In 1954, founder Don McClanen and the FCA leadership committed themselves and the direction of the FCA ministry to this mission. The programs and strategies of the ministry may have changed throughout the years, but the mission has been unchanged.
We summarize this in the terms, “gospel” and “gospel in motion.” The essential ideas related to the gospel are the holiness of God, the sinful or fallen state of man, the substitutionary atonement of Christ and man’s response of confession and repentance. The gospel-in-motion is the believer living in light of the gospel, the fruit of the gospel. For the believer, there are 2 ways of doing sports; man’s way or God’s way and we are committed to training athletes and coaches in Doing Sports God’s Way. Essential ideas related to the gospel in motion are; living in view of God’s mercy, seeing sports as gospel-centered, the two ways of doing sports, God’s way or man’s way.
FCA does not replace the local church because it is not the church. FCA is an organization and a resource that believers from local churches in communities all across Nebraska can access to minister the gospel to coaches, athletes and all whom they influence. FCA is a vehicle that can be used in any community to reach the lost with the message of life in Christ.
The 4 C’s represent the different groups of ministry programs we use to carry out our mission.
Through the years, FCA-Nebraska has developed the following programs within the 4 C’s that we believe have been effective at putting people in position to both present and respond to the gospel and the gospel in motion.
Executing the mission requires great teamwork. The indisputable evidence is that in communities where FCA is effective, there exists a strong team bond between FCA staff and local volunteer leadership - groups such as Booster Clubs.
Booster clubs are made up of parents, coaches, school teachers and administration, local church pastors and other community leaders. Their main objective must be to strive together to see the gospel advanced in their community by utilizing the FCA mission, staff, programs and resources.
The role of FCA staff in each community is to support the Booster Club with direction, training, resources and counsel. The role of the Booster Club is to take that support and carry out the FCA mission in their community.
To carry out the FCA mission, the Booster Club will form one or more of the teams committed to focus on the respective 4 C’s ministries. The number of teams formed will be dependent on the needs and opportunities of the community and the calling of the members of the Club.
A functional Booster Club provides funding, 4 C’s ministry activity and prayer; key resources necessary for the FCA mission to be carried out in the community.
Working together, FCA staff and Booster Clubs are able to put in motion the 4 C gears of campus, camps, coaches and community at the local level.
Volunteers at the local level play an essential role in carrying out the FCA mission. The organization of FCA-Nebraska itself is like Home Depot, who’s tag-line a few years ago was, “You can do it, we can help.” Home Depot itself doesn’t build decks and remodel bathrooms, they simply equip people with the expertise, manuals, tools and resources to do it themselves. As a statewide organization, FCA-Nebraska can plan and host the great events and programs that we have, but without the work of those in the trenches those events will be ineffective. It takes the work of key volunteer leaders in communities all across who are willing to give their lives for the sake of the advance of the gospel so that they world may know that Jesus Christ is Savior and Lord!
