Students from all local, Redlands High Schools will join thousands of other youth on athletic fields across the nation on Wednesday, October 9, 2019, to share their Christian faith with fellow students during the 16th annual national Fellowship of Christian Athletes’ (FCA, www.fca.org) Fields of Faith event. This rapidly growing, interdenominational outreach event will be held at more than 500 locations throughout the nation.
While many Christian rallies are anchored to an entertainer or professional speaker, FCA’s Fields of Faith is structured as a student-to-student ministry. Peers invite their own classmates and teammates to meet on their school’s athletic field to hear fellow students share their testimonies, challenge them to read the Bible and to come to faith in Jesus Christ.
“Fields of Faith is a unique event where students make a stand for changing lives and transforming their community through Jesus Christ and His Word,” says Karsten Sween (FCA Multi-Area Director for the Inland Empire and High Desert).
This will be the second annual Fields of Faith event for Redlands. Last year, approximately 100+ students and supporters attended at the Packinghouse Athletic Fields.
The national growth of Fields of Faith has been remarkable. Since the beginning of Fields of Faith in 2004, more than a million people have joined the movement. In 2018 alone, more than 240,000 participants gathered at 521 fields, where 6,213 made first-time faith commitments, 5,015 recommitted their lives to Christ, and 6,494 committed to reading their Bible.
Fields of Faith began with an idea from Jeff Martin, FCA’s Executive Director of Ministry Advancement, who longed to help today’s generation of students face spiritual battles and temptations.
“It’s amazing that Fields of Faith has grown to welcome nearly a quarter of a million people to athletic fields where they can pray and worship together,” Martin said. “We are so thankful for the students who feel passionate about sharing their faith with their fellow students so they, too, can see how Christ can impact their lives. There’s no doubt that God is working through these young people and will continue to do so for years to come.”
In 2004, Martin’s vision became reality when 6,000 students gathered on school athletic fields throughout three states for the first Fields of Faith event. That was the beginning of what has become one of the most significant faith-related gathering of students in a single day.
While Fields of Faith has its roots with FCA leadership, the event is designed to include multiple national Christian organizations, local churches and ministries. A local leadership team will determine the program of each Fields of Faith event.
More information about the 2019 Fields of Faith event is available at FieldsofFaith.com. To learn more about the event in Redlands, contact Alex Sween (FCA Area Representative for Redlands, CA): 307-399-9552.