August Update

Dear Team Members, August 13^th , 2009

It has been a few months since I have been able to get an official update out to you all, and for that I apologize, so that being the case, I wanted to take this opportune moment to do just that and give you an update on what has been happening over the last couple of months.

In light of the last newsletter, we were gearing up for our tour to North Africa, finishing up the work with the youth team, and preparing to head off for the summer soccer camps in the States. And now that we are already in August, as you may have guessed each of those events has now come and passed, and each provided very encouraging final outcomes.

The North Africa tour went very well, as we headed into the North of Africa for a few days to play a friendly match, run a clinic, and partner with a local church and ministry in helping open doors. Using the game of soccer was elemental in us aiding these groups in the work that they have been so faithfully serving in over the years. And so without going into too much detail, it was exciting as we traveled into a village in the mountains to work with this group, (which was an experience in itself, as traveling on a normal road in Africa is an adventure let alone a windy mountain pass) and through a simple clinic on what looked like a dirt parking lot, we saw opportunities for future ministry opened up for the groups working in this exceedingly difficult spiritual climate.

With regards to the youth team, it finished up well, and I guess it was a bittersweet ending. Being such a challenging season in terms of busyness with the team, it was good to wrap up a good season, yet to say goodbye to week in and week out coaching of these young guys in soccer and life was definitely tough. Looking back over the year, the relationships that had been built, and recollecting the challenges and laughs leading back to the first few practices in which we had just a handful of guys coming out, made seeing a solid group at the end sitting in the change room as we shared a testimony so mind boggling. To experience in a very real sense, God using the silly things of this world (that being soccer) over a calendar year, to open up opportunities on so many fronts, for us share how God had impacted our lives was truly amazing. Because the truth is, Spain can so incredibly cold when it comes to the Gospel and Jesus Christ. And to see young men listening intently, and openly, as we shared not just as outsiders with something to say, but as two people that had lived and experienced life with them over the past year changed everything.

And I suppose it can often be like that for many things our lives. In the beginning the task at hand can often appear so insurmountable, and it’s easy to really begin to question how conquering such mountain is going to be possible. Yet the moment when you stand upon that summit, and you hear God saying “this is what I wanted to show you,” it makes gazing out at all the hills and valley’s that you had to walk over to get to that very moment, so incredibly filling. In that moment, you are so powerfully reminded of the incredible truth that God is sovereign, that His plans are so much better than ours and to know that His yoke, is good.

And as it stands, I have just finished up the summer coaching tour, which went great, as we spent 5 weeks in the States, partnering with churches, and sharing the message of Christ through soccer camps around the country. There were twists and turns and hurdles to overcome throughout, as I had a concussion during the final week of camps, yet overall the 5 weeks were very encouraging. We had a great team, and to work alongside the various coaches from around the world in seeing the lives of kids impacted was a real privilege.

And now, I am currently back home in Williams Lake for a few more days prior to flying back out to Spain to carry on the ministry over there, which will kick off right away, as there are camps to run right away once I return. This upcoming term, I am really praying into where God is leading me, and what areas I need to be serving in. I ask for your continued prayers for direction with these upcoming months and that God would really show me where He wants me to step.

Love you all,

Matt Hama

matt_hama9@hotmail.com

Facebook: Tuscan Bullfighting Adventures of a Spanish Muchacho

http://matthama.blogspot.com/

May Update

Dear Team Members,                                                                                                                                                May 4^th, 2009

 

Well to begin this month’s update, it’s going to require you to dust off that good old imagination of yours, so I will give you four seconds to prepare yourself to do exactly that...one…two…three….and a half…..three and three quarters….ok…. four!  You with me on this?  Let’s rock… 

 

