Coaches and athletes often dream of something greater. They train tirelessly to reach their highest potential, seeking approval from teammates, coaches and fans. The promise of a trophy or praise pushes them to succeed. Their identity becomes about performance — how well they play, not who they are. The pressure to succeed fuels their purpose to compete every day.
But what happens when the season ends, or they don’t perform well? What does it say about their potential or their purpose? The world will say they are not good enough — that they’ve failed.
But Jesus Christ says differently.
Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA,www.fca.org) is proud to announce their 2023 ministry theme —Greater.
In Christ, coaches and athletes have Greater potential than what is on a scoreboard. Through His sacrifice on the cross, they have the promise of a new life. When they surrender their lives to Jesus, they give up the old expectations to gain a new identity in Christ. The pressure to perform evaporates, and their performance is transformed. They no longer compete for something Greater, but for Someone Greater. They play with a new purpose: He must become Greater, and we must become less.
The theme was inspired by John 3:30, which states, “He must increase, I must decrease,” and will guide the entire year of events, studies, gatherings, Camps and more.
“I love this theme, and this year we have the incredible opportunity to lift up Jesus and make His name known in greater ways,” said FCA CEO and President Shane Williamson.
Throughout the year, FCA will be creating content and telling a story that focuses on why it is essential to understand that identity should be more than athletic ability. The four elements of Greater that FCA will be exploring this year are “Greater Potential,” “Greater Promise,” “Greater Performance,” and “Greater Purpose.”
“We want to take coaches and athletes on a journey from performance to purpose, showing them that their Greater comes from an unchanging identity rooted in God and who He says they are,” added Williamson. “I am so thankful to serve coaches and athletes around the globe together with our teammates at FCA. I am praying that this year, Christ will increase in us all!”
More information about FCA’s 2023 ministry theme of Greater can be explored at https://www.fcagreater.org/ where visitors can also watch the Greater theme video. FCA also offers an outline to coincide with the Greater theme that addresses “Greater Potential,” “Greater Promise,” “Greater Performance,” and “Greater Purpose” over four days of Camps, events or other meetings.
In 2019, Fellowship of Christian Athletes celebrated its 65th year in existence. After extensive growth, FCA has reached millions of people with the Gospel. View a timeline of FCA’s 68-year history here, including videos, quotes, articles, leader profiles, Camp themes, photos and more.
Read more about Fellowship of Christian Athletes here, visit FCA’s website at www.fca.org, its Facebook page at www.facebook.com/TheFCATeam, its Instagram page at https://www.instagram.com/thefcateam/ or its Twitter feed https://twitter.com/TheFCATeam.