Tennis Ministry News-Olympics

Love to Serve News October 1, 2000

The Olympics are over. I was one of the estimated 3 billion who watched it on the
television. The final ceremony reminded me of the time I was in a stadium of 100,000, in
the USA at a men's ministry called Promise Keepers, and all were worshiping Christ. While I am sure it was very exciting for those attending the Sydney Olympics I am reminded, “What a contrast”, in priorities. In the Bible the book of Revelation tells us that in heaven Christ will be in the center of 'heavens stadium' as we praise Him.

I would like to present a slightly different perspective on the Olympics.

199 nations participated in the Sydney Olympics. While a few of the athletes are world
renown and wealthy, the vast majority are not. History has shown us, most of the
athletes will assume a life of obscurity in the future. Try it, name the 1952 high jump
champion? If they come from a country less developed they may very well live a future
life of extreme hardship, including the very basic necessities of life. No doubt these
athletes have seen others or have family who experienced extreme hardships.

Many nations sent just a few sporting representatives due to lack of funds. The 10
poorest counties in the world are Mozambique, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Laos, Nepal, Somalia,
Bangladesh, Malawi, Bhutan and Chad. Many other countries have regions of extreme
poverty including India, China, Afghanistan and North Korea. In a world of 6 billion
people, approximately one third of the world lives on less than $1 US dollar a day,
one-third live on less than $2 US dollars a day and the remainders are the truly fortunate.
In contrast, Switzerland, has a per person income of $129 a day. 34,000 children die daily
of hunger and preventable diseases worldwide. 46,500 die daily from diseases we know
how to prevent. Christians are not exempt, of the 925 million absolute poor in the world,
211 million (or 23%) are Christians.

If you are an athlete coming from one of these countries can you imagine what going to
Sydney is like? Your every desire fulfilled. Food at your command, lovely countryside to
gaze at, clean air, spacious housing, and the admiration of everyone around you. Certainly
these athletes realize that soon they will return to their own nation, facing an uncertain
future.

Most likely if you are reading this you are in the world's 2 billion fortunate. You have a
computer and education. You have food on your table this week. When you are ill you
can go to a doctor.

I challenge you to go to a nation with extreme poverty showing Christ’s love as you look
into the eyes of:

A father who does not know how he will provide food for his family tomorrow.
A mother as her baby starves to death in her arms.
A beggar with Leprosy, rejected by society.
A child wondering how they will afford the $20 US dollars a year needed for schoolbooks.
An orphan as they pray for a family to show up that allows them to escape their
circumstances.
A Pastor enslaved in a coal mine for 22 years because of his Christian faith
An Evangelist’s family who faced death daily in a nation violently opposed to Christian
faith and finally forced to flee from his country leaving their possessions behind.
A woman kidnapped and sold into sexual slavery.
A man beaten and then left for dead alongside the road, because he became a Christian.

These are my own experiences. I can guarantee that once you have met people such as this you will never think about life in the same way. Today, I do not spend a dollar without thinking how I could use it to help others. This year I had an opportunity to travel from my home in Hong Kong to the Olympics in Sydney. While the idea appealed to me, my own life’s experiences took over. My heart was softened as I thought back to others I know who are truly less fortunate than myself. I thought of those who have never heard about Jesus in the worst circumstances. The message came to me loud and clear, “can I use this money better reaching others in the name of Christ.” Spending 3,000-4,000 US dollars for two weeks to evangelize fans or even athletes, in a city with churches on many corners seemed like not the best stewardship for the funds that God has allowed me to have. It is my experience that nothing can take the place of long-term love, caring, concern and discipleship leading into a life of Christ given by those who live beside you day by day. Then I thought of all the native Pastors with families to support. Today I am committed to sending 200 children to a Christian school for one year in the Philippines or to feed a Pastor and his wife in India with 3 children for 4 years with this money.

To close I would like to quote Ronald J. Sider, the author of ‘Rich Christians in an age of
Hunger’. “Image what one quarter of the world's Christians could do if they became truly generous. A few of us could move…to desperately poor areas. The rest of us could defy
surrounding materialism. We could refuse to let our affluent world squeeze us into its
consumerist mold. Instead, we could become generous non-conformists who love Jesus
more than wealth…And in the process, we would learn again his paradoxical truth that
true happiness flows from generosity.

The point of this letter to you is that this ministry, and myself, is committed to reaching
others who need our help the most with measurable results. Spending $1,000 dollars to reach a few people is not the same as spending $1,000 to reach many people with continual discipleship. I ask that you join with me as I look for ways to use the resources that God has given to us as tennis players to the poorest and the neediest. Assist the millions worldwide who are dying daily and at the same time bringing them the message of Christ and in this God too will bless you.

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