Take yourself for a moment to that place in time where everything comes down to one last moment, one last play.  You’re in the 89^th minute of the game, the last minute of the 3^rd period, the final lap, the last round, the last minute of the 4^th quarter, the 9^th inning, the 18^th hole etc, etc.…. Wherever you choose to actually find yourself is ultimately up to you…. However you’re in that moment, and everything comes down to this last play.   You have no more time-outs left, the water bottles are empty, your play book is all used up, and you have finally exhausted what seemed to be your endless supply of that “Icy-hot” muscle rub/gel.  Everything that you have trained for, every moment of preparation now comes down to this final moment in time.   And suddenly without notice the world you find yourself in turns slow motion, and that opera music they usually use for theatrical purposes in movies is strangely playing in the background, leading you to your moment of self-realization. This moment seems to last an eternity and a half, as you truly begin to grasp and understand the weight of your next move.  It’s as if the world stands “almost” still.

 

Well on that note, the end of the season is coming up here in Spain, and we have begun preparing for the transition over to the summer schedule.  More specifically what this means is, our season with the youth team we have been coaching is also coming to an end.  And not just that, but due to circumstances which include future steps, we are going to be unable to carry on coaching the team in the following year.  Therefore, our true “89^th minute” with the youth soccer is fast approaching.  And while I am sure that many of the relationships that we have build with the young guys will carry on, the opportunity to speak into their lives at least three times a week, and work with them in that team environment is coming to an end.  And so in a way, as we come to our final moments with them, there is a sense of that “final lap” sort of feeling.  So where I am going with this whole ”last moment” sorta theme in this months update?  Well, as we approach our moment with the team, I suppose my prayer in light of all the hype that can surround the “18^th hole”, is that we would be reminded that Christ is Lord over 89^th minute, just as He was in the 1^st minute.  And that it’s Him, who was moving in the hearts of these young guys since the 1^st minute, and will be Him drawing them to Him in the 89^th minute. 

 

With all that said, I also want to encourage all you.  Whether you are in the 89^th minute, or in the 1^st, may you to remember that Christ is king over the beginning and the end, and each moment in between. 

 

Thank you all so much for your prayers and support

 

Love you all,

Matt Hama

 

P.S I will be returning into Canada for a visit beginning June 2^nd prior to heading to the States to run soccer camps, as I am needing to sort a few things out with my passport.  This being the case, I am looking very much forward to seeing many of you, God willing. 

matt_hama9@hotmail.com

Facebook: Tuscan Bullfighting Adventures of a Spanish Muchacho

http://matthama.blogspot.com/

 

Prayer Requests

 

·       Final month with the youth soccer team

o       That God would continue to work in the young guys hearts

o       For wisdom in these final days

·       My physical health (still from shin splints)

·       Summer preparations

April Update

Dear Team Members,                                                                                                                                              April 6^th, 2009

 

Once in a while, ever so often, you come to these certain moments in life when you find yourself looking back, and you begin to see that all those things that never did make sense, those things that made up a mountain of misfit puzzle pieces in your life, have somehow now taken shape and aligned themselves into an incredible picture.  A picture, that you yourself could have never conceived imaginable.  

 

When you find yourself in moments like these, it’s easy to recall the individual steps along the way, and identify the key factors that you stood so firmly upon, factors that you saw as integral to the formation of your dream.  Yet as time progressed and as you witnessed so many of those key factors fall hopelessly apart, you were once again reminded of the ways of God in the words of Isaiah when he said, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.  As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

 

This past month, after challenge and struggle, after many joys, yet many frustrations, after many late night training sessions, after all sorts of twists and turns, after eight months of trying to speak truth into young lives, after months of coaching a youth boys soccer team, after all this, we were so privileged to witness the first two young men on the team commit their lives to Christ.

