As she prepares to sing “How He Loves” in front of 500 high school students, junior Jaeky Spencer makes sure her focus isn’t just on how she performs, but concentrating on leading the worship. The nerves were racking up as they usually do for every performance Spencer does, but the main goal is to remember why she loves to sing. Being able to hear and watch fellow peers sing their hearts out is what drives Spencer to do her best.
This is the first year Spencer and her youth band from Grace Church performed at Fields of Faith. It was hosted on Blue Valley High School’s football field, and it took place on Oct. 10.
Fields of Faith is an international event put on by youth groups from local churches and FCA’s from the Blue Valley schools since 2009.
“The purpose of Fields of Faith is to give teenagers a way to express their faith to their peers and for their peers to hear the message of Jesus Christ in a non-threatening environment,” event coordinator Danita Hill said. “Teenagers can make a difference; they can impact their generation and influence those around them.”
Fields of Faith is put on by students from four of the Blue Valley High Schools who start planning in the spring. Since it’s an international event, the date is not determined by the students. It happens every year on the second Wednesday of October.
“We like to incorporate as many schools as possible so we can reach more students,” BVHS senior Sarah Hill said. “There’s a handful of parents who are involved to help in the logistics of planning, and try to contact a lot of different youth groups and invite them to bring their students to the event.”
The event started at 7 p.m. and included the Grace Church youth band, Chief’s linebacker, Andy Studebaker as the main speaker and student speakers from Blue Valley Northwest, Blue Valley West, Shawnee Mission Northwest and the University of Kansas.
“Every detail from what speaker we need to where the band is going to plug in their sound equipment has to be thought about,” Hill said. “Our number one priority is to create an event that will glorify God and be welcoming to everyone.”
After everyone had spoken, students were invited to go down on the field to participate in the Altar Call where they would show a personal commitment.
“What really gets to me is when the Altar Call is given and students can come down and find out more about Jesus and how He can impact their lives,” Hill said. “I love to see the compassion of the Altar Call students, the earnestness of those who come forward and the fact that Jesus can be felt in a palpable manner in a high school football stadium.”
There are many reasons to get involved including meeting others students who share a passion for not only sports, but for faith.
“Getting involved is an awesome opportunity to meet other Christians,” junior Gabrielle Wingert said. “It’s a really fun way to get to know Christ. You see God working in your friends life and what is really cool is seeing Christ work in my own.”
