October 2009 Stand Your Ground Joel Penton Clay Meyer

"Everybody drinks. Just have a beer and stop being a baby."

"Come on, it's only pot. It's not a big deal."

"Just take these. I know they're steroids, but nobody will know you're taking them, and you'll be amazed how much better your game will be."

The message is the same in schools around the country. Insert the area's biggest drug-related problem, and you'll hear the same thing: "Everyone is doing it, and they're turning out just fine."

In an August ESPN The Magazine poll of 85 NCAA football players, 55 percent said they know of at least one teammate taking PEDs.

In feeble retaliation, society shrugs its shoulders and makes a halfhearted attempt to clean things up. But it's hard to blame anyone. It's tough to find the motivation to shoot BBs at an 800-pound gorilla. So much of culture is already awash in drugs, what can really be done to stop the massive problem, specifically in the world of sports? How much difference does it make to tell student-athletes to just walk away or say no? Even more specifically, could even one brave, substance-free athlete really turn the tide at a high school?

The answer is yes.

Students must begin to realize that, no matter what their peers or the world tells them, not everyone is doing it. It may seem that way, but, in many cases, it's simply a matter of no one being bold enough to stand up and speak out against drug use.

This leads to the question FCA is asking through its One Way 2 Play–Drug Free program: Who will be brave enough to play clean? Who will be the one to commit to a life of purity? It only takes one person, one single athlete to step up and join in the battle led by Almighty God. And, in case you're keeping track, He's already on the winner's stand.

EVOLUTION OF AN ISSUE
Past to present, the term "drugs" has been associated with a variety of substances ranging from alcohol to heroine and everything in between. Back in the '80s, when the problem was being addressed through a nationwide war on drugs, the message was to "just say no." That message — simple and effective — is still necessary, but today is being challenged by classmates and friends who claim that drugs aren't bad — that a harmless, temporary buzz or high is a fun rite of passage into adulthood.

Saying "no" is harder than it sounds. In fact, no matter what the school, the majority of students have easy access to drug- and alcohol-related outlets.

"You are cheating yourself, your opponents, your school — you're cheating everybody. We live in a culture that is upside down in so many ways."

"It is interesting to me how much it varies from place to place," said Ohio FCA's Joel Penton, who travels the Midwest speaking to students about standing up against cultural norms. "But whatever the school's particular issue is with drugs or alcohol, it is very pervasive."

After graduating from The Ohio State University, Penton hung up his football cleats to follow the Lord's calling into ministry. He now takes the gospel to middle and high school students through the vehicle of school assemblies.

"Our specific ministry is boldly reaching into public schools with the gospel of Jesus Christ," Penton said. "We do this through character-based assemblies in correlation with evening follow-up outreach events, and we try to partner with the existing FCA Huddles in those schools and direct the kids to FCA for follow-up and growth."

With the teamwork of fellow FCA staff member Ryan Holliday, Penton has been able to impact crowds of students regarding both life principles and a saving faith in Christ. In his assemblies, Penton adopts the theme "Stand Your Ground" and encourages students to set themselves apart from the crowd by not just making the right commitments but keeping them. Through his personal example, students see that great things can be done if they are willing to simply stick to their decisions.

Following their general assemblies, which are typically conducted during the school day, Penton and Holliday invite students back to hear a message of a different kind. That night they host outreach sessions where Penton shares the gospel message. The goal, according to Penton, is to reach students who may not be a part of a church or who "wouldn't even step foot in one." They are presented with the message of Christ, offered a chance to respond and are cared for by the school's FCA leaders or local youth pastors on hand for follow-up.

Survivor Story

Joel Penton's wife, Bethany, knows firsthand how pervasive a substance-abuse problem can be and what it takes to overcome it. As an exceptional high school gymnast, Bethany appeared to have it all: good grades, a boyfriend, popularity and an athletic scholarship to a major university. She signed with Ohio State following her junior year and, once the pressure was off to perform for college recruiters, she thought she could relax and have fun with friends. This "fun" included plenty of partying and drinking. Her lifestyle continued into her freshman year of college, where, without parental supervision, it grew even worse. Soon, her grades and athletic performance began to suffer. "I was working hard in the gym but things were just not going well," she said. "The year was very frustrating because I thought I could drink and party and have it all, but it wasn't working out that way." Ultimately, divine intervention is what saved Bethany from her choices. The Lord was at work, specifically through two friends: one from high school, who was also enrolled at Ohio State, and one of her teammates. They encouraged her to find real and lasting purpose in Jesus and not in the fleeting lifestyle of temporary highs. "It was kind of a process and one that I resisted at first," she said, "but it all kind of came down to one day in the summer when I finally realized that partying and alcohol would never satisfy me the way God could. I eventually said, 'All right, Lord. You win.'" Bethany and Joel Penton Once Bethany surrendered her life to Christ, she gained the focus needed to cut away things that didn't glorify or bring her closer to Him. After a few weeks, she had given up the partying and drinking and distanced herself from those who encouraged it. Her lifestyle change strained the friendships with her teammates and caused temporary loneliness in her life. But, as her relationship with the Lord deepened, she established new friendships centered in Christ. In the ensuing years, Bethany's life turned around in all aspects. She joined the leadership team of her campus' Athletes in Action group and eventually met Joel in one of the meetings. She also went on to excel in the gym as a three-time Ohio State letter-winner and a four-time scholar-athlete. Now, Bethany hopes her example will encourage and inspire others to stay strong through the tough times after giving up damaging substances in obedience to Christ.

