Zambia!!

Real life is coming! It’s hard to believe that I will be graduating from Messiah in four very short months, but it’s also unreal to me that my real life will start off with a summer interning in Zambia with Push the Rock. For those of you that don’t know, I am graduating with a degree in sports management with a cross-cultural ministry minor, with the dream of doing sports ministry. I interned with Push the Rock, an awesome sports ministry out of Allentown, PA, last summer working basketball camps in the Allentown, Philly, and Trenton areas. I can easily say it was one of the best summers of my life and I am so looking forward to working with them again. Also for those of you who don’t know, I have had the dream of going to Africa after college to do ministry since my freshman year of college. To look ahead to this summer and know that I will be in Africa doing sports ministry is not only a dream come true, but an incredible display of God’s faithfulness in His promises to me.

But, I’m not going to lie, the entire process scares me. When I think about raising support, leaving my family, my best friends, and going to a new place and culture, there are times when I just want to crawl back into my comfort zone and stay there. But I’m trusting that God is going to come through for me and I have had an awesome amount of support from my family, my best friends, and my team at Messiah. I know how many people have joined me in praying for this dream to come true… and I am amazed once again at the power of prayer.

I started out my college experience having no idea what I wanted to do after graduation. I chose sports management because I loved sports, but that was really the only reason. After a sports ministry trip to the Dominican Republic with my basketball team, I felt called to add a ministry minor and go into sports ministry. God and sports are two loves in my life and the ability to combine the two to reach others for Christ is an incredible thing. Sports are a universal language across the globe. They are something that brings people together and they create an awesome platform to share Christ not only in words, but in actions.

 At Messiah, we play for something bigger than basketball. We are together because of the sport of basketball, and yes, we like winning games, but it is so much more than that. We play with the bigger purpose of glorifying our God on and off the court and using our abilities as a platform to share Christ with teams that we play. I have learned over the past four years what it means to play for God and how sports are a great way to reach people. Since that trip to the DR, I have been to Uganda with a sports ministry organization through Messiah, as well as worked my summer with Push the Rock. Both of those experiences really confirmed what God was calling me to do.

I can’t tell you how excited I am to spend the summer in Zambia with my supervisor from last summer, Eric, and his family. I can’t wait to see what amazing things God has in store and to see Him continue to work in Macha. I would love if you would join me in prayer for this new journey in my life and if you would like to support me financially you can click on this link:  Zambia - Sports Ministry

You can also support me by sending a check made out to Push the Rock at:
Emily Martz
211 Dellville Rd
Duncannon, PA 17020

Thank you for all the prayers that have already been prayed and the ones yet to come. I have some pretty incredible people in my life and one truly incredible God who has been so faithful.

With love,

Emily