The ice is gone and so are the players

               The ice is melted and players are gone. This chapel year was totally awesome. As I am in the process of contacting all the chaplains in the American Hockey League the testimonies are growing. God is really moving in ways that we could never image with our human minds. I think I could speak for the other chaplains and myself that we count it an honor and privilege to serve God in this way. There are so many stories and testimonies that I would love to share with you but it would take much time. So I would love to highlight the chapel year for you.

                It started in September with our chaplains’ summit in Cromwell CT in which we had 12 chaplains attend. The chaplains really bonded and it started the season on a Godly path. In October I had a mid-west road trip which including visiting chaplains in Milwaukee, Ohio, Grand Rapids, Chicago, and Rockford. I traveled 1200 miles, in hotels for four days and many visits to Starbuck that week. I met 5 amazing chaplains on that trip and the investment which will last a life time. The last weekend in January was the AHL All Star Game in Hershey PA., which HMI is invited to attend. We had a time of prayer with 4 players the morning of the game and a time of prayer with a player on the phone on the way home. Total awesome!! The All Star event also was an open door for us to have contact with many players that attend our chapel program on other teams. In February we made a trip to Rochester NY for a Faith and Family Night. Team Chaplain Marc Porpilia did an awesome job in organizing that event. The Gospel was given and players had some interaction with the fans after the game. March was a great month because we had our first chapel with the New York Rangers. Bridgeport chaplain Eric Lubbert and I did three chapels with the team. We are really excited for next year to see what God will do with the Rangers.

                Faith and Family Events where held in eleven AHL cities this year with HMI having a great presence at these events. This is an awesome opportunity for the ministry to let fans see how God is working in the hockey world. Many Hockey Players New Testaments where handed out to fans at these events.

                Here in Hartford we had an awesome chapel year. There were many first time chapel attendees this year due to the fact that we had a couple of players really promoting the chapels in the locker room. That made a huge difference in our attendance this year with anywhere from 10 to 13 players attending the weekly chapels. With a total of about 19 different players attend chapel in Hartford this year. At the beginning of the year my prayer is that these players grow to have a personal relationship with Jesus and I believe in my heart that some of them do. God is so faithful with His word. It is hard to say bye to the players at the end of the season because you really get to know their heart during the chapels but I trust that God did a great work in all their hearts.

                Thanks for your prayers and support this year for the chapels. Now we focus on our camps which start in the first week of June. Please pray for the staffing and the campers. God Bless