This week, NCA is sending a team of 12 runners out to the "Mother of All Relays:" the Hood to Coast 196-mile relay from Mount Hood to the coast of Oregon. The team is raising money on behalf of the NCA athletics program, and the school plans to use the money right away to fund improvements to our campus related to our athletics teams. I'm really excited to see what God will do in and through this fundraising effort, and I can't wait to hear how He uses the team in Oregon to spread the gospel!
I'm also excited for the growth of NCA's athletic programs. We've grown in the number of sports we offer, the number of teams we field, and the number of student athletes participating. And, our teams are growing in their ability to compete, certainly. But, we've also experienced athletics to be an amazing opportunity for deep discipleship -- students are growing closer to the Lord through this Christ-centered program. And as a parent, I'm here for it!
Why I'm Participating Financially
I would have never considered our daughter athletic -- she wasn't what we (her parents) considered naturally competitive or physical. In 3rd grade, she participated on NCA's fall cross country team, not because she was already a "good" runner. She joined the team with enthusiasm, and over the past few years, she's grown in her speed, agility, and desire to compete. She's worked hard, as working for the Lord, not for human masters. Coach Haughey, Coach Casto, and Coach Leeper have discipled her and encouraged her with consistency and enthusiasm.
At NCA, coaches elevate both discipleship and competition in athletics. If it was one above the other, I think the outcome for our daughter would have been completely different. If discipleship over competition, she wouldn't value her athletic growth or gained a vision for competition. If competition over discipleship, she would have slinked away after a year or two in self doubt. Now, she has the ability and confidence to lead on the team and in competition, and we hope and pray she continues running in high school and beyond, using running to share the love of Christ with others.
Because of this unique environment, we desire to invest in NCA athletics. When we enrolled at NCA in 2018, we didn't really care about athletics at all -- it's not something we would have considered investing in financially. Now, we've seen the power of competition and discipleship working in tandem, and we're all in.
Our sports teams excel -- not because we have the best players, although our school does attract very athletic students and families -- but because we value both competition and discipleship. My story isn't unique -- we have many children who start athletics at NCA with almost no experience. Our desire is to give them a vision of what God might do through them in sport and competition -- at NCA and beyond. Our educational philosophy of meeting students where they are and pushing them forward in the classroom also extends to NCA athletics. We want to challenge students individually to grow throughout their years in NCA athletics and push past what they thought possible. We want to give them a vision for how they might share the Gospel through sport. That's what Hood to Coast is all about: enabling outstanding athletics and intentional discipleship.
To join us in investing in NCA's Christ-centered athletics program, click on the following link: Naples Christian Academy | Donately