 

It’s been a journey with these young guys.  Watching them develop as young men on the field, but also to just watch God move and continue to move in hearts, has been amazing.  There have been so many God given moments, during these last eight months, to walk alongside these young men, and to challenge them to pursue excellence in life on and off the field has been a great privilege yet at the same time a huge challenge.  With so many of these young guys seemingly coming from places where they are given a daily portion of reason to believe that there lives will never amount to much, this season has been a constant battle, to see the truth reign, that Christ’s plans for their lives are for a hope and a future.  And while at times we see mere “baby” steps in terms of progress with them, we see those “steps” and for that we are encouraged and excited. 

 

And all this being said, initially we were in line to coach an age category lower.  Our first practice we had 5 players.  And they were considering dropping the team.  But God had different plans.

 

As seasons change, as plans are altered, may we continue be willing to allow God transform our dreams into His, as we see the sovereign hand of God working out things for greatness in spite of the fact that our expectations differ.

 

Thank you all so much for your prayers and support

 

Love you all,

Matt Hama

matt_hama9@hotmail.com

Facebook: Tuscan Bullfighting Adventures of a Spanish Muchacho

http://matthama.blogspot.com/

 

Prayer Requests

 

·       Boy’s soccer team

·       My physical health (currently recovering from shin splints)

·       Direction for future

·       Upcoming trip to North Africa

March Update

Dear Team Members,                                                                                                                                                March 6^th, 2009

 

As reminiscing on childhood memories tends to be one of my more enjoyable pastimes, in order to properly convey the events of this past month, I will ask you to recall back with me to a specific moment in your childhood, when you were eagerly awaiting the arrival of a specific event (What exciting event you recall back to is entirely up to you).  So while you may choose to go along the traditional, yet never exhausted route of Christmas morning or a birthday celebration, you may decide to take a slightly different approach, and like myself recall back to the arrival of a new air gun at the age of ten. Have you got yours?  Good.  I would suggest you close your eyes to heighten the memory; however if you do that, carrying on reading this newsletter may become exceedingly difficult.  But if you’re really eager to do that, I will give you permission to read with one eye closed if need be. 

 

Ok, so there you are, the excitement that filled the air surrounding the arrival of the ever eluding, yet much anticipated date was almost more than you could bear.  The seconds seemed to tick by in extra-slow motion, so in a desperate attempt to speed up the arrival you would try to stay occupied with other engagements.  However at the age of 10, or 7, or whatever young age you found yourself at, “engagements” seemed to be few and far between, and doing your taxes in the spare time, or fixing the sink just didn’t seem practical at that point in your life.  So you carried on with your typical daily events such as bug collecting, fort building, and the odd ride around the block on your bicycle, yet all while being constantly reminded every 12 seconds of the fact that the clock wasn’t go to speed up at any time soon.  However that moment, after much anticipation eventually did arrive.  And all that waiting, all those unbearable seconds that ticked past, in that moment seemed so worth it as you finally enjoyed the bounty of all that build up.  Those moments were great…

 

That being said, over this past month we have been gearing up for this years 2009 Ambassadors in Sport Spain tour, and I was once again brought back to those days of anticipation.  The only difference this time, while I didn’t have taxes to do or sinks to fix, as a team here in Spain, there were many preparatory “engagements” leading up to the event to keep things quite busy.  But after much waiting, and clock watching the start of the tour eventually arrived.

 

It was an exciting time here in Spain, as the tour provides us with incredible opportunities to develop and build relationships with local contacts here in Spain.  The tour, which consisted of a number of young guys from England, Northern Ireland, Mexico, U.S and Columbia, also brought in another Canadian from my local city back home, Williams Lake.  The tour went very well, as we were able to play several matches, run a few coaching sessions, and ultimately share the message of Christ with many young men here in Spain. 

 

However, the tour highlight for me in particular, was surrounding the local youth team that I have been helping coach over the last number of months here.  During this past season, as we have been coaching this team, it has been our heart to first establish our testimony by mean of our lives on and off the field, with the young guys.  So as we have been encouraging them in excellence on and off the field, and seeking to be Christ-like leaders in their lives, we finally took this opportunity the tour presented to openly share the message of Christ with them as a group.  For me, this was that moment; the one that I had so greatly anticipated, built up, and eagerly waited for during this past year.  And it was so incredibly worth the wait, as we shared the Hope that we have in Jesus Christ with these young men.  I ask that you continue to lift these guys up in prayer, that God would continue to reveal Himself, and move in their lives as they consider and ponder the words that were spoken.

