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Writer's pictureUncommon Sports Group

USG Community Impact: Israel Impact Trip


USG's group taking a photo next to a Camel in Israel.

Uncommon Sports Group provided eleven of its members with the opportunity to travel to Israel for a two-week-long Impact Trip. For the two weeks in the Holy Land, USG served a group of Messianic Jewish children at a day camp through sports, worship, Scripture memorization, and other activities, as well as doing sight-seeing to various locations, including the Dead Sea, the Sea of Galilee, and the Mount of Olives.


USG member and Account Executive-Membership at Seminole Boosters (Florida State University) Paul Conner shared a testimony of his experience in the Holy Land with Uncommon Sports Group and the impact the trip had on him:


"It has been one week since I left Israel, and the only way I can describe what my heart is feeling is blessed. Blessed to have a God who personally knows me. Blessed to have a Savior who came down to live as a perfect man to die for my sins. Blessed to be a part of an organization that gives me the opportunity to go on a life-changing experience like this, where I get to see where my Savior lived and feel the life He lived. Blessed to have eleven other believers to spend two weeks completely doing joyful spiritual life with. Blessed to be able to impact the kids of Israel and to have them impact me. This was the trip of a lifetime, which I won’t see the fruits of and won’t really feel the full impact for many years. What a blessing it was to experience it!

The biggest highlight for me was feeling the presence of the Lord, but also the reminder He is always with us. We were able to visit where He was born, where He lived and ate and taught and prayed. We visited where he died and, more importantly, where he conquered the grave. Initially, I thought I would be in awe of these places, in awe of the grandness and glory of our Lord and the physical spaces he existed in. While I was in awe of them and the giant beautiful churches and monuments dedicated to Him, what I felt more was the intimacy of God and Jesus. The Lord is always with us; whether we are in Jerusalem or in Florida, He is always with us the same amount. It did not feel like I was visiting Jesus for the first time; it felt like when a friend showed you around their hometown. That was the biggest takeaway for me, that while Israel was amazing, the places are not as important as the man who lived there. I learned how much He walked the desert mountains, how hot the sun that roasted His skin every day was, and how much He had to endure and persevere for us. I learned the intentionality of His decision-making, how every decision He made was in order to fulfill the Scriptures and to lead Him to sacrifice His perfect self to redeem our sins, to redeem my sins. Ultimately this trip helped me grow closer to the Lord and helped me understand Him and His word better in ways I never knew or expected.


A thank you is in order for Sahar, Kimmie, and their family. The overseers of the youth camp, our host family, and our tour guides! Getting to spend time doing life with their family and being so graciously hosted was the experience of a lifetime. Hearing Sahar’s wisdom and knowledge of the Word and our tour stops not only brought the Bible to life but was so educational. Sahar’s passion for spreading the Word and for the Word being taught over the teachings and traditions of man is something I will keep close to my heart for the rest of my life.


I had such a fun time at the camp as well, getting to spend time with and know the Israeli children. I was blown away by their knowledge of Scripture, and it was so refreshing to see the Lord through the eyes of a kid. Watching them gather and worship together and sing and dance and just be so joyful was life-changing and so encouraging.


Of course, the part I enjoyed the most was spending two weeks fully immersed in community with USG members. Thank you to all of my group mates for being so kind, fun, and spiritual. I felt the Lord's presence in our group when we met, when we sang, and when we laughed. Getting so close to all of them was an experience like nothing else on this trip; it was such a blessing to see everyone go all in on our little community. I am so excited to be alongside your journeys through life and to have you all alongside me amongst my own!


Some of the highlights of the places we visited for me were the Sea of Galilee. Not only was I baptized there by Mikey, Amanda, and Alex, but we, as a group, threw a football in the Sea of Galilee for an hour. Just how cool is that?! Similarly, we visited Magdala, the recently uncovered home community of Mary, where there is a synagogue Jesus most likely visited. I was also blown away by Masada and Ein Gedi. As someone from Florida, seeing mountains and desert and fortresses in the desert on mountains is something that is truly out of this world to me.


Lastly, I would like to give the biggest thanks possible to Uncommon Sports Group. Thank you for all the years worth of hard work that was put into this trip, so the only thing I had to do was make sure I showed up at the airport on the first day. Words will never be able to explain the amount of joy and gratitude I have experienced from this trip. Once again, you all have transformed my life!"


 

It was encouraging to see the impact that the two-week trip had on this group of Christ-centered leaders within the college and pro sport industry. Learn more about USG's Impact Trip to Israel with the link here.


Are you interested in learning more about Uncommon Sports Group or getting involved? Click here to contact a staff member, or click here to apply for our USG Academy!


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