Push The Rock Team Trip 2018 Update #3
Our morning (6/27) began in traditional fashion, with breakfast at 7 am followed by a “pebble challenge” (a short devotional for the day). We were excited to get to camp as we knew the kids would be looking forward to more basketball. Today’s sportsmanship thought was on Determination. We challenged the kids to pick a skill and be determined to improve in that skill over the course of the week. The campers enjoyed the morning camp as we spent more time on group games designed to improve various basketball skills. Towards the end of the morning session, one of the coaches shared his testimony about believing he could find fame and popularity through sports. However, when sports were taken away from him, he discovered a new purpose through the life of Christ. He explained that Jesus’ willingness to serve others and His obedience in dying on the cross for mankind changed his life and gave him a new purpose in using sports as a platform for spreading the Gospel. After lunch with the kids, the coaches traveled to the Forli Basketball Club Shooting Camp. This was Push The Rock’s first time interacting with these kids. There were 60+ kids at the camp but we would be doing skill work with 48 of the kids from ages 12 – 16. We spent the first portion of our time at the camp talking about determination and allowing the kids to ask us questions about our lives. Many of them thought we were professional athletes ;). Following the intro portion, we got to lead skill development on 2 separate courts for 45 minutes. Most of the drills were centered around shooting. The camp director was impressed with the leadership and drills the team came up with during this portion. After the drills, we hung out and watched the campers participate in a 4-on-4 tourney. This downtime allowed us to hold conversations with the kids. Camp ended at 6. One of the missionaries drove the team backed to Faenza to get refreshed and head back to Forli to have barbecue with the other missionaries and camp interns. It was a great time of fellowship and eating some American style food. Our night concluded with Team Time.
It’s officially hump day during our first week! We have officially spent three days with the summer campers teaching basketball fundamentals. The kids have improved in numerous areas like shooting and passing. The sportsmanship thought for the day was on Enthusiasm. The kids were excited about going to the water park in the afternoon so it was a bit of a challenge to get them to be enthusiastic about basketball. However, the kids were very engaged during the coach’s testimony. Many questions were asked, especially in relation to what bad things the coach had done prior to following Jesus. In the afternoon, we headed back to the Forli Basketball Club Shooting Camp. The kids were excited to see us. One of the coaches talked about hard work and its importance in becoming better basketball players. We were allotted more time to do skill development with the campers. Instead of all shooting drills, we incorporated ball-handling into many of the drills. After the conclusion of this camp, the team went back to Faenza and enjoyed a nice pasta dish for dinner. Overall, it was a much needed relaxing night for us.
Thursday meant we only have 2 more days with the summer campers in Forli and Faenza. Since many of the campers were tired from the water park yesterday, we decided to do more group games with the kids. It was a bit of a struggle but the kids managed to make it through the four hour session. The testimony shared focused on God’s desire to have a personal relationship with you. We were reminded that our faith cannot be based off what our parents believed or church traditions, but rather on an intimacy Christ wants to have with us. Following the morning session, we decided to head to Imola (a city we previously held camps in) to hangout with campers from previous years. Upon our arrival, we were surprised to see how tall the kids had gotten. We spent a couple hours playing 4-on-4 with the kids and others at a local court. The kids invited us back to their house for pizza. We got to chat with them and their mother while watching England vs Belgium. In one of our conversations with the boys, they expressed their excitement for spending two weeks in the US later this summer. They couldn’t wait to attend Push The Rock camps and spend time with past trip members. Despite being a long night, we were glad to have some time in Imola and invest in the relationships already established.
