Division I soccer player and coach Chris Porter had inspirational words for the students of Westminster on “Purple and Gold Day.” One of the themes of this week’s assembly was how God can use your talents for His glory, and Chris gave great insight to the students by saying, “Find the one thing to do in life where you feel the most in tune with God.”

For him, that was soccer, and so Chris spoke specifically about how God has used athletics to shape his life and mold his faith. “Without sports, I wouldn’t be who I am today,” he said. “God used that tool in my life.” In high school, he was a 5-time state champion and voted as the best soccer player in the state his senior year. He went on to play division I soccer at the University of Memphis, and participated in several outreach and mission opportunities while playing.

Chris also gave advice to help the students deal with the ups and downs of life. “When you go into situations, tell yourself that you don’t have to meet others’ approval, the only approval you need is God’s unfailing love, and that is given freely.” He reminded the students that it is okay to make mistakes. “That’s where you learn to grow and realize your identity is not in the sport or being the best, your identity is in God.”

Chris later reminded the students to always take their humble pie, regardless of the goal they are trying to accomplish. “I love humility and I love pie. How can [humble pie] be a bad thing? Whether you’re a soccer player, mathematician, chess player, you have to train, eat right…in the same way, you’ve got to take your slice of humble pie.”

He finished his talk by reminding students to “be good stewards of the opportunities that you’ve been given because God can use those things for His future glory.”