MINNEAPOLIS — In 1996, Reid Lamphere and his fellow missionaries found themselves ministering in the aftermath of the Centennial Olympic Park bombing in Atlanta. The incident killed two people and left more than 100 wounded. Lamphere thought no other Olympics could be more challenging for a missionary. Then came the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China.
Ministering to athletes
A native of New Hope, Minn., Lamphere serves as the global events director for Athletes in Action (AIA). A branch of the well-known mission organization Campus Crusade for Christ, AIA focuses on sharing the Gospel among athletes at sporting events. Lamphere joined AIA more than 36 years ago.
AIA suits Lamphere for a couple of reasons.
“As part of AIA, I can continue to live out my passion for sports,” Lamphere said. An accomplished wrestler, Lamphere’s titles include Minnesota State Champion, All-American, National Greco-Roman Wrestling Champion and first alternate on the 1976 Olympic team.
“And AIA enables me to share Christ with as many people as possible.”
It is a mission Lamphere and everyone at AIA is determined to honor, even if their work takes them to Communist China.
Taking it to the streets
Long before travelling to the Beijing Olympics in August, Lamphere and his staff knew what they were up against: a country that prohibits proselytizing and severely disciplines those who are found preaching or worshipping outside government-run churches. A religious center was planned for the Olympic Village, but China mandated an “official chaplaincy” comprised solely of Chinese church leaders.
That meant AIA would have no automatic access to the Village, the temporary home to 11,000 athletes—“the motherload” from Lamphere’s vantage point. AIA staff would be treated like other attendees and needed event tickets or day passes for entrance.
Of the 83 people who traveled with AIA, nearly half were eventually admitted into the Village.
“The major thing was to make connections and relationships with the various countries’ Olympic Committees,” Lamphere said. “And we relied on the athletes we knew from past major sporting events to bring us to the right people.”
And the rest of the AIA staff? They didn’t let their situation get them down. They took to the streets.
Wherever they went, AIA kept their eyes peeled for athletes strolling the Chinese markets or visiting tourist attractions. Plump backpacks bore DVDs telling the Gospel message in 36 languages.
Titled “Struggle and Triumph,” the 3,500 DVDs were funded by members of Calvary Lutheran Church in Golden Valley, Minn., and featured stories of star athletes who experienced both the struggles of athletic competition and the joy of coming to Christ.
At Chinese checkpoints, the DVDs were positioned as “gifts for Olympians.” In one instance, the official confiscated—of all things—a yellow highlighter, but every one of AIA’s DVDs made it into the right hands.
A DVD was given to an American boxer while he was shopping a silk market. An AIA staff member recognized him from news reports two days earlier and was even praying for interaction with that specific athlete. And for heart-wrenching reasons: The athlete’s Olympic dreams were shattered when he collapsed during one of his fights and was forced to withdraw from the rest of the games.
“Our staff patted him on the back and offered important words of encouragement,” Lamphere said.
Seven stranded French athletes also received DVDs. They were visiting the Great Wall, and a taxi back to Beijing was nowhere to be found. It just so happened that eight seats were open on the AIA-sponsored tour bus, one of the organization’s special ministry strategies for connecting with athletes.
The excursion also served competitors from Mexico, Estonia, Turkey and Moldova.
DVDs were given to a visa-less German tourist visiting China for a mere 20 hours, the Serbian wrestling team, the entire delegation of Croatia—the list goes on.
And not one DVD returned home with AIA.
Tending the seeds
Near the close of the Olympics, Lamphere gathered his staff to debrief and share stories. In their three hours together, they barely scratched the surface of what was accomplished in China. And Lamphere’s work has just begun in tending the seeds planted there.
“Now it’s all about staying accountable to the lives we touched,” Lamphere said. “We’ll travel to the cities where athletes live, attend their regional events and make sure that our faces remain familiar.”
And, thanks to AIA, some of the biggest sports heroes of our time will be called to lead active Christian lives and profess their faith among their fans.
ACTION POINT:
To learn more about Athletes in Action (AIA), visit www.athletesinaction.org. To participate in local efforts supporting Reid Lamphere and the ministry of AIA, contact Calvary Lutheran Church in Golden Valley at (763) 545-5659.
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