An intense pump of adrenaline and a whirlpool of excitement: these are perhaps what the motocross riders experience every time they hear that exhilarating roar of their engines. But Rev. Sam Tamayo, an alumnus of the Asia-Pacific Nazarene Theological Seminary, is helping the riders in Mx Messiah Fairgrounds find the thrill that tops it all and quenches their thirst for an adventure of a lifetime.
Mx Messiah Fairgrounds, or MMF, is a training facility located in Taytay, Rizal for athletes engaging in extreme sports such as free style motocross (FMX), bicycle motocross (BMX), in line skate, and skateboard. “The Philippines has a vast [supply] of talents when it comes to extreme sports but they lack trainers, a decent facility, and that general sense of support for them to know that what they are doing is worth the effort they put in and the risks they take,” said Rev. Sam Tamayo, a co-founder of the MMF. Not only did Rev. Sam help provide a space for extreme sports athletes to hone their skills, but also in partnership with other companies and institutions such as APNTS, he has organized series of events and competitions under the banner of Xtreme Adrenaline Sports Entertainment Company.
Rev. Sam is not a stranger to the world of motocross. Along with his brothers, he has won numerous competitions and has made a mark in the field of extreme sports. However, it is not the long streak of championships under his belt on which he prides himself. Rather, he boasts of the cross on his back and calls the athletes to see and experience its glory. “Evangelism and motocross [are] not the usual mix of ministry, but you will be surprised to see that these extreme sports enthusiasts are also desperate to know Jesus Christ,” Rev. Sam attested.
“We had this competition where there were literally hundreds of people, athletes and plain enthusiasts,[who] were anticipating to witness the breath-taking stunts of the athletes. But what we did was to use the first half-hour of the program to share about the good news of Christ. The audience received the gospel warmly,” said Rev. Sam as he joyfully revisited the memory of the powerful encounter. “That day, the cross of Jesus Christ became the main event and not the motocross,” he smiled and added.
The ministry of Rev. Sam, together with MMF and Xtreme Adrenaline Sports Entertainment Company, is a promotion of the Filipino athletes who could potentially put the country on the map of the international extreme sports scene. But even more than that, the existence and the unprecedented success of this ministry is in itself a challenge to the church. It is a challenge to bear the cross and witness to it on whatever platform the Lord provides, and it is a challenge not to be confined with the thought that the transforming power of Christ is only available within the four walls of the church. At least in the case of the riders of MMF, they were encountered by Jesus Christ in the dusty and rocky race track.
The rush and the excitement of the extreme sports stunts flush away the second the riders stop their motorbike engines; it is nothing but a fleeting bliss. But the thrill of knowing Jesus Christ and the delight of experiencing this knowledge grow each day, linger and satisfy not only the riders’ thirst for adventure but also their desire to feel how it is to be truly alive.
By Marie Joy Pring
