By Mallory Mattingly
Savannah Bananas star RobertAnthony Cruz (a.k.a. Coach RAC) celebrates the tremendous growth of his team’s Bible study and their impact on fans.
“Last year, at the beginning of the season, we committed to every single week we’re gonna have a Bible study, because a lot of times on Sundays, we’re playing or we’re on the road. And so we really just need a community,” Coach Rac told podcaster Allie Beth Stuckey.
He shared how he connected with other believers on the team when he first got to the Bananas. They decided to meet at least once every week last year, which he said was “really cool.”
“This year, we were like, ‘Okay, let’s do the same thing, but let’s dedicate ourselves to praying a little bit more.’ And so we kind of committed to praying for teammates by name. We’re gonna pray that we have a conversation with them at practice this week, specifically,” Coach RAC continued. “And we started praying like very specific, targeted prayers, and it feels like one by one, like God’s just working on different people’s hearts and the organization.”
“And so we’ve gotten to see our little, small Bible study grow tremendously. And just a couple of weeks ago, we helped host our first public worship night. We were able to set up right outside the stadium and invited the public to come on out, and we had our first worship night,” he added.
That worship night took place in June. “May Christ be magnified,” Cruz posted after the event. He and his teammates hosted a second one last month, and he said they hope it gets people “connected to the body and experience fullness of relationship with their creator.”
Coach RAC recently went viral for a failed backflip while on CNN. Though he’s performed the stunt numerous times, he didn’t quite make the rotation and ended up face-first on the ground. He had to get multiple stitches in his bottom lip and chin.
Though he could’ve let the embarrassment get the better of him, he’s using it as an opportunity to grow.
“…someday, there’s gonna be a kid out there, maybe even my own kid, and that kid is gonna do something super embarrassing, and they’re going to want to crawl under a rock,” Coach RAC shared. “And you know what? I’ll be able to sit down next to this kid, and I’ll know exactly how they’re feeling, and I’ll be able to say, ‘Listen, I know exactly how you feel.'”
“I’ll show him the video, and I’m sure we’ll get a good laugh about it. That’s why it’s especially easy for me to keep my head up when I have a difficult day. I always call them character-building days. Why? Because I wouldn’t be able to empathize with other people unless I first experienced their hardships,” he added.
It’s incredible to see how Cruz uses his Banana Ball platform to glorify God and change people’s lives for the better.
Read Next: Savannah Bananas Star Declares ‘My Faith Is Everything to Me’
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