A Short Equipping Before the World Surfing Games

By: Rev. Scott Armstrong

Recently the 2024 World Surfing Games were held in Arecibo, on the north coast of Puerto Rico.

The local reef break is one of the most powerful waves near the island. In a nod to the upcoming Olympic competition that surfers were trying to qualify for, Margara is one of the most challenging venues to host the annual event and promised to give the winners a taste of the Paris 2024 competition in Tahiti.

I am proud of our Nazarenes in Arecibo and Puerto Rico in general for how they mobilized to serve at the event. More than 400,000 athletes, organizers, and fans visited their backyard (or should I say, beach)! They handed out thousands of sandwiches and water bottles. They made new friends and shared their testimonies. They organized worship services and offered to pray for and bless people. We are still gathering information, but the early results are incredible. More testimonies will arrive in the coming days.

Prior to the competition, the Nazarene pastor and District Superintendent in Arecibo, Rev. Marta González, invited me to share a short video with the participants and workers from our churches. The essence of my five-minute “training” and encouragement to them was basic – almost embarrassingly so. I urged them to:

1. Pray. Who knows what God wants to do in an activity like this?! Only he can orchestrate the conversations and encounters that will occur during those four days. We must pray like crazy before, during, and after the event. “And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ…” (Col. 4:3).
2. Serve. Just the fact that these Christians would give of their time and money to bless throngs of people they don’t know means they have servants’ hearts! Serving is almost always THE best way to impact multitudes. One measure of if we are successful will be if the people around us start wondering aloud, “Who are those people? Why are they so nice and helpful?” By day three and after late hours, the fatigue will start to set in. But servants still serve. The Surfing Championships are an opportunity to do what we do best! “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve…” (Mt. 20:28).
3. Listen. When we are evangelizing or seeking to minister to our communities, one of the biggest mistakes we make as followers of Jesus is that we talk too much (some believers talk too little, which is another issue). I think it’s based in good intentions, because we are so eager to share with the world what Christ has done in our lives. But more and more, the world sees Christians as terrible listeners. What would happen if we turned that on its head? James 1:19 says we should “be quick to listen and slow to speak.” What if we showed genuine interest in others’ stories and cultures and backgrounds? That may just earn us the right to…
4. Build bridges. Really appreciating people’s perspectives and stories earns you the right to share yours. When I am talking with people, and especially those who don’t yet know Christ, I am constantly seeking out metaphorical bridges that might lead to deeper conversation. My favorites are sports or food, but there are hundreds of other bridges that can be built through shared likes, hurts, education, or hobbies. Honestly, if we love people as they are and not as we want them to be, that is the greatest bridge God uses to start to make a difference in someone’s life. Paul’s discourse to the Athenians (Acts 17:16-34) is a masterpiece in building bridges with people who share a very different culture and worldview from our own.

From what I can tell, these four things were accomplished by the Church during the World Surfing Games. Way to go, Arecibo Nazarenes! Heaven will look different because you prayed, served, listened, and built hundreds of bridges several days ago!