The mission of the Houghton College Athletic Department is to “glorify God by educating and developing men and women leaders who compete with excellence, lead by character, and exemplify Jesus Christ in our world.” These leaders, also known as student-athletes, strive to live out this mission, and are committed to the pursuit of integrating faith and sport. This pursuit is marked by intentionality and by an understanding of what it means to play for the glory of God.
Within the culture of each athletic team, there is a unique emphasis placed on intentionally engaging faith with sport. Darcy Mitchell ’19, a member of the men’s soccer team, said that this integration is most clearly seen in the way that he and his teammates conduct themselves. “After every game, we ask the other team to gather with us to pray and thank God for the gifts and abilities that he has blessed us with,” he said. “That act alone is a witness to other teams and fans, and represents who we are truly playing for.”
For Shelby Langlois ’20, joining the cross country and track team at Houghton transformed her perspective of what it means to integrate faith and sport on a collegiate level. She recalled that when she was being recruited, Coach Hager told her that this program was a “ministry” for him and his wife. “My coach and my teammates have led by example what it looks like to show Christ in the way we compete,” Langlois said. “I’ve watched the way my teammates humbly handle themselves both when we run well, and when we don’t run well. I’m learning to follow in their footsteps.”
Nikki Garns ’18, a captain on the women’s soccer team, described how faith is integrated in every part of her team culture. “On our team, we have a chaplain who is responsible for organizing and delegating devotionals that we do together after every practice and before every game,” she said. “During preseason, we have a worship night on the field to dedicate our season to the Lord. It’s also a tradition to do what we call the Cross Run, where we run as a team around campus carrying a large, wooden cross. We also use this as a time to consecrate our season to the Lord. Coach Lewis is extremely intentional in having our Christian faith permeate every part of our team culture.”
In addition to intentionally incorporating faith with sport, each athletic team seeks to develop an understanding of what it means to play for the glory of God. Mitchell understands this as giving “100%” in whatever he participates in. “Physically, I am giving all of myself to the sport I’m playing and using the abilities God has blessed me with to give back to him,” he said. “Spiritually, this means I’m truly playing all for God and not for others, whether that be playing to impress coaches or teammates, and try to go by the motto of ‘playing for an audience of One,’ which is playing to please God only and to not take any of the glory for myself.”
Kaylee Haller ’19, a member of the women’s volleyball team, seeks to play with excellence for the glory of God because “God deserves our very best.” She mentioned that although sports can bring out both the “best and the worst” in athletes, being surrounded by teammates who are focused on playing for the glory of God and “are ready to lift me up with encouragement is what helps me grow on and off the court.”
Jared Couch, a first-year student on the baseball team, looks forward to how the Houghton Athletic’s community will impact him as both an athlete and a follower of Christ. “It’s a relief to be on a team where everyone has the same mindset, where everyone is together for the same cause, which is the glory of God,” he said. “The whole point of coming to Houghton for me was finding that community, and finding that team that’s a brotherhood. It’s such a blessing to play on a team like that. And I can’t wait for the next four years because of it.”