Credibility takes time to establish if we are facing uncertainty or suspicion.
As my colleague Paul Burham found before he became the chaplain at Melbourne Football Club – the Demons!
It took him several weeks of having lunch at the hotel owned by the team coach, who eventually asked him what he wanted.
In offering pastoral care to the team, Paul described his love of sport and mentioned his experience in long-distance running.
Professional sportspeople can sense hidden agendas when people offer help. But chaplaincy? This was new.
After a few more conversations, he was invited to team training – an hour ahead of schedule. “And wear your tracksuit!”
When he arrived, the coach suggested that they jog together around nearby Albert Park Lake, where the annual Australian Formula One Grand Prix is also held.
They completed this three-mile jog, to be met by the whole team. And they were ready for action.
“Fellas, this is Paul.” said the coach. “He’s going to pastor us, and you can get to know him on our warm-up lap of the lake.”
Another three-mile jog for Paul, who was then asked to run laps of the oval with the players who were not yet match fit.
The next day, after running six miles and all the laps of the oval, he could barely walk.
But the players had accepted him, and they gave him a team tracksuit with “REV” stitched on the back!
Some months later, Paul learned that had he not done all that running, he would never have been asked back.
Thirty years of credibility later, he is still involved, though I would personally hesitate to be chaplain to a bunch of demons!
Credibility can also emerge when we do not have the luxury of time to think.
It emerged at another football club, where a few players decided to embarrass a new chaplain by secretly inviting a stripper to a dinner to welcome him and other support staff.
And when she arrived, they asked to start her act beside him.
With the spotlight – and everyone’s attention – on this unlikely duo, one of the schemers yelled, “Are you having a good time, chaplain?”
His reflex response – “I was, till your mother showed up” – broke the tension, dismantled the act, and opened wider doors for his chaplaincy.
For everyone realised that being in tune with God could maybe keep their minds clearer when the pressure was on.
Noel Mitaxa
On behalf of a church near you, inviting you to explore God’s love
