Salvation & Street Footy

Some months ago I attended a Human Rights Film Festival.   We watched a documentary about Homelessness in New Zealand and another called "Kicking it" about the homeless world cup. This is a football world cup played for by "homeless" people from nations throughout the world. In the process of training for the teams, people get to kick addictions and bad ways of life. Sport can actually change lives. I ended up in front of the cinema telling people about the Dunedin Night Shelter.  In the question time the producer of the documentary said that there were Street Footy groups in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, ... "What about Dunedin? Could we get a group going in Dunedin?" Fielding the discussion I suggested that yes if there was enough interest and someone to co-ordinate it, may be it could happen. A woman from PACT (Patients Aid Community Trust - I think) said that they had a regular soccer group so maybe we could build on that. I have been attending that soccer group, playing and encouraging guys from my drop-in to go along. We are hoping to take a selected group to a Street Footy Festival in Wellington in November. We need some additional sponsors. It is so much fun. There are people with intellectual disabilities and mental health problems playing, but it is so great seeing them participating. Some are making concerted efforts to get fitter and healthier. They cheer each other on, tolerate the slip ups in the rules and just enjoy the game. 

I get a statistics sheet from my national headquarters asking me to list off how many "salvations" there are in connection with my church. I think I replied last year, "God only knows." This year I replied, "Lots of us are being saved all the time." I hate and abhor their concept of "Salvation". John has Jesus saying, "I have come that they might have life, abundant life". When he healed people it is often translated, "He made them whole". The exact same word is used for people being "saved". My task is to be in this world to help move people toward "wholeness". 

One of the guys I take to soccer came to our drop-in years ago and sat with cap pulled over his head not saying boo to a goose, watching pool. I went up to him and asked him for a game. Over weeks and months I played game after game with him. He slowly came out of his shell. He started helping with drop in tasks. He came to a group we had at Ocean Grove. He came to church. Now he comes early and sets the coffee urn going and helps get the church ready. He came to soccer and is getting into it, displaying quite some skills. He relates freely and with warmth, and his social skills are improving. Another guy I encouraged to go to soccer also came to drop-in he watched me playing table tennis and asked for a game. I have played endless games with him now. Slowly he opened up and talked and tells me about his life. He is now on a mission to get fit, has lost weight and is giving up smoking and is relating much more responsibly with people. He calls me "old man". Yesterday there was a guy who called into the church "Space 2B" time. He had a coffee and asked if he could play the piano. I recalled my first contact with him probably around 16 years ago. He is a different guy, much more respectful... still a long way to go... but miles better than he used to be. (Probably he may look at me and say a similar thing) These changes, small steady but real steps toward wholeness are in my view "Salvation". There are people "being saved" all around the place and I am privileged to have a little part to play in the process. 

Often the "salvations" my headquarters want statistics about are just some sort of mental assent to religious dogmatic statements, often as a result of peer pressure, guilt and uncertainty.  This is a generalisation,  and I am sure their are incidents of genuine growth and change. But I am certain that through love and friendship shared (all love is an expression of the divine love) people are being made whole, saved and that includes me.

Together we are being saved, made whole, discovering more life abundant. It may not be the traditional understanding of "salvation" but I think it is real, and "of God". The sacred is at work.

Photo: Some members of the PACT soccer group playing today. I was goalie. I made some awesome saves!