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- Hosting a week-long soccer clinic/camp among the Kurdish and World Relief refugee communities.
- Pick-up and organized soccer games.
- Fun, interactive games and teachings to provide you with evangelism and cross-cultural training.
- Visit to an international church service.
- Several authentic international meals.
- An indoor or 3 v 3 soccer tournament with several international youth teams.
- Daily teaching times with guest speakers who are current or former missionaries or leaders in ministries.
- A day off to enjoy Nashville.
- A challenge to "Pursue The World".
- Daily worship and devotion times.
- Opportunities to build lasting friendships.
- An experience you will never forget.
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about the Nashville trip..........
The easiest and fasted way to apply is to go to http://ultimategoal.net/apply.html and fill out the online application.
The application process includes a player application and a recommendation from a youth pastor/pastor. Due to the nature of our Nashville outreach, being more recreational than competitive, a recommendation from a coach is not needed. To begin the application process, you can simply fill out the online application from the UGM web site and email it to us. If you are unable to do so, you can email or call to request the application to be mailed to you. Once we receive your online application we will notify you and send a signature page, which you would sign and return along with a recent photo and $75 application fee. If you request an application to be mailed to you, the signature page will be included. Once UGM receives the recommendation forms, signature page, deposit and a recent photo, you will be notified of your official acceptance. The application fee is returned if you are not accepted and put towards the cost of your trip if you are accepted.
A former pastor, youth pastor, Bible study leader, bible teacher, etc. would all be able to fill out your form and recommend you based on your spiritual character.
You are still welcome to join us. Because of the recreational nature of the Nashville outreach, a recommendation from a coach is not needed.
Our aim is not to bring together the highest skilled players, but we do want to have players with enough skill so we can coach and lead clinics and have some competitive games. Our aim is to put together a group of players who desire to serve the Lord in this way. It’s a balance. Through the questions in your player application we can determine your playing ability. In the same way, we request the pastor recommendation so we can determine your spiritual character and motive for wanting to go on this trip. If you have any questions about this, feel free to contact us.
We are able to take a non-players to accompany us, especially for work through our partnership with World Relief. There are numerous things you can do while games/clinics are going on, but for the rest of the outreach you will do exactly what the players do.
The application fee/deposit is $75 and is put towards the cost of your trip if accepted. If not accepted, it will be returned to you.
To ensure we are able to make the proper arrangements and to provide adequate pre-trip preparation, our deadlines to sign up are:
- Summer '08 Trip Interns: May 1
- Summer '08 June Trip (Students): May 16
- Summer '08 July Trip (Students): June 13
Remaining balances are due:
June Summer Trip: June 1, 2008
July Summer Trip: July 1, 2008
Along with the acceptance materials will be information on fundraising ideas, sample support letters, and other materials you can use to help in your fundraising efforts. The most important thing is to start as soon as you are accepted. History has shown us the two most effective ways players raise their support is through support letters and local church support.
It covers everything beginning at dinner on the first day through breakfast on the last day, including training, lodging, meals, transportation, day off activities, set up costs, ministry materials (Bibles, tracts), and an awesome experience. It does not include your transportation to and from Nashville, spending money, and any meals/snacks you decide to purchase outside the regularly scheduled meals.
Staff members of Ultimate Goal will be your UGM staff team. Other interns and adult leaders to still be accepted may also be a part of co-leading the trip.
June trip: arrive in Nashville on Saturday June 21, 2008 and depart Sunday, 29 as earlier as possible.
July trip: arrive in Nashville on Saturday July 19, 2008 and depart on Sunday, 27 as earlier as possible.
You should plan on arriving before 5pm to provide ample time to be transported to our lodging/training site and prepare for orientation. If earlier flights need to be arranged on departing dates, please contact us to work out airport transportation.
Training actually takes place throughout the outreach mainly through the teaching of UGM staff and special guest speakers. The two main areas the training covers is spiritual (evangelism) and cross cultural. There is very little soccer training as we basically jump right into soccer activities.
No. Although you help run a morning clinic each day, the rest of the outreach includes training (guest speakers), morning devotion and worship, evening outreaches and evening prayer. You will have plenty of soccer playing opportunities which will help sharpen your skills, but this is not designed to train or develop your soccer playing abilities. It is a ministry outreach. Unlike a camp, you are together with the rest of the outreach team 24/7 from the beginning to the end of the trip.
Orientation includes get to know you activities, team builders, sharing the basic schedule, giving you more insight into our ministry and what we are all about, introducing you to the team leaders, and so on. Everyone is welcome to this first night, including parents. It will include worship and prayer as well as we set the tone for the outreach.
