Iglesia Cristiana Bethel in El Paso, Texas received soccer gear last fall as part of their community project request. We were able to send two bags with about 50 lbs, gear including several winter coats and pants, jerseys, shin guards, and several compression shirts and shorts.
Pastor Pablo and Natalie Mata who have helped lead and develop the team for the past few months and they recently shared a few photos and videos with us including the one below. It’s amazing to see the joy on the children’s faces!
When you financially support Soccer Chaplains United a portion of your gift automatically goes to help our community projects and requests. You can give specifically to help cover our costs by making a gift through PushPay — simply select Community Project from the selectable funds. Your financial gift helps us purchase new soccer equipment, sponsor individuals projects and organizations, and to cover associated costs of providing Bibles, soccer equipment, and other outreach tools locally and around the world!
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/5505278152112074207.jpg689967Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2026-02-19 00:00:002026-02-12 13:19:41Grace FC El Paso Community Project Update
Every season, there is usually a team or two that acknowledges a “rebuilding” year. It can come with a transition of a new coach, an influx of several athletes, changes in management, or the loss of key individuals upon whom the organization was depending on. Rebuilding is never easy — especially after a devastating loss (like the California wildfires of 2025) where a whole community suffers or is destroyed. How does one rebuild in such times.
Today, on the podcast, as we begin the season of Lent and prepare for the start of Major League Soccer, rebuilding begins with a right heart posture. Isaiah 58 sets the stage as we consider what it looks like to get right with God so that He might be our help and our support. It isn’t about a false religiosity, rather it’s about how our Sunday-morning selves live out the rest of our faith walk throughout the week — whether in our jobs, our homes, our schools, or elsewhere.
From the Touchline is a short-feature podcast with Rev Brad Kenney, Founder and Executive Director of Soccer Chaplains United and Volunteer Chaplain to the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer. Rev Brad and occasional guests touch on various issues around the topics of faith, family, and football (soccer).
Also, don’t forget that you can listen in our app, SoccrChapUtd, in the Apple and Google store.
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/From-the-Touchline-Cover-Art-II.jpg14001400Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2026-02-18 00:00:002026-02-16 14:41:49Rebuilding — A Season Opener
There are several changes that have come for 2026 that will have an impact on donor giving for 2026 and we want to share some of these with you as you make plans for your charitable gifts this year! Please note: this should not be considered tax advice and you ought to consult with someone to better understand these impacts to your giving for the year.
Universal Charitable Deduction (UCD)
Back for 2026, anyone filing a tax return will be able to deduct $1,000 (single filer) or $2,000 (married, filing jointly). The UCD was part of tax policy until about 1986. It returned during COVID for a couple years where someone could deduct $300/$600 (respective of single or married filing jointly) even if a person didn’t itemize. Again, this applies to all donors at any level and the amounts are higher for 2026.
New “Ceiling” and new “Floor” as it relates to charitable giving
The way that the new ceiling works is that anyone who is at the top federal tax rate of 37% can now itemize as if they were at the 35% level. The floor means that people who are not in that 37% cannot deduct the first 1/2 of 1% of their adjusted gross income (AGI). Essentially, the ceiling and floor only apply to individuals making around $650k and married filing jointly at $725k.
2025’s SALT (State and Local Tax) Deduction
Lat year, there was a change to the State and Local Tax deduction whereby in 2017 the limit went down to $10,000. That limit changed last year to $40,000. The Fundraising School’s research shows that charitable giving is strongly linked to itemization. Essentially, the more people are able to itemize, the more that they give to charities.
Business Sector Giving
There are additional rule changes to business sector giving. Soccer Chaplains United does not currently have business sector donors, so suffice it to say if this area is a topic of interest, you might want to research it.
A helpful podcast that is less than 15 minutes long can be found here and most of this information in this post has been derived from this podcast.
Thank you as you consider your donations and support of Soccer Chaplains United for 2026. Please let us know if you have any questions.
You can give a safe, secure, electronic, tax-deductible gift via PushPay by clicking the button below or by texting soccerchaplains to 77977. You can also mail a donation to Soccer Chaplains United, PO Box 102081, Denver, CO 80250. Soccer Chaplains United is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization
As we wrap up our series on temptation, we look at the fifth and final stage of temptation and sin — the stage of obsession. The progressive slide of temptation leading into sin and sin leading, eventually, to death. Stage five is the most hurtful and the most helpless that we can feel (for ourselves or for our loved ones). How do we get out of the spiral?
Today, on the podcast, it’s not to be glib or trite, but sometimes the only help, the only salvation has to come from Jesus. When the captivity stage leads to a neurotic obsession where self-destruction is the path, there is sometimes something that only Jesus can help to heal. We look at a few stories in scripture to see this example and to suggest that sometimes our best prayer is the simplest one — one that acknowledges our desire but our weakness.