"Joel has done a tremendous job reaching thousands by sharing at school assemblies," said FCA director Al Schierbaum. "He has a very evangelistic heart, sharing the gospel readily and touching people for Christ."

The school assemblies and gospel messages have indeed reached thousands of lives, but, in keeping up with the times, Penton has found himself focusing even more on the current substance-abuse trend in sports: performance-enhancing drugs.

THE NEW MONSTER
The effects of recreational drug use (marijuana, heroine, meth, etc.) have been well-documented. Basic education tells athletes that these substances are detrimental to the human body and that no athlete can perform at his or her peak while drugs are poisoning their health.

But what about performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs), which, in recent years, have transformed sports and caused athletes and fans to question right and wrong, safe and unsafe, tainted and clean?

PEDs fall in the category of illegal drugs, but they differ from recreational drugs in that they will often lead to an immediate positive impact on the field. The long-term effects, however, can be devastating, leading to a variety of future physical and mental problems. And, ultimately the resulting records and victories are morally tarnished when produced by PED-using athletes.

"The message I try to get across is that, if you win using PEDs, it's not worth anything because you're cheating," Penton said. "You are cheating yourself, your opponents, your school — you're cheating everybody. We live in a culture that is upside-down in so many ways."

According to Penton, the world of sports has become so performance-driven that athletes who see an easy way to get bigger, faster or stronger won't hesitate to take it. At the professional level, Major League Baseball has been hit the hardest with many big-name players admitting to steroid-use. At one point, PEDs became so rampant that many players claimed they felt forced to use in order to remain at all competitive.

Since then, the trend has trickled down into colleges and high schools as young athletes endure the same pressure. According to Penton, they want to be the best, but, not always wanting to work as hard for the results, they look for easy ways to achieve success.

As one who withstood the temptation and played clean, Penton stresses the importance of working hard and following a coach's direction rather than taking of drugs.

"I discourage students from thinking that PEDs are the only way to get better and stand out, because they simply are not," he said. "I never used PEDs, and I played at Ohio State. I share with them the importance of hard work and getting in the weight room and doing everything that the coach says from how to work out to how to study the game. That is the right way to approach it."

Penton is a walking, talking, positive example for the students he addresses. He advocates the less-popular route he chose of abstaining from drugs and saying no to friends who tried to influence him in the opposite way.

"Among my group of friends in high school, I ended up being the only one taking a stand," he said. "I didn't immediately see the impact of that decision. But now, looking back and even seeing what I do now, I know I was able to make an impact."

FCA AT WORK
Through Penton's work and the efforts of others such as Steve Fitzhugh, FCA's national One Way 2 Play spokesman, FCA is striving to instill values, encourage goal-setting and establish accountability for student-athletes through positive peer pressure. When part of something bigger than themselves, student-athletes don't feel alone when taking a stand against drugs and alcohol.

Interested in learning more about Joel Penton, or in having him come to your school and speak in conjunction with your FCA? Visit joelpenton.com. And for more information on OW2P, including Steve Fitzhugh's new anti-smoking "Nasty" video, visit ow2p.org.

Through OW2P, which is annually celebrated in the month of October, athletes are encouraged to surround themselves with like-minded friends who support each other with bold, positive behaviors. And when those friends are not available, they can listen to parents, coaches and adult role models who understand that life is not about the temporary pursuits of getting buzzed or achieving tainted victories. Instead, they can boldly pursue the prize that will never tarnish or fade: a relationship with God.

"With as many people as we see on the news getting called out or found guilty of PEDs, there are 10 others who did it the right way and are having just as much success," Penton said. "We try to focus on the good examples and take a positive approach. Ultimately, our purpose isn't to make better athletes; our purpose is to see people come to know Jesus and grow in their walk with Him."

--For more stories about faith and sport, visit www.sharingthevictory.com, the official magazine of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. To subscribe to STV, click here.

Photos courtesy of Joel and Bethany Penton.