When FCA leader Moussa Mahawebwa moved to South Africa from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) because of civil wars, he connected with sports minister Brad Woz, who was in Cape town for World Cup outreach in 2010, and received an FCA Coaches Bible. Moussa, himself a soccer player, struck up a connection and read through the Bible. After further discussions with the missionary, Moussa came to know the Lord and grew in relationship with Him. Little did he know that ten years later, he would be back in his home country with a vision to reach coaches through the same ministry from where His Bible came.
In 2011, Moussa returned to DRC and prayed about bringing coaches together for life and coaching transformation. Since coaches are spread out through the country, Moussa wanted to create a discipleship center and bring the coaches together in one place.
Around that time, he connected with FCA Divisional VP South Global Vincent Asamoah and Regional International Coordinator Swayze Waters, and attended a 3D Coaching® seminar shortly after. He officially joined FCA in 2020 with a desire to connect God and sports for his fellow countrymen in DRC.
“God said, ‘You go and make these things work together,'" Moussa remembered, and the pronouncement stuck.
He found a building to host the four-week coaches discipleship course where coaches stayed on-site, which allowed for in-depth training, connection and discipleship. Moussa felt a longer timeframe was important to establish genuine relationships and for participants to experience deep internal transformation and vision.
“God said, ‘You go and make these things work together.’"
FCA Leader Moussa Mahawebwa
“We can do a three-day 3D Coaching® training and it’s good, but we need to touch the heart of coaches and that takes time,” he said.
If the end goal is to transform communities, Moussa wanted his attendees to feel like community. So, they went into the towns together, sat in a large group and learned together and went and served the local area as a group. Some grew deeper in their faith, and some came to Christ for the first time. By the end of the training, all were invigorated with the potential to reach their coaches and athletes with the Gospel.
Once equipped with the heart and mentality of transformational coaching, the coaches returned home ready and eager to share with colleagues in their own community.
The good news about the Gospel is that it is alive and active and can swiftly multiply throughout towns and countries. As Moussa is only one person, this in-person training gives coaches the tools they need to return home and be ambassadors for Christ, further spreading the message of Jesus.
“Once the coach’s world is transformed, God uses it to multiply where he or she is,” said Moussa. “It gets into unreached groups where I am unable to be. The Gospel goes to places I cannot go and spreads everywhere.”
Through this training, the church is better understanding how effective sports can be to reach the athletic world with the Good News. Moussa is already planning another training, while also following up with his first attendees to see how they’re doing and share new resources.
“It’s exciting to see the vision become a reality. I challenged my coaches to reach beyond their communities and go to new places and bring new coaches to the training.”
For Moussa, whose own journey back home in DRC started from scratch, it’s especially rewarding to watch God move. “Brad [World Cup minister] said, ‘God can still use you to reach the sports world.’ I knew I would start from nowhere, but I was doing God’s will.”
Moussa’s obedience has shaped sports ministry in DRC, bringing new light to coaching methods and sharing the love of God with people in sport. He now gives out the same Bible he was handed so many years ago, giving another young coach or athlete the same opportunity for life change and to be part of something bigger.
Moussa hopes to find a permanent space to host upcoming coaches discipleship trainings. Please pray that God provides the right building and that it would be financially affordable. Also pray for wisdom for Moussa as he leads, and for more coaches to catch the vision and multiply sports ministry in their areas.
Click here to financially support Moussa and his ministry, and visit www.fcaworld.org to learn more about what God is doing around the globe through FCA.
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