From the Touchline is a short-feature podcast with Rev Brad Kenney, Founder and Executive Director of Soccer Chaplains United and Volunteer Chaplain to the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer. Rev Brad and occasional guests touch on various issues around the topics of faith, family, and football (soccer).
Also, don’t forget that you can listen in our app, SoccrChapUtd, in the Apple and Google store.
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/From-the-Touchline-Cover-Art-II.jpg14001400Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2026-02-11 00:00:002026-02-10 09:53:04Stage 5 of Temptation — Only Jesus for Overcoming Obsession?
I first met Simon Keizer in 2009 in a church in Dallas, Texas. A mutual friend, Jon Burns, the volunteer chaplain for Sunderland, called a number of his friends and connections to Dallas to share that God had placed a vision for creating a new ministry called Lionsraw. Simon served as the global engagement manager for the charity in 2010 for the FIFA World Cup in South Africa.
Simon’s journey though in combining life, ministry, and football didn’t begin in 2010, though, it began much earlier. Born in England, Simon grew up bouncing a football at an all-boys prep school. As a young teenager, his world drastically changed as he moved to the U.S.. His unchurched, ethnically Jewish family moved from Berkhamsted, England to Arlington, Texas and he launched into his new life.
America was different. Texas was different. For Simon, he saw that church had a place in many of his friend’s lives. He recalls God grabbing his heart over a period of time, leading to a testimony service following youth camp on a Sunday night where returning church youth were sharing and affirming their faith in Jesus.. One of those campers was Simon’s brother. And at the tender age of 13, he gave his life to Jesus.
Simon surrendered his life to ministry at age 17 and believed that he would lead a worship ministry, but God had other plans. He ended up as a walk-on Division III soccer player but ended up getting hurt and stepping into coaching and pastoring. This led to him coaching a private school varsity team for 13 years and working to minister to the families and students throughout his many years. That experience led him to scale more regional camps and clinics in the North Texas region. Simon then went on a mission trip in 2008 and met Jon who invited him to that 20010 meeting.
Simon pursued several relationships and built on his relationship with FC Dallas and Lionsraw to continue growing legacy ministries long after the World Cup was over. This ignited his passion to see soccer used as a vehicle for change in the world. From 1997 to 2017, he served on pastoral staff before spending the last several years in business, with a brief stint in Virginia Beach before returning back to Texas. Fast forward a few years and in 2022, he began laying the groundwork for the USL Texoma FC franchise which successfully launched into League 1 in 2025.
Simon and wife Heather pose during the launch event in 2024 for Texoma FC. Texoma played in 2025 in League 1 and will be a USL 2 team in 2026.
My love for the sport is second, really third, in what’s most important. For me, it’s paramount to love and follow Jesus…my second is my family…but I’ve seen soccer, specifically I like to say ‘the ball,’ take us places where we couldn’t go in any other fashion. I’ve seen it break down language barriers working with Zulu tribal kids and so many other places around the globe…
Simon, on the place of his passion for soccer
Simon finds himself leading in both contexts as a consultant for a soccer franchise, and as an executive leader in a church as a sort of a “Pastor of Entrepreneurship. He is father of four children and has been married to his wife, Heather, since 2003.
If you would like to learn more about Soccer Chaplains United and opportunities to serve on our Board of Directors, please send an email to info@soccerchaplainsunited.org.
Soccer Chaplains United is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that relies on the generous support of individual donors and church partners to carry out its work of chaplaincy in soccer. You can give a safe, secure, electronic, tax-deductible gift via PushPay by clicking the button below or by texting soccerchaplains to 77977. You can also mail a donation to Soccer Chaplains United, PO Box 102081, Denver, CO 80250.
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/1692897689366.jpeg200200Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2026-02-05 00:00:002026-02-04 09:12:18Keizer joins the Board; Brings USL Experience and Faith-Driven Leadership
As we continue our series on temptation, we look at the fourth stage, today. A logismoi (Greek) is an obtrusive, invading thought that assaults our mind, that setups a temptation. There is a progressive nature to temptation in that it leads to sin and, eventually, to death.
Today, on the podcast, we look at stage 4 — captivity. The captivity stage is where we keep falling over and over to the same temptation. It’s a trap that we can’t seem to get out of. We may still battle, but we lose more than we win. We might even have stretches of victory or success in staving off the temptation and we might think we are safe or okay, but then it comes back in a voracious manner. Community is key to dealing with the captivity stage and we get into that in the podcast today.
From the Touchline is a short-feature podcast with Rev Brad Kenney, Founder and Executive Director of Soccer Chaplains United and Volunteer Chaplain to the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer. Rev Brad and occasional guests touch on various issues around the topics of faith, family, and football (soccer).
Also, don’t forget that you can listen in our app, SoccrChapUtd, in the Apple and Google store.
