Bringing Hope to the Valleys

Hello friend, or as we say in Wales...Sutmae!!

My adventures around the world have brought me to the lovely country of Wales. It is here we are introduced to the Sporting Marvels team. These guys teach kids how to live active, adventure-filled lives and use Superbook stories to help them grow in confidence and faith. Let us see what some of my little Welsh friends have to say.

Where it all began…

In 2003 Phil Davies set out on a mission to out a positive Christian role model in front of every child in Rhondda, teaching kids what it is to have a healthy, active life, grow their character, enable them to make good choices and learn sound principles and values that can help them to have extraordinary lives.

An area known as deprived, labelled in the 2001 census as the poorest area in the UK, and with few career opportunities, children in the Rhondda aren’t raised with high expectations for their futures.

Sporting Marvels is changing that one class, one child at a time,

Twenty years on, and the kids that first went through the Mighty Marvels programme are now Mighty Marvels themselves, encouraging the next generation of kids growing up in the Rhondda Valley. In fact, Phil’s son, Lawrie, who was 15 when the programme launched, is now the Managing Director. Sporting Marvels report that he coordinates a team of 15, and they go into over 25 schools in the area, teaching above 800 kids each week the timeless truths of the Bible.

Each lesson centres around a Bible story presented in the Emmy-nominated animated series Superbook. Chris and Joy travel through time with their robot friend Gizmo to come face to face with Bible heroes and learn timeless truths that help them navigate modern life.

‘To put a Positive Christian role model in front of every kid, every day till Jesus returns’

At the Heart of Sporting Marvels

They learn resilience through the story of the Israelites marching around Jericho, of courage, despite their young age or small stature, through the story of David and Goliath. They learn that having a heart full of faith is highly important through Esther’s story and that change is possible through the transformation of Saul into Paul. Most importantly, they learn about the life and miracles of Jesus and that He loves them and is always there for them.

Alongside their RE lessons, the Mighty Marvels introduce the kids to modern Christian role models and teach them about having a healthy lifestyle. Their enthusiasm is infectious, and studies within the classroom and out on the sports field are full of laughter and fun. Not only do the kids look forward to their lessons each week, but the teachers Beth met when she recently visited, couldn’t praise the Marvels team highly enough.

As CBN partners with Sporting Marvels to provide Superbook – the backbone of their lesson planning, the generosity of our partners is helping us reach even more children across the UK and Europe with the good news of the gospel by increasingly the translation and distribution of Superbook.

‘I think it teaches bravery and courage and perseverance… even though David was really small and scrawny and not ever a full adult yet, he kept persevering. ‘Cause he knew God was on his side…’

Is it not great to hear how Bible adventures that happened thousands of years ago can help kids grow in their confidence when they are facing tough things in their lives?

I am on a mission to get the Superbook Bible stories into more schools and churches in the UK so more children can learn that Jesus is always with them. You can be a part of my mission! To find out how go to our website superbook.uk.

I am off now for another big adventure – see if you can spot where I have been and where I am going by following me on Social Media!