Fields of Faith draws hundreds to Waukon High School football field to hear messages of faith ...

The Waukon Fields of Faith event celebrated its 10th year of existence on a cool, early fall evening at the Waukon High School football field Wednesday, October 6, drawing another large crowd, as evident in the photos above and below. Messages of faith and how it has impacted their own lives were shared by a series of five different speakers during the event, all of whom are pictured in the individual photos immediately below. Those messages involved the more personal local experiences presented by four area high school students that included (left to right in photos at right) Waukon High School senior Braden Hemann, Decorah High school senior Grace Bachelder, Waukon High School sophomore Philip Clocksin and MFL/MarMac High School senior Gabe McGeough, with Waukon High School senior Nick Goltz serving as emcee of the event. The featured presentation of the evening was delivered by former Major League Baseball (MLB) star Darryl Strawberry (photo at center), whose 17-year MLB career included eight All-Star selections and four World Series Championships with the New York Mets and the New York Yankees. That career and his life were later plagued with addiction, abuse, divorces, cancer, jail time and other issues before he said the Lord “called” him 14 years ago to get back to the principal teachings of the Bible and a new purpose and passion in his life serving the Lord Jesus Christ by delivering a message of hope and helping others transform their lives through the power of the gospel as he travels across the nation with his ministry, “Finding Your Way” (findingyourway.com).

Strawberry said he can thank his mother for God finally entering and changing his life forever, noting that “my momma never prayed for my baseball success, but instead she prayed that God would ‘knock me off my throne’ and save me, which he did.” He also urged mothers to “never stop praying for your children,” especially in today’s world of so many temptations and distractions. Strawberry further noted that all the evils, distractions and division in today’s world are rooted in one thing, explaining that “we have a sin problem that is turning us into a broken nation,” and further noting that the sinning ways of this world are driven by greed and ego, which he turned into a defining acronym of “Easing God Out” (EGO). But Strawberry said that God is “calling his people back, to the Church and to the Bible,” noting that God’s Word in the Bible is free and will never pass, but everything else that is pursued outside of that Word comes at a cost and is short-lived. He said the evils of ego can be countered by another three-letter word, “saying y-e-s to Jesus,” as he shared another acronym for yes that stands for “You Enjoy Salvation” (YES).

As the evening came to a close, Strawberry called upon those who needed prayer to come forward, which many in attendance did (pictured in bottom photo below) as Strawberry raised his hand over them and asked the group to join in a blessing. An invitation was also extended to any area middle school and high school youth who want to join the local chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), an interdenominational Christian sports ministry with a focus of engaging, equipping and empowering coaches, athletes and youth to know and grow in Christ and lead others to do the same. That local FCA group will be meeting for an FCA Breakfast Club Thursday morning, October 14 from 7:30-8 a.m. at the Waukon Wellness Center with a meal of breakfast pizza to be served. Those interested in attending are asked to call 563-379-1572 in order to reserve a spot and give organizers an idea of how many will be attending so there is enough food. For more information on the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, email Northeast FCA regional director Ben Schmidt at bschmidt@fca.org. For more information on Fields of Faith, visit www.fieldsoffaith.com or Fields of Faith Waukon on Facebook, which includes a video of the October 6 event.