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/From-the-Touchline-Cover-Art-II.jpg14001400Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2026-02-04 00:00:002026-02-03 13:01:56Stage 4 of Temptation — Community to get out of Captivity
We’re in the midst of a series on how to handle temptation. Logismos (a Greek word describing those obtrusive, invading thoughts that assault our minds) has a number of stages that we go through, but ultimately, its path leads to destruction. James 1 has an excellent description of the nature of temptation — it’s source, how we often fall for it, and what it eventually leads to.
Today, on the podcast, we look at stage 3 — consent. This is when we make a willful decision to act. This is when we commit sin — the dialogue wrestling is over and we’ve given over and given in to what likely began as a subtle whisper. But just because we fail, just because we fall doesn’t mean that we give up. There’s a pathway toward still resisting and still trying to be in proximity with God. We look at a few different passages to help us realize what this stage looks like and how we need to respond.
From the Touchline is a short-feature podcast with Rev Brad Kenney, Founder and Executive Director of Soccer Chaplains United and Volunteer Chaplain to the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer. Rev Brad and occasional guests touch on various issues around the topics of faith, family, and football (soccer).
Also, don’t forget that you can listen in our app, SoccrChapUtd,in the Apple and Google store.
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/From-the-Touchline-Cover-Art-II.jpg14001400Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2026-01-28 00:00:002026-01-26 14:29:34Stage 3 of Temptation — Combat in the Stage of Consent
Last week, we started to look at how to handle temptation — the nature of the logismos (those obtrusive, invading thoughts) that get into our minds, into our heads. Stage 1 was about seeing and recognizing that temptation is pretty common and the thought (the whisper, the suggestion) isn’t itself sin, but it can lead there pretty quickly if we aren’t ready and aren’t prepared or strong enough spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and even physically.
Today, on the podcast, we look at stage 2 — the dialogue. There tends to be this conversation that goes on in our head. It can be positive or negative depending on where we are at with things, but how to we best handle the inner dialogue and learn one of the best ways that God has given us a way to come out from underneath the attack? The answer is found in the Bible. Actually, the answer is the Bible, God’s Holy Word. We look at the temptation of Jesus as an exampeland template for how we ought to handle the dialogue phase and be ready for temptation when it comes.
From the Touchline is a short-feature podcast with Rev Brad Kenney, Founder and Executive Director of Soccer Chaplains United and Volunteer Chaplain to the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer. Rev Brad and occasional guests touch on various issues around the topics of faith, family, and football (soccer).
Also, don’t forget that you can listen in our app, SoccrChapUtd,in the Apple and Google store.
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/From-the-Touchline-Cover-Art-II.jpg14001400Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2026-01-21 00:00:002026-01-15 14:10:58Stage 2 of Temptation — Dialing in the Dialogue
During the MLS preseason, a lot of physical, mental, and emotional preparations go on. But what about our spiritual preparations? What about preparing for some of the challenges that we face in life — whether we are at home or on a month-long trip for preseason on the road?
Today, on the podcast, I begin a series on temptation. Looking at the nature of it and way to combat it we get into the first stage of temptation, the assaultive thoughts that attack our minds. Are these attacks dramatic and loud? Is it a sin to be tempted? What’s God’s part in all of this? We dive into some of these questions and more.
From the Touchline is a short-feature podcast with Rev Brad Kenney, Founder and Executive Director of Soccer Chaplains United and Volunteer Chaplain to the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer. Rev Brad and occasional guests touch on various issues around the topics of faith, family, and football (soccer).
Also, don’t forget that you can listen in our app, SoccrChapUtd,in the Apple and Google store.
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/From-the-Touchline-Cover-Art-II.jpg14001400Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2026-01-14 00:00:002026-01-12 10:44:10Stage 1 of Temptation — Prep for Life
Three King’s Day was yesterday, January 6. It is the time that marks the end of the Christmas season and the visit of the Magi to the Christ child. Many speak of the three kings — in song, story (some fable), and poem — but what we know is that there were three gifts that are mentioned in Matthew 2: gifts of gold, incense, and myrrh. These three gifts hold multiple meanings — symbolic on different levels, but they also might be a point of introspection for us as we move into the new year.
Today, on the podcast, what gifts of wealth (gold), worship (incense), and weakness (myrrh) do you and I bring into 2026? Whether as an athlete, coach, staffer, or chaplain — and whether it is into our work spaces or into our homes or church communities each of us brings these gifts (given by God) and they are a beautiful part of who we are.
From the Touchline is a short-feature podcast with Rev Brad Kenney, Founder and Executive Director of Soccer Chaplains United and Volunteer Chaplain to the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer. Rev Brad and occasional guests touch on various issues around the topics of faith, family, and football (soccer).
Also, don’t forget that you can listen in our app, SoccrChapUtd,in the Apple and Google store.
https://soccerchaplainsunited.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/From-the-Touchline-Cover-Art-II.jpg14001400Brad Kenney/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/SCU_Seal_Logo-300x300.pngBrad Kenney2026-01-07 00:00:002026-01-06 14:11:03Three Gifts For 2026 — What gifts do you bring into the New Year?
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