Inside the Mind of Gibby- Placed on the 15 Day Injured List Retroactive to 1997

Well, we are coming up on another Opening Day for our Saints softball teams. There is fresh excitement in the air. New softballs have been packed. Literature is neatly stacked in the literature bag. And everyone looks good wearing the Saints jerseys for the first time this year. But there is one problem. That elbow that our best outfielder said felt like spaghetti at the end of August is still hurting. That knee that made our shortstop look like he was playing hopscotch when he was running last year flared up as he shoveled snow in December. And those hamstrings that were pulled during the October crusade still feel as tight as piano wires.

Yes indeed, if you are a veteran Saints Prison Ministry missionary-athlete, you are bringing

more with you than your charm and wit - you are also bringing your collection of sports injuries! There isn’t much time so let’s get to work on the treatments.

Torn Meniscus

I had one missionary-athlete tell me that he had a torn meniscus and he was uncertain about how he would play the outfield this season. Instead of asking how he was feeling or what his recovery time was, I instantly started laughing at him. All of us who have done this for a while have a torn meniscus. If you don’t know what a meniscus is, then good news! That means you haven’t hurt it yet! The key for handling this injury is to act like you are too cool to run hard while you are desperately crying on the inside.

Treatment Options

-Under 40- walk it off

-Over 40- two Ibuprofen

Elbow Injuries

You may have had that one stretch where you could throw a ball from the outfield and hit the catcher on the fly. Well, that was way back when President Bush was still POTUS. No, not that President Bush, the first one…

Anyhow you might be in trouble because this is a tough injury to hide from. Don’t be afraid to be part of a triple cut-off when getting the ball back in from the outfield. The coach might be upset but chances are he may be in the middle of that relay throw as well.

Treatment Options

-Under 40- Two elbow stretches on each arm

-Over 40- Four Advil and 1.5 tubes of Icy Hot

Back Injuries

There is nothing worse than back pain but your team needs you out there to hobble around - even with your crummy lower back. The right way to fix it is with lots of stretching but, if you don’t like to stretch, you could blame it on an old football injury. This usually works on a Crusade; however, your regional team will quickly point out that you never played football and the only time you saw the field on Friday nights was when you were carrying around a tuba at half time!

Treatment Options

-Under 40-  Tape an Aspirin to it

-Over 40-  Horse Tranquilizer 

Indigestion, heartburn, upset stomach, and symptoms to be named later...

Ok, ok, this isn’t a legit sports injury but this one sometimes affects our missionary athletes.  A typical day may include a hotel breakfast, a gas station lunch, and some pizza for dinner.  Unless you are one of the four guys in the ministry who eats appropriately while away from home, you are going to feel the effects at some point during the day.  

Ok, ok, this isn’t a legit sports injury but this one sometimes affects our missionary athletes. A typical day may include a hotel breakfast, a gas station lunch, and some pizza for dinner. Unless you are one of the four guys in the ministry who eats appropriately while away from home, you are going to feel the effects at some point during the day.

Treatment Options

-Under 40-  One can of Sprite or 7up

-Over 40-  The recommended dose of Pepto Bismol plus

one Tums for each chicken wing you had the night before…followed by one can of Sprite or 7-UP!

Here’s to a big 2023 softball season for the ministry! May the bus rides home be full of good stories from our visits, fun time with teammates, and minimal visits to Urgent Care!

  

5/20/23 FCI Terre Haute Update

 Dear Friends and Family,

Legendary Yankees manager Casey Stengel was once quoted:

“Now there’s three things you can do in a baseball game: you can win or you can lose or it can rain.”

If Casey got to be part of our team here in Illinois he might add a fourth thing:

“...or it could get rescheduled for issues beyond our control but we’ll make up the game in September…”

According to the plan, we would have had the van packed and ready to go a week from right now. Unfortunately, the Terre Haute trip that was supposed to happen next weekend was postponed because of some unforeseen issues at the prison. The good news is that they rescheduled us to still come on September 23rd.  

