Inspiring Conversations with Jeremiah Mizell of Athletic Ministries

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jeremiah Mizell.

Hi Jeremiah, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
Back in October 2018, I was attending a Bible study that had a three-hour night of prayer. Towards the end of the night, we were to sit and listen and write a letter to ourselves from God. This was the first time that I can recall God spoke to me. He said, “Jeremiah, My son, I am here. I never left you. Your sins are known no more. I forgive you and I love you. I have plans for you to bring the loss to Me. I will guide you along the way.” For the next year and a half, I spent going from job to job trying to figure out what God wanted me to do. In July of 2019, I felt the strong urge to pursue ministry work.

I quit my job and started back in school for my degree. Through this time I still had no idea what I was going to do in ministry, I was just following what God was telling me. In 2019, my son began playing hockey at the local rink. As we were going there I thought about the opportunity to connect with other Christians through hockey. I did some research and found that the only hockey-related ministries were in the collegiate and professional levels.

I knew then that God had placed us in this community for a reason. In April of 2020, I began to put a plan in place to get this ministry started. I recruited a guy from my church and a couple of Christians on the hockey Facebook pages. With God’s help along the way, we have been able to touch the lives of many families and continue to grow in our endeavors. I do not take any credit for the growth the Athletic Ministries has received. Every opportunity that is presented to us is a gift from God.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
As with any business, it has not always been a smooth road. There are a lot of hurdles that are put into place when running a ministry in a secular community as tough as hockey. There will always be setbacks in what we do, whether it is trying to get ice time, finding venues to host events, or trying to get the funding to do these events or programs for the community. We continue to keep our eyes on the mission and push through these times.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
We are a small ministry that was built in the literal middle of the pandemic of COVID-19. We provide the hockey community with a chance to fellowship with other Christians and speak Truth to other hockey players as well. Though there are many sports-related ministries throughout the country, we are the only amateur hockey ministry in the state of Tennessee.

We love to serve the hockey community whether it be to support a local family with the league fees for their child to play, passing out sports drinks at the end of the season just to bless the kids, or invite those we meet on the ice to a Bible study afterwards. We are completely funded by donations and there is no paid staff, so all the donations go directly into helping to grow the Kingdom through the sport of hockey. One of our goals is to have fully funded events that include the ice time and fellowship afterwards.

What makes you happy?
It may sound cliché from a pastoral standpoint, but seeing people’s lives changed through the power of Christ in their lives. It is amazing to watch someone who you have seen broken and at their lowest point, smiling because they have been set free from that burden.

Contact Info:

• Email: Jmizell@athleticministries.org
• Website: www.athleticministries.org
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/Athletic_Ministries
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/AthleticministriesTN