 

 

Thank you all so much for your prayers and support

 

Love you all,

Matt Hama

matt_hama9@hotmail.com

Facebook: Tuscan Bullfighting Adventures of a Spanish Muchacho

http://matthama.blogspot.com/

February Update

Dear Team Members,                                                                                                                                                Feb 6^th , 2009

 

 

I am going to have to admit, that a month ago, if I were to have shared with you what I expected be writing about in my upcoming newsletter, the picture I would have painted, most likely would have looked significantly different than what I am about to share in the following paragraphs.  In fact, if I would have been told a rough outline of some of the events (minus the final product of course) of what this month was to consist of, I may have been in fact quite disappointed.

 

Do you find that life is often like that?  That you go about painting a picture of your expectations for the month, the week, or just the day, and through a series of events that you could have never imagined, you find yourself miles away from your intended destination, ultimately unsure of how exactly you truly find yourself in such circumstances.   And while you soon come to terms with the reality of things, as peculiar and as frustrating as they may be, you then find yourself saying, “I really envisioned this going so much differently.”  Well today, let me tell you, you are definitely not the only one… Cause I know this guy down the street, and it happens to him all the time….  No, I am just kidding, while there may be a guy down the street, I don’t have to go looking to tell you about a fella (I’ll give you a hint…his name starts with an M and his last name rhymes with Lama… and it’s not Mike Pajama) who has experienced that quite often, but mostly recently this past month.

 

During the Christmas break, I was quite excited to return to health, following some injury struggles that I faced prior to returning for the holidays.  And so during my time back, I spend time training, and going to the gym to regain my fitness, all in an effort to be prepared to get back to ministry here in Spain.  Well, after coming through my recovery with only a few scratches, and arriving back in Spain, we headed to the prison to carry on our ministry with the inmates.  I was ready!  My first game back, it was great, things ran smoothly, and I was really exciting about being able to participate.  And then it happened… On one of the final plays of the game, I got injured!  For the next couple of days I struggled to walk properly, and wrestled with how I could find myself in this all too familiar scenario yet again.  And while it has been a real trial to be injured yet again, God has challenged me, to take this time to once again ask Him, “What is your heart and your purpose in all of this, and what are you are trying to teach me?”  It’s been tough, but it has now been over 3 weeks, and I have really been to witness to the fact that “God uses all things for the good of those who love Him” (Romans 8:28).  I have been blessed with incredible opportunities to share and build relationship with the guys in the prison, to simply talk more, to hear their hearts, and build deeper friendships.  It’s been a huge blessing, which I may have otherwise missed had I been playing.  Two guys in the prison, that I have been really blessed to be able to get to know better over these last 3 weeks, are young man named “Toffee” and “The fastest guy in prison” (nickname due to the fact that he makes it no secret that he was the 100 meter gold medal winner in the prison Olympics this past Christmas).  It has been so neat going into the prison, not play, but to just chat, to joke, to hear the hearts of these guys.  I am excited for what God is doing in all of this.

 

So in the midst of trials and struggles, God is good.  God is faithful. God’s got a plan.  “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are his ways higher than our ways, and His thought than our thoughts” (Isaiah 55:9).  So through all things, may we continue to seek God’s heart in those moments and circumstances that we don’t quite understand, asking Him, “What are you doing all of this?”

 

Thank you all so much for your prayers and support

 

Love you all,

Matt Hama

matt_hama9@hotmail.com

Facebook: Tuscan Bullfighting Adventures of a Spanish Muchacho

http://matthama.blogspot.com/