Peter* has an easygoing manner, but his passion ignites when he speaks about God and sports. Then, his eyes spark and voice rushes as if he can’t explain fast enough what God is doing in his family and ministry.
Peter and his wife, Ava*, are international sports partners with FCA, and sports have been part of their story for most of their lives.
In 2005, Peter tried out for his national junior track and field team. But when he didn’t make it, he returned to his hometown in East Asia full of shame and uncertainty.
“That's the lowest time in my life,” he admitted. Three months later, a U.S. college basketball team visited his hometown, competed and presented the Gospel, where Peter was introduced to Jesus. A missionary continued to check in with Peter, and he gave his life to Jesus his first month at university.
“When I became a Christian, I found my new identity in Christ,” said Peter. “That's totally changed my life. I knew even if I didn't 
do a good job in the sports area that God still loved me.”
He knew he wanted to share that same truth with other athletes, so he began helping visiting sports mission teams, coaching basketball (his favorite sport), volunteering to run sports leagues and tournaments and attending conferences, while sharing the Gospel along the way.
When he and Ava got married and had kids, Peter considered the future.
“I tried doing some business stuff, but I felt God calling me to step up and do full-time ministry,” he said. He’d volunteered for 10 years, focusing mainly on events, but Peter felt called to ministry and mentoring athletes beyond tournaments.
He had known about FCA since 2007, and as he learned more about the ministry, he could see how it aligned with his vision and how God was weaving things together.
So, Peter and Ava attended FCA’s Boot Camp fundraising school in 2014 and continued to pray about joining FCA full-time. But they were still hesitant.
A few years later,their son was born with a condition that prevented him from digesting protein. Peter and Ava prayed, questioning why God would allow this challenge. God gave Peter a picture of Daniel in the Bible sustaining his diet and being strong. This encouraged them both, and they believed God was at work in their son’s life and their ministry. So, they stepped into full-time ministry with FCA as international sports partners in 2017.
“We feel like FCA is a big family, that we are supported,” said Peter. “We feel like we belong even 1,000 miles away.”
Added Ava, “Before [FCA], we felt like we were doing it alone. We had to be careful with who to connect with, what was safe. It was very hard. But now, I feel happy that you know somebody will always support you.”
Peter and Ava started doing more coaches ministry, clubs and camps, focusing on follow-up discipleship and growing their staff.
“We do coaches marriage retreats and a lot of online 3D Coaching®,” said Peter. “They study every day, and we walk them through the materials, meet online once a week and answer questions. Sometimes, we will find a man of peace who wants to go deeper, and we follow up with them, have coffee or a meal, share the Gospel and build a deeper relationship.
The road has been full of bumps and detours, but Peter and Ava continued to persevere and build their faith in God.
“It is not easy here, but God is great,” he said. “It was hard during COVID-19 when we were locked down. Some staff left, and I wondered if I was a good leader. But that was a lie from the enemy. I prayed for more people, and they started coming. God still saw us through. God is teaching me to stay strong and trust Him.”
Ava echoed these lessons.
“Faith in God and trusting Him are the most important things. You sometimes need to stop and seek God first, because so many things we cannot do on our own,” she said. “Especially with COVID-19, we felt like we didn’t know what would happen the next day or even the next hour, but we still trusted Him, because everything is in His control. Sometimes, we think this is bad—what are we going to do? But you don't quit, because you need to wait for God's time to tell you why this happened or what is the right time.“
These three years have been very hard, but it's been building our faith even stronger.”
Sure, the temptation to move or quit ministry has crept in. But where else would they go? There is still more to come, as Peter, Ava and their team lean in to see where God will lead. “We feel that God's work through us here is not finished yet,” said Ava.
*Name changed for security purposes