Guest Post: KERI

"Meet the Cameron's" is moving up in the blogosphere, people.  Today I'm introducing you to my first ever guest post, written by none other than my youngest sister, Keri.  If you're new here, you should check out the birthday post I wrote for her last year... especially since there are a lot of funny/awkward/embarrassing photos included. (Missy and Jackie: I'm not *intentionally* playing favoritism by writing one for Keri and not for you, I'm just lazy. Consider this my official I.O.U.)

My favorite photo of Keri (thus far)
via Michael Hudson

Things you should know about Keri:  She'll be a senior at Wheaton College this fall, she loves Jesus, she loves soccer and she has had an amazingly adventurous summer traveling and working in the field of sports ministry. Today I've given her free reign over the blog and she's here to update us on all of the above!

Take it away, girl...

*****

18 Colleges represented, 18 female athletes, 17 male athletes, 11 soccer camps = 

Chicago Eagles Summer Academy 2012

Our proper introduction goes like this: We are a bunch of soccer players that come together for the summer to run camps and play soccer. We love soccer a lot, but there is something else that we all have in common. We all love Jesus Christ more than soccer.

That introduction was given to over a thousand people in Brazil, and more than I can count here in the states, because it felt like we were telling people every minute who we were. From May 26 - July 31 I was a part of this soccer ministry based in Chicago, and I saw God work in the lives of many Brazilians, many more Americans, and every single player I played with - including myself.  For me it came down to a verse I’ve heard since I was a small child: “Be still and know that I am God” Psalm 46:10. The Holy Spirit brought this verse to me multiple times over the summer and it became a source of comfort at times and a source of great boldness at others. I could write a book about this summer, but instead I’ll share with you a little about Brazil and then a short summary of our work in camps. You will be able to see where God was being a God of comfort and a God of boldness.

Brazil
Our experience in Brazil can be summed up in this way: “Our plan B may just be God’s plan A.” Someone on our team said that as he referred to the constant changes we faced each day we were there. To start the trip we had a player’s passport disappear in the Chicago airport only so God could prove Himself to do the impossible by allowing our friend to receive a new passport and Brazilian visa within a couple of days. That does not normally happen. Next, we couldn’t leave the Miami airport from our layover because our plane basically broke down, only so God could show our joy to all the people on our flight as we played pick up soccer in the airport at midnight. Once we made it to Brazil, the changes didn’t stop coming. We went through about 10 buses while there. At least once a day our bus would be either extremely late or it would break down, and it forced us to choose to be subjective or objective. As a group we choose to be objective and go with the flow, and that made us different in the eyes of the Brazilians. Not only were we Americans, but we were calm, loving, joyful, ALIVE. That’s when the questions started flowing and once again it was God doing the work and not us. The Holy Spirit gave us the words and the actions for every situation in Brazil. We couldn’t speak Portuguese, but with the help of translators and very slow broken English we had some amazing conversations. The Chicago Eagles learned about God’s sovereignty in Brazil. We weren't there to see the country, or to experience the awesome food, or even to play amazing soccer; we were in Brazil to let God work through us in any way He saw fit. Looking back on that trip, God had a mission with us in Brazil and He wasn’t going to let our plans get in His way. Thank you for all the prayers concerning that trip!

In Brazil, me and one of the translators talk to a public school about the Eagles and Jesus

Chicago-land Camps 
Once we arrived back in Chicago it was time to run camps. Each week our team of 50 would split into two groups and go to two different locations for a week of camp. We would stay with different host families each week near our camp locations. My first week I lived in downtown Chicago right by The Moody Church. This was the biggest camp we were going to have all summer and I would coach 10 kids for the entire week. The combination of the heat, ten 7 and 8 year olds, getting used to speaking English again and having 3 games with the Eagles made that week one of the most tiring of the summer. I found it difficult to really invest in my host family that week due to our schedule, but thankfully we had small periods of time where we were able to really enjoy each other’s company.

Team Germany at the Moody Camp

Something I struggled with all summer was this idea that I had to get kids to accept Christ every week. I thought that if I tried hard enough, I could convince each and every one of them to pray the “sinner’s prayer” and then I would look successful on paper... but that’s not my job. My job was to be their friend and to love on them the best I could in the little time I had. God is the one who controls everything else.

Kids doing the Eagles cheer on Wacky Wednesday

Of course every now and then that nagging thought would pop back up, distracting me away from my true purpose, so I became very intentional about how I presented the Gospel and how I asked the kids if they wanted Jesus to be their personal Savior. Everything in God's timing - not Keri's. So I spoke the truth to them, saying exactly what Scripture says about us humans and exactly what it says about Jesus. The kids would always ask a ton of questions and I would get extremely animated as I responded. At the end of the day, if a child didn't feel ready to accept the Lord I wasn’t going to push it, and I certainly wasn't going to let myself feel like I failed either. This summer, I had one girl pray for Jesus to be her personal Savior and it was only when she truly knew what she was doing first. God: 1, Devil: 0 - that's a win in every play book I know.

The girl I prayed with to accept Jesus as her personal Savior

For an entire summer worth of camps I was thrilled to have had the privilege of praying alongside this one girl to accept the Lord, but even if I didn’t have a single person accept the Lord, I still would have said it was worth it. God used me and the Eagles to plant A LOT of seeds and water others, and I’m thankful to be just one of the tools He used this summer.

Juanito and me during a week when I lived in an apartment complex and did community development type stuff.
One of my favorite weeks. 

This summer was an amazing experience and I had a lot of fun! I laughed a lot and was brought to tears at other times. Overall, it had nothing to do with my plans and I was reminded of that often. It had everything to do with God’s plan. All we could do on the Eagles was “be still and know that God is God” and let Him work. God’s plan was going to be fulfilled, whether we wanted to join in or not.

STARS camp in Wheaton: Hanging out and playing soccer with TEAM BLUE!

What Now?
Well I am going into my senior year at Wheaton and I have a soccer season ahead of me. If you couldn’t tell I love to use soccer as a platform for ministry. My goal is to use everything I learned this summer, last summer and in school to empower and push my teammates to play for the Lord. I may be partnering with the Urban Eagles in West Chicago to help run soccer camps throughout the year, but that is a work in progress as of now. As for post-Wheaton, I have no specific plans, but I do know that I love soccer and ministry. If that is God’s plan for me, sweet! If not, who knows what I’ll be doing. Feel free to pray for me and for a vision involving those plans.

Camper praying before we started

THANK YOU!!!
Thank YOU so much for supporting me this summer; I was extremely blessed to have raised all the financial support I needed. God really wanted me here this summer, and I am reminded why every time I talk to an Eagle’s teammate or look at these pictures. I could not have made it through the summer without your prayers or your support. I am truly grateful.

If you would like to talk more about my summer with the Chicago Eagles, I am absolutely more than willing. This was just a general summary, but I can tell you some very funny stories, some intense stories and some struggles both me and the Eagles faced this summer. Email me at kerilshannon@gmail.com