FIFA calls streetfootballworld and says, "Hey, here's our dream. Want to be a part?"
SFW: "Yeah, alright. We could do that."
FIFA: "Great, how does "Football for Hope" sound as the movement and "20 Centres in 2010" as the project within the movement?"
SFW: "Perfect. It's your dream. We'll just run with it."
streetfootballworld is an organization based in Berlin that uses football (aka soccer) to promote social issues all around the world. The Cape Town office was created for one purpose; that purpose being to fully own and see the “20 Centres in 2010” project to completion. The project's mission is basically to create 20 Football for Hope centres all across Africa -- 5 in South Africa, 15 around the rest of the continent. Each hope centre has two elements to it -- a pitch (aka a soccer field) and some type of infrastructure. The pitch is used to attract the kids whether via a soccer tournament or camp or even just as a place where everyone can meet after school to play, as everyone here loves the game of football!! The infrastructure is used to host different education opportunities. Each centre has a different focus, but most educate students about HIV/AIDS prevention, protection, causes and dangers. Some centres are geared towards kids with disabilities and others may focus on educating kids about technology in order that they may be given the chance to thrive outside the doors of their neighborhood and go on to further education. Regardless of the focus, the purpose of all the hope centres is to use soccer as an avenue to bring kids in to a community where they are given something that will benefit their lives forever that they normally wouldn't have had the chance to gain.
How’d I get here??
Well, after the door of staying with my old job closed, I began to pursue an opportunity Lenny brought up to me MONTHS ago. When Lennell and Jason came to Cape Town in January, Jason got on board with an internship at the Human Rights Commission here in town and Lennell got hooked up with an architecture internship at Architecture for Humanity. AfH is all over the world, doing a multitude of projects and designs for communities that are in desperate need of improvement and opportunity. Naturally, the Cape Town AfH office’s only purpose is to design all the centres for the project. Once Lenny was offered an internship for the summer, he proceeded to look into SFW since he knew it sounded right up my alley. Long story short, I got an internship with SFW during my time here on M-W and have absolutely loved it!!
It's been so fun to see a new side of the business world. A side that intrigues me even more than before. The side that has a bigger purpose than just making money. It's incredible. I mean...there's no doubt I'm an intern as I've been given the grueling tasks of organizing the JACKED UP server, writing the quarterly newsletter, and other random, mini-projects. One day I put together a package and addressed it to STRAIGHT UP FIFA. FIFA?!?!?! hahahahaha. Then I laughed OUT LOUD when I realized I was freaking out about addressing a package. hahahaha. God knows our hearts so well. But seriously, even though my daily tasks aren't directly going towards the creation and sustaining of the hope centres, knowing I'm a part of something bigger...is so encouraging. SO FUN. I am literally a part of something that will change the lives of people forever.
On another note, God has been teaching me so much about what life looks like with Him in every realm. The phrase, "what do I have to lose" is on replay at all times. I literally have nothing to lose. There's so much freedom in that. It's absolutely beautiful. It's been so fun to go to work and talk to people about Jesus. It's so fun to see people's reactions when we tell them what we're doing here. "You quit your job?!?!" "You're here because God told you to come??" "That's wild..." "No offense, but don't you think America needs missionaries more than Africa?" hahaha. That was a good one. And it's so freeing because we have nothing to carry. Yeah, maybe America needs some help, but the world needs help. We all need Truth. The most effective thing we can do is be obedient. We carry nothing else, but to be obedient to what God says. That's why we're here. We know we miss it. We know we will miss it in the future, but as best and as quick as we can, we want to be obedient to what He says for us. “There is room in God’s heart for failure.” Let us not let fear of missing Him stop us! He has enough grace. He is grace. He cares so intimately about us that He has a specific plan and route He wants us to take. He has dreams beyond dreams for us. His children. His precious children. Let us step in and follow.
HERE'S TO A LIFE OF FOLLOWING HIS WORD!! HOLLA!! oh yeah...in the words of our fellow friends here in SA...CHEERS!!
Here I am at work!! haha! Check out downtown Cape Town in the back! :)
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