SPORT, SPORT, SPORT…

If you’re anything like me, you are loving the high-profile sporting events taking place right now:

• Women’s World Cup - go, the Black Ferns!!
• Rugby League World Cup - nail-biting game between Samoa and Tonga, taking Samoa to the semi-finals.
• T20 World Cup – NZ is in the semi-finals against Pakistan today.

There are so many opportunities for learning that come from the world of sport. If you watched the Black Ferns playing France on Saturday night, you will have seen values that we esteem, in action…perseverance, resilience, commitment, tenacity and teamwork. Likewise, if you had been at Intermediate Sports’ Camp at the end of Term 3, you would have seen those same values being exemplified by our students.

For the last few years, Jireh Christian School has combined with Elim Christian College to participate in Intermediate Sports’ Camp at Totara Springs, Matamata. The students who are chosen to be part of the team make a commitment to attending practices, building fitness, learning sports they may have never played before and learning to be a team player with people whom they do not know well. The 8 students who represented us did so with all the qualities that we saw in the Black Ferns.

Being at camp (and giving up the Queen’s Memorial Holiday), playing sport from 10am to 9pm, handling success and failure, and sharing the duty load of serving meals and cleaning toilets were all required of our students. Don’t get me wrong, while they were building their character, they were also having a great deal of fun!! 😊

Competing against 9 other teams, the Jireh/Elim team achieved some very pleasing results:

1st – Team Chant/Cheer
1st – Kayaking
1st – Indoor Bowls
1st – Ultimate Frisbee

2nd – Netball
2nd – Human Foosball
2nd – Girls’ Indoor Hockey
2nd – Girls’ Table Tennis

We finished in 4th place overall – a meritorious result given that other competing schools, such as Mt Roskill Intermediate, Green Bay School and Glenfield Intermediate, have rolls of between 400 & 700 students. Our combined team of 35 students was chosen from a pool of just over 100 students.

As I reflected on what made this the best Sports’ Camp I have been on, it had little to do with the actual results (as impressive as they were) and much more to do with the calibre of young people that I took. Whānau, you can be very proud of your sons and daughters. They were focused, well-mannered, servant-hearted, encouraging, supportive and fun. In all this, they honoured God, used their sporting gifts to glorify Him, and I know they put a smile on His face.