Pray for Sport and Recreation 2021

Prayer for Sport and Recreation During the Month of December

(prepared by Lilian Schmid)

A Testimony from a Football Player

I always prepared my game with prayer from the major games to the minor games. The content of my prayer to God is to help me do my best in practice time. I committed all things to God, without worry. . . . These prayers make me calmer and more secure and I forget the fear of losing. It resulted in good play.

“But God has brought you into union with Christ Jesus, and God has made Christ to be our wisdom. By him we are put right with God; we become God’s holy people and are set free.” (1 Corinthians 1:30 GNT)

History of Sports in Australia

(from the Australian Government Department of Health)

Sport is an important part of the culture in Australia, with a long history in the country dating back to the pre-colonial period. Early sports that were played included cricket, Australian rules football, rugby union, horse racing and netball. Sport evolved with Australian national identity through events like Phar Lap, the Bodyline series and the America’s Cup races.

There are a number of professional sport leagues in Australia, including the Australian Football League (Australian rules football), National Rugby League (Rugby league), Super Rugby (Rugby union), the A-League and W-League (Soccer), ANZ Championship (Netball), the National Basketball League, the Women’s National Basketball League and the Australian Baseball League Cricket Sheffield Shield. Attendance for some of these leagues over the course of a single season tops six million spectators in leagues such as the AFL, A-League and NRL.

The media plays an important part in Australia’s sporting landscape. Many sporting events are televised or are covered by the radio. The government has anti-siphoning laws to protect free-to-air stations. Beyond televising live events, there are many sport television shows, sport talk shows on the radio, magazines dedicated to sport and extensive newspaper coverage. Australian sport has also been the subject of Australian made films such as The Club, Australian Rules, The Final Winter and Footy Legends.

As a nation, Australia has competed in many international events including the Olympics and Paralympics, and the Commonwealth Games. The country has a large number of national teams in sports such as cricket, rugby union, rugby league, basketball, hockey, netball, soccer, softball, water polo and wheelchair rugby. Sport is played by different populations in Australia including women, people with disabilities and Australia’s indigenous people.

Prayer Strategies for Sport and Recreation

Let’s pray for the following domain of Sport and Recreation

Pray that God will raise Christian athletes, coaches, sportspeople.
Pray that God will bless all nations during the World Masters Games around the world.
Pray that God will touch the heart of all national and international athletes and coaches.
Pray for all people attending this event that God will bless each one of them and infill them with the Holy Spirit.
Pray that God will touch all sports ministers and open their eyes to His glory.
Pray that God will bless all finances invested in sport and recreation, and that it will only be used to glorify Him in good and healthy activities.

Consider these specific strategies and objectives in your prayers:

Advancement of ministries that integrate the adopted core values while introducing people to the person of Jesus Christ and; therefore, “Winning Souls, Not Just Games” – Philippians 2:3-4.
Promotion of, in Christ, fun, fellowship, acceptance of everyone regardless of athletic abilities, and mutual care through the various teams in each respective sport – Psalm 28:7
Direction of the passion for sports into the same passion for following Christ daily – Matthew 4:19
Incorporation of a devotion time focused on biblical truth into all sports activities – Luke 18:1
Provision of opportunities for the sharing of life transforming testimonies – Luke 18:9-14
Communication of the needed discipline of daily prayer – Matthew 6:5-15

Pray for Sport Chaplaincy Australia

Encourage any persons leading sporting activities/teams to see themselves as chaplains and encourage them to do chaplaincy training to maximise their role. See sportschaplaincy.com.au

Lilian Schmid

Prayer Strategist and Coordinator

+61412766917

lilianschmid@prayerstrategy.org

https://prayerstrategy.org/

Sydney – Australia

Pray Ntwk Archive