ODSL, Trunk or Treat, Church....

Several Games Are Played at the Same Time

     In my last post we talked about the adult soccer league that Daniel and I are involved in at Church of the Open Door. Today I want to tell you about the church soccer league for kids up to 12 years of age. We call this outreach ODSL, which stands for Open Door Soccer League. The league games and practices are played at a local school in a neighboring community. Our son David plays in this league.

     We have many kids from the community and the church who participate in the ODSL games. The city doesn't have a soccer league for these age groups, even though it is largely Hispanic. So we get a lot of enthusiasm from the parents who are looking for a local league for their kids. 

Keep Your Eye on That Ball!

     This is a great opportunity for Ruth and I to meet other parents and hopefully get to know them in a nonthreatening environment. We have already met several parents. Some are more familiar with the church than others. Some have been playing in the league for a number of years, while others are brand new this year. Ruth and I have a special "in" with many of the parents because we speak Spanish fluently. Many of the parents speak Spanish as their first or only language. Once many of them heard David speaking in Spanish, we were accepted immediately.

Team Goal... I Mean the Whole Team!

      This Saturday the church will host a celebration called "Trunk or Treat". We will be inviting the community as well as the ODSL parents and players up to the church for a fun night of games and candy. Many of these parents come from different religious backgrounds and beliefs. Pray that this will be a great way to reach out to the parents. Ruth and I would particularly like to encourage some of the parents to bring their families to the Spanish services on Sundays. Pray that we would have some great opportunities to do that.

Thanks... Doug & Ruth