This year we will be staying at a local church facility, equiped with separate lodging for guys and girls, showers, kitchen, etc. You will need to bring your own sleeping bag or air mat, pillow, blankets/sheets, etc. It is conveniently located close to the main roads which take us to our ministry locations.
The Kurds in Nashville are a Middle Eastern non-Arab, mostly Muslim, population of refugees from the mountainous regions of Northern Iraq, Iran, Turkey, and Syria. They live in the U.S. now after escaping heavy persecution from Saddam Hussein and his regime. They were brought here by World Relief, an organization funded by the government to provide relief status to persecuted refugees. There are approximately 7,000 Kurds living in Nashville today. Nashville hosts the largest number of Kurdish people per one city in the United States, as well as the most refugees in one city, surpassing Washington D.C. Moreover, the Kurds are our friends and we are continuing to build more and more relationships with them.
Over the past few years we’ve seen how the Lord has given us favor within the Kurdish community. As result of much prayer we’ve sensed God leading us to put a majority of our focus on reaching the Kurdish community. This includes the focus of our Nashville outreaches. We want to continue to sense and build upon what God is doing. Your being a part of helping to open doors, building relationships and getting to know the Kurds dramatically helps our ministry to them. We want you to share in this exciting new ministry and we fully believe you will have a part in seeing this community be open to coming to Christ.
World Relief is a Christian resettlement agency in Nashville that resettles upwards of 250 refugees per year. Our founder, John Stayskal, is also the Affiliate Director of the Nashville World Relief office. World Relief works with refugees from the day they arrive in the US and helps to find them housing, teach them English, get them jobs, etc. More information about World Relief can be found at wr.org Our ministry partnership with World Relief will allow Ultimate Goal to reach out to more refugees in Nashville.
If you are looking for huge numbers to come to Christ, you might be disappointed. On the other hand, we never know when the doors will swing wide open and the Kurds or refugees start coming to Christ in large numbers. This is certainly what we are praying for. Our main objectives are to build relationships and open additional doors into their community. You will probably never fully realize the impact you will have in coming here to help lead clinics, do soccer outreaches and get to know the Kurds and the refugees you work with. Your impact lasts long after you are gone. And now, each summer the Kurds anxiously await the arrival of our next summer team. You need to know that the part you play in coming here is invaluable to us.
On a personal level we know you will be challenged and stretched in your faith. God will use this outreach to call some of you into ministry/missions work. Others will be motivated to go home and start similar ministries. You will be broken before the Lord over the lostness of our Kurdish and refugee friends. We take very seriously what God wants to do in your life while with us in Nashville. Daily devotion, worship and prayer times will be a part of this outreach. A final challenge will be given, bringing together the experiences you’ve had in encouraging and motivating you to take home what God’s done in your life.
For the most part it will be soccer related. Our ministry is focused on friendship evangelism. We encourage each player to look for and take advantage of ministry opportunities. It might be as simple as taking the time to get to know a Kurdish or refugee person and develop a relationship with them or in your sharing a testimony at a clinic or after a soccer activity. If we come across a ministry opportunity that doesn’t relate to soccer, we will definitely pursue it.
Believe us, we all get nervous. We must be honest to say you will be spiritually “stretched” on this outreach to step out of your comfort zones and do ministry. We will not force you to do something you just don’t want to do. But we will ask you to try. We are confident you will find a way of doing ministry that is your “style” and will be excited to see how God uses you.
Yes. We’ve not experienced anything to cause us caution regarding working with the Kurds. They see us as friends and deep relationships have been built between the Kurds and UGM and even through World Relief.
Orientation begins the outreach on June 21 or July 19 (depending on your trip). The first Sunday we will plan on attending a international church service to provide you with a worship experience based in another culture. It’s awesome to see how other cultures worship God. After breakfast each day you will be involved in a devotional, worship and prayer time as we give God our day. Each evening before lights out you will be involved in either “family group” prayer time, or corporate prayer time. Every morning you will help Ultimate Goal run a clinic in the Kurdish or refugee community. Basic skills are taught, and a time of ministry takes place, usually in the sharing of a testimony. Every afternoon we have guest speakers come in from the Nashville mission community. This provides a variety of different people for you to listen to. Every evening, except for our day off which is usually Thursday, you will be involved in a soccer related outreach. It could be a 11 v 11 game, a mini tournament, or helping lead another clinic. The final Saturday we will have a special soccer event planned to minister to the international community in Nashville. Saturday night will be the final challenge.
Any monies you've raised will be refunded minus the application fee/deposit and any expenses already incurred such as deposits and fees.
Do you have other questions? If so, please don’t hesitate to contact us either by phone or email. If you are interested and want to apply, log onto http://ultimategoal.net/apply.html and fill out the online application.
The Ultimate Goal Staff
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