Travel sports often pull families away from Sunday worship, leaving pastors and ministry leaders asking how to respond. Instead of viewing sports as the enemy, churches can leverage them as a mission field. This article shares 8 practical strategies—both inside the church and out in the community—to equip parents, disciple athletes, and turn sports into a teammate for spiritual formation instead of a competitor.

Sometimes the most loving thing we can do for them (even though it may be the hardest for us) is stand nearby while our kids wrestle with something difficult.

This article is not meant to spiritualize your pain or rush your emotional process. It’s meant to provide biblical encouragement for your journey of healing. It’s an invitation and reminder to trust in God’s presence and purpose.

In Stephen Barrett’s autobiography, The Unlikely Missionary: Lessons Learned Along the Way, Barrett’s journey into missionary work exposes something athletes and coaches desperately need to remember: God’s calling is not built on our resume, but on our our willingness to take small steps of faith along the way.

Lent isn’t just about giving something up—it’s about replacing it with something better. As an athlete, your time, energy, and focus are valuable. Instead of simply removing something, Lent is an opportunity to replace lesser things with habits that build you up spiritually, mentally, physically, and relationally.

Is quitting ever the right choice? A biblical look at perseverance, burnout, and how Christians involved in sport can navigate hardships in a way that glorifies God.

If we want to live out our calling as Jesus followers, we need to create spaces for people to experience the love of God—including sport. Not for the purpose of competitive advantage but because it brings the Kingdom of God near. 

There’s plenty of legitimate explanations for not preaching a good theology of sport and play, but it’s time we not only leaned into the conversation but also gave Christian people a vision of God-glorifying play.

The Christian Athlete Report: Data, Trends, and Opportunities in 2026 identifies ten major cultural, structural, and formative shifts shaping the world of sport today. Each trend highlights not only what is changing in athletics, but why it matters for athletes, coaches, and the ministries that walk alongside them.

For a sports person, goal setting is necessary. The proverbial ‘grind’ is an essential part of achieving athletic success. But how do we train specifically to look more like Jesus? By training our head, heart, and hands.

If we build our lives on the pursuit of pleasure, performance, or identity apart from God, we will eventually hit rock bottom. When that moment comes—and it always does—there are only two options: Return to the Father’s embrace or continue chase another short season of false promises.

If you want to love God more, you have to take faith steps. But what might those faith steps look like for a Christian Athlete? And how do we define a faith step?

A winning record, an influx of money, the best recruiting class, and consistent performance often define what it means to have an abundance in sport. But what if God has more in store for us than defining abundance by these standards?

This athlete Bible study explores Proverbs 27:17 — a powerful athlete verse about how God uses relationships to build character, faith, and perseverance. Designed for athletes, coaches, and parents, this discipleship tool helps you reflect on how teammates, coaches, and even rivals sharpen you spiritually and athletically. Through guided questions and practical application, this verse for athletes reveals how competition and community can be part of God’s plan to shape you into the image of Christ. Whether used individually or in a group, this resource helps Christian athletes grow in humility, excellence, and faith on and off the field.

Our identity is a diversified and curated playlist of what we do, how we’re wired, what we like, how we relate to others—but most importantly, it’s what God says about us. As athletes, we need to turn the volume down on letting our performance define us and crank up the volume on what God declares as true.

For a Christian athlete, it is advantageous to play while considering that God’s opinion is what matters most. But what is God’s opinion of us? The answer to this question will give us a fuller picture of what it means to play with an Audience of One. 

Like the rest of the world, sport has patterns. And these patterns of sport shape us every day. If we’re not intentional, we’ll be conformed to them without realizing it.

Breath prayer is a spiritual discipline that aligns breathing with short prayers to help believers draw attention to God’s presence and communion with us. There are many breath prayers that communicate our deepest needs. This article outlines five helpful prayers for Christian athletes.

When Skip Bayless questioned Travis Hunter’s decision to get baptized before a game, he turned a moment of faith into a debate about priorities. But Scripture paints a different picture—one where obedience matters more than optics, and spiritual surrender leads to greater freedom on and off the field.

Transferring isn’t new, but it’s never been this complicated. If you’re thinking about entering the transfer portal, or if you’re walking with a teammate who is, here are 11 questions to help you make a wise, grounded, and hopefully, faithful decision.