It is always a disappointment when we get postponed but fortunately, we can trust that God is sovereign and that He will provide a way for the inmates at Terre Haute to hear the Gospel, either later in the year from us, or from other believers who come to minister.  

Please keep us in prayer as we prepare for our next visit on June 3rd to Taylorville CC.  Please pray that we are allowed to go and minister and that God would provide for the trip!

Thank you for all of your support this season and throughout the years as I have had the opportunity to serve.  

Thanks,

Tom Gibson

May Update- Less Than Three Weeks Away Until Our First Visit!

 Dear Friends and Family,

 

We are less than three weeks away from our first visit to FCI Terre Haute.  To say that we are excited about the start of our season and the opportunity to share the Gospel would be an understatement! 

A couple of months ago, one of my fellow Saints teammates and I got to go and hear former Chicago Bear, Charles Tillman speak at an event in Chicago.  He told several stories about his time with the Bears while taking some well-timed jabs at now former Green Bay Packers quarterback, Aaron Rodgers! 

One of the things he brought up was how close the Bears team was to each other and how they were on the same page.  He said, “There is something special that happens when you have 11 guys pulling in the same direction.”

As we head into our Saints season, it will be important for our team to be pulling in the same direction but it is just as important for our support teams to be pulling and praying in that same direction with us. 

Here are some praises and prayer requests for our team in 2023:

We have a full schedule in 2023!-   After a couple of years of uncertainty because of COVID, we are now back to making regular visits! We will visit 9 different prisons over 7 dates this year.  I am also planning on going on a Crusade to New York and a Crusade to New Mexico this year as well. 

Traveling Mercies–  If you have followed our team for any length of time, you know that traveling isn’t always merciful!  Pray that the Lord allows us to travel to and from each prison that we visit this summer.  Pray that transportation won’t be a hindrance to sharing the Gospel this week!

Team Unity– We have a pretty unique range of guys on this team.  Some guys are 12 year veterans and some guys are making their first trip to prison!  Nevertheless, we will all feel like rookies again as we make our first visit this month.  Our team is a very excited and eager group of men and we will be spending quite a bit of time together this summer. Please pray that fellowship will be sweet and morale will be high as we serve together.

Team Performance– As I am getting older, the softball part is getting harder!  However, it is important that we play well this summer.  Please pray that we are able to play well and that we earn the respect of the inmates. If we play well and earn their respect, they will be more likely to stick around and listen to us share the Gospel.  Please pray for tired arms, legs, shoulders, knees, elbows, and backs as we go through the season!

Speakers– Pray for the Missionary Athletes who will be sharing their testimonies of how they met Jesus and for the Missionary Athletes who will be sharing the Gospel.  Please pray that God draws men to Himself through men being willing to faithfully preach His Word in prison this summer.  Extra Praise- I have been going through some training with my pastor regarding expository preaching.  It has been a blessing to learn how to share God’s Word and I am excited to share the Gospel in prison this summer!

Families–Please pray for all of the wives who have to brave work and parenting by themselves.  I used to write this part of the email thinking of leaving my wife with a house full of small kids but these days my kids are old enough that they are driving themselves around and are pretty self-sufficient!  Please pray for safety for our kids and for our wives as they minister at home! 

Inmates– Most importantly, pray for the men that we will encounter as they are the purpose of this trip.  Jesus says in Matthew 28:19a, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,”  He also says in John 6:44, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.  And I will raise him up on the last day”.

Please pray that God works in the inmates' hearts and that they hear the Gospel and will see a need in their lives to follow Jesus.  Softball is fun, the fellowship with other missionary athletes is precious, but sharing the Gospel behind the prison walls is why we are going.  Please pray that our trip is fruitful for the Glory of God!

Thank you in advance for the prayer support and for all of the encouragement many of you have been over the last several years!  Lord willing, we will be sharing the Gospel again later this month!