captured headlines nationwide. But Scott Carter, Northeast Mississippi Director for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), says it is important to let young people know that there are committed Christians in pro sports -- faith-filled men and women who are committed to upholding high standards and values in sports and in life.

Carter says every professional athlete is either a positive or a negative role model, and there have been some Christian players in recent years who have set very positive examples. For instance, he says, "David Robinson was a very strong believer -- he and AC Green. Of course they've both retired now [from the National Basketball Association], but there are a lot of believers in the NBA. They just don't get much time."

According to the FCA spokesman, the media often ignores Christian sports figures like Green and Robinson. "They're not heard from very much because they're doing things right," he says. "The media doesn't want to focus on the guys that are doing things right; they want to focus on the guys that are doing things wrong."

But Carter says Christians in the sports world are a badly needed influence, and it is important for them to reach out to young athletes, many of whom idolize pro sports "stars." It is also essential, he asserts, for athletes and others in the Church to let these aspiring young players know that the truth according to God's Word.

"Their identity is in Christ," Carter says, "in who He is and who He has made them to be. If they have a relationship with Him, they are a new creation in Christ. They need to be told that. That needs to be reinforced in their lives -- and that's what the Church is here to do, to lead kids to Jesus and then show them how He wants to use them and work in and through their life to impact this world. And athletics is a powerful way to do that."

The Fellowship of Christian Athletes spokesman wants young people to know there are plenty of positive Christian role models in pro sports. But at the same time, he says, young athletes should be pointed to the ultimate role model -- Jesus Christ.

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