It was a man’s dream weekend. Imagine arriving Friday night to Tampa, Florida to a hotel full of disciples with tons of southern cookin’ prepared and served by the awesome, lovely Tampa Church sisters. Then after filling your stomach, there is a full night of games, dancing and fellowship with disciples from all over the southeastern United States. That night you experience the full extent of true hospitality as you are housed and taken care of by a member of the Tampa church, and then wake the next morning to an entire day of competitive flag football with disciples on ten teams from Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Tampa, Gainesville, Jacksonville, Tallahassee, Athens, Georgia, and Atlanta. Some of these teams have even set up leagues in preparation for this very weekend, and others have been practicing and conditioning for months.

Are you beginning to see you why this is a man’s dream weekend? And this was all before the tournament even began. After registration and some instructions on how the tournament worked we had the privilege of hearing an inspiring message by Rich Bartoli, the Campus Minister in Tampa, that fired us up and helped set our hearts and minds on God – who is infinitely more important than football. With the blood pumping and adrenaline rushing, the games began on four fields at the University of South Florida, all setup precisely and officiated by professional referees. The sidelines were lined with wives, girlfriends, and friends who came in support of their teams. Signs were made; cheers were cheered.

As great as the games were, there was an overriding power that made the weekend truly great. It was the power that brought us all there, the power that built and strengthened our friendships. It was the power that brought both teams together at the end of each game to lock arms and bow our heads in humble reverence. It was the power that was among the disciples as we sang and worshiped whole-heartedly at the Sunday morning service on the field. It was the power that spoke through Nilson Ramirez, one of the Campus Interns in Gainesville, as he mightily preached the sermon “Leave Your Mark” before the final games on Sunday. It was the power that helped a woman get baptized while we were there and that helped many men start studying the bible. It was the power that I felt as my friend, a non-disciple teammate, at the very end of everything, after losing our last game in the playoffs, addressed the team and said “I know we lost, but I want you guys to know that there is no one else I would have rather fought and lost with. I have to admit, at first I came to church just to play football. But after spending so much time with you guys and coming to church , I feel like I am for the first time starting to get to know God. And that means a lot to me; I love you guys.”

You see it was the power of God that made the Playmakers’ Bowl what it was, an indescribable experience only possible when Jesus is everything.

In Him,

Tyler Chacon

Gainesville Christian Church