At 10 years old, Mobo and his friends mostly lived on the streets, stealing and using drugs. Mobo’s grandmother, Naija, took care of him whenever she saw him. Her house was near a dirt soccer field where Coach Brite held soccer practices and matches. She would watch them and noticed after soccer, they would still meet together for a long time. She ventured near and realized they were doing some kind of Bible study and all the kids seemed to participate. However, Naija had been very hurt by members of a local church and wanted nothing to do with God.
A requirement for being on any of Coach Brite’s teams was to participate in a DBS, which stands for a Discovery Bible Study, after each practice and game. Mobo loved soccer and was invited by his friend to join, so he decided to give it a try.
Naija noticed him out on the field one day. She waited for him to finish, then said she was glad to see him playing, but wanted him to play with a different team. Naija told him that it seemed this team was trying to be a church and she did not want him hanging around with any Christian people. She said that church people could not be trusted. Mobo told her he would not stop going, as he was really enjoying being a part of the team.
In a DBS format, each boy not only learned about God, but also had to make “I will...” obedience statements of commitment to what they were learning. One of Mobo’s “I will” statements was to move back home and start helping his grandmother around the house. He did that and also committed to stop stealing and using drugs. Although Naija was still opposed to Mobo playing on this team, she was so grateful for the changes she witnessed in him. After a few months, Naija asked her grandson if she could meet Coach Brite.
Coach Brite knew how Naija felt about him and his team, so he anticipated that she would tell him Mobo could no longer participate. She began by saying that she still did not trust church people, but went on to say that the changes she was seeing in Mobo had changed her mind about Coach Brite and “his church.”
“I have been so concerned about my grandson,” Naija said. “He was out of control and following the same path as his parents. Now, he comes home every day, he’s back in school, helpful in every way, and treats me with respect and honor.” She said, “I am still not sure about church people, but I am going to tell Mobo that I want him to continue to be a part of this team and to keep going to this ‘church.’” She thanked coach Brite for everything he had done for her grandson and wanted him to know he had her full support.
A year and a half later, Mobo has become one of Coach Brite’s best disciple makers. He has told all of his street friends about the changes Jesus has made in his life and dozens of them have joined the teams. Under Coach Brite’s mentoring, Mobo’s skills have only improved. At a recent tournament, international scouts were there, and he was offered a scholarship to play in Holland, including a tutor to keep him advancing in school while he hones his soccer skills.
This is just one of many stories coming out of Nigeria. Coach Brite’s soccer teams are part of the Holy Ghost Futbol Academy. All of their teams have made it to the Nigerian National finals in each age group. Their reputation is growing, and other clubs are sending their players to spend 2–3 months being mentored by Coach Brite and others. Not only are they learning soccer skills, they are also taught how to do DBS and are taking it -- and the relationship with God that it facilitates -- back to their home clubs around the country.
Want to learn more about DBS? Get started here.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Norris Williams and his wife Laurie live in Cashmere, Washington. They have been with Novo since 1983. Norris serves with NEO, Novo’s ministry partner in the Middle East, serving and empowering ordinary people across the world to become leaders and teams of disciples who are making disciples.