Brilla Soccer Ministries shines through Operation Christmas Child
By Guest Columnist Lori Bobo
Brilla Soccer Ministries was founded in 1996 on a soccer mission trip to Costa Rica. Brilla’s purpose is to share the good news of Jesus Christ through the game of soccer. Whether in a foreign country, playing in the states, or in a camp setting, the goal remains the same – to shine for Jesus. Brilla is the Spanish word for “shine.”
Jesus said: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” — Matthew 5:16
Brilla’s mission has cascaded into the youth division of Brilla. As a soccer club, Brilla encourages all teams to find an area of service each year to “shine His light” on others. My husband, Thomas Bobo, has been a coach in Clinton for almost thirty years, and this is his mission field. He uses soccer to not only teach the “beautiful game,” but to also love, mentor, encourage, counsel and champion young men and women in the game called life. This is where he shines His light on others!
We are the blessed parents of three children, Shelbi, Tommy, and Graham, as well as one special grandson, John Calaeb. We have spent many hours on playing fields all over the southeast, and loving others has always been a huge piece of our family identity.
As it is with many families, Christmas traditions are paramount to the Bobo family. One part of our family’s Christmas traditions has always included participating in the shoebox ministry through Operation Christmas Child. Their mission is to reveal God’s love in a tangible way to children in need around the world and to share the Good News of Jesus Christ, the Light! What better way to partner soccer and missions than to bring the shoebox ministry to Brilla.
When John Calaeb started playing Brilla soccer with Thomas, a.k.a. Man, as his coach, we had the perfect “pitch” to share the importance of this ministry and to provide an opportunity for these young boys to shine His Light from Clinton, Mississippi. It was at this time Operation Christmas Child became our annual Brilla service project!
Thomas and I provide the filler items for the boxes of the players he coaches, while the players and their families provide a deflated soccer ball with a pump and pay the shipping costs. Our home church, First Baptist Clinton, is a designated local distribution center, so we are able to get the actual shoeboxes, labels, and literature to share with the teams.
We encourage the boys to decorate their boxes, include a family or team photo, and to pray over their boxes with their family. A November day is set aside where the boys play soccer for part of practice, then come to the designated area at Traceway Park to participate in a packing party.
This “party” is where I have a moment to share what the ministry means and how exciting it is for a young man from Clinton, Mississippi, to shine His Light around the world. Each player hears how important it is for the truth of Jesus to be shared all around the world!
We take some time to pack the boxes, carefully fitting all of the items in a shoebox, especially the soccer ball (the WOW item) which is a sport known worldwide. Once all of the boxes are filled, we gather the boys together to pray for each child who will receive a shoebox, along with their families and villages; we pray for the safe travel of the boxes; and we thank Jesus for using these young boys to further His kingdom in such a special way.
This year, we invited some other teams to participate with our annual packing party, and those teams embraced the ministry by providing filler items for their teams and assisting with the packing process. We were able to pack almost fifty boxes through Brilla…these little “missionaries” are shining His light around the world!
If you would like to participate in the Operation Christmas Child Ministry, please visit samaritanspurse.org/operation-christmas-child.
