Fields of Faith returned to Poplar Bluff on Oct. 5 with a tailgate party, music and a message from a local coach who made a miraculous recovery from an accident.
Churches, schools and families all brought kids to Poplar Bluff Junior High football arena for Field of Faith.
“We come every year,” said Palace of Praise youth leader Amy Baugus. “I just like to see teenagers on fire for the Lord.”
This year the annual Fellowship of Christian Athletes ministry returned to the Poplar Bluff Junior High football field to make it accessible for local families.
The program opened with praise and worship music from FRSH/WATR before speakers took the floor. This year’s main speaker was a coach and former pastor, Mike Vipperman of Malden.
“In 2019 I fell out of a deer stand...and I broke my back in three different places,” Vipperman told the crowd. He was airlifted to Barnes-Jewish Hospital where doctors told him he would likely never walk again, even after surgery. Nevertheless, Vipperman and his family trusted God could perform a miracle. “Little did they know that God is a big God.”
Three days later, Vipperman walked out of the hospital on his own two feet. He has since climbed back up that same deer stand that set the stage for his story.
“He can turn things around for the good of those who love him, that’s Romans 8:28,” he said.
FCA regional manager Josh Mills summed Vipperman’s testimony up in an interview. “God was just faithful to Him and provided healing for his body, and he’s used his story ever since to talk about overcoming obstacles and facing adversity, and how when we trust God he can heal and redeem situations and people.”
Students also heard statements of faith from their contemporaries. This year’s student speakers were Darcy Broglin, Chloe Matthews, Carson Roberts and Tony Kernutt.
“I had this emptiness in my heart...When I got involved with FCA and my church, I felt that fullness in my heart,” said Broglin, who joined FCA in junior high.
Roberts, who rededicated his life to Christ a few years ago, agreed. “It really changed me as well, and allowed me to see differently.”
Giving students a platform to celebrate and share the gospel is what Fields of Faith is all about, according to Mills.
“Our goal behind having Fields of Faith, especially spread out through the area, is to give every student a chance to be able to come and hear the gospel, hear some of their ... peers, hear their testimony, and share their faith journey,” he said.