Cornell lacrosse player Jack Dudley still vividly remembers when he accepted Christ into his life. It was the last night of an FCA Leadership Camp in St. David’s, Pennsylvania two summers ago. He had just finished his junior year of high school in Baltimore and would return in a few weeks as a senior two-way star, starting for both the lacrosse and football teams.
He had grown up in church, but admits he only went because his father made him; he grumbled all the way to Confirmation classes. All of that changed that summer night in St. David’s.
“I didn’t even want to go,” he said. “I had a really bad attitude about camp. It was in the middle of recruiting and I was being recruited by colleges for lacrosse. I wanted to be anywhere else but camp. All I could think was I would rather be at the beach somewhere or being recruited – anywhere but there.”
But the Lord had a purpose for Dudley’s presence at camp. He worked on his heart all week. On the last night of camp, Dudley gave his life to Christ.
“I can’t even begin to describe that night,” he said. “It was amazing.”
Dudley’s been growing strong in the Lord ever since. He has interned with FCA Lacrosse, played on an FCA Lacrosse team and served as a camp counselor for the ministry.
Now a freshman midfielder for Cornell, he regularly attends Cornell’s weekly FCA huddle. A new Christian, Dudley is both passionate and deeply humbled by his daily experience with Christ. And he is the first to admit he’s not perfect.
“But I don’t want anyone to think I’m so great,” he said. “I don’t want anyone to think, oh, it’s so easy for him to be a Christian. It’s not. In reality, I’m just a young adult trying to grow in my faith. I’m only one year removed from asking Jesus to be my Savior. I make mistakes. Some weeks, I read my Bible every day. Other weeks, I don’t. I want to be stronger than I am, but I’m not there yet. This is a huge growing process.”
Dudley’s life has been marked by success, both on and off the playing field. A two-year letterman at Boys’ Latin School in Baltimore, Dudley finished the 2007 season as a senior US Lacrosse Academic All-American, a first-team All-Towson Times selection and a Bratton Cup Maryland All-Star. He earned his school’s C. Markland Kelly, Jr. Athletic Service Award for leadership, scholarship, teamwork and sportsmanship. As a junior, he helped lead the Boys’ Latin lacrosse team to a 21-0 record and a high school national championship. He also lettered twice in football and was a National Football Foundation scholar-athlete nominee and a Baltimore Examiner Academic All-Star in 2007. He was also valedictorian of his class.
His initial involvement with FCA began in middle school when his best friend, Steve Simms, invited him to a local FCA event. Simms’ father is on the FCA board in Baltimore and was very active in its ministry, Dudley shares. “The whole family - they are all big Christians,” Dudley said. “They live their life unto the Lord.”
Growing up, Dudley attended church but says he didn’t really “connect with God.” That changed the summer before his senior year in high school when Simms’ father talked both boys into attending the FCA Leadership Camp. For the first time, Dudley had a personal relationship with Christ. He’s been growing strong in the Lord ever since.
Soon after Leadership Camp, Dudley and Simms returned to Boys’ Latin School for their senior year and started an FCA huddle. It was the first time their high school had ever had one.
“We did the best we could,” Dudley laughs. “We didn’t necessarily start it the right way, but we eventually had about 11 or 12 people coming consistently.”
The FCA huddle is still growing there, Dudley says. He and Simms, who is now at Wake Forrest, still keep up with it.
Now a freshman far away from home in Ithaca, New York, Dudley faces new challenges. He’s been a born-again Believer for less than two years and he’s struggling to grow in his faith as one of few Christians in a very diverse environment.“It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life,” he said. “It’s tough to be a Christian here. Cornell is such a different environment from the private school I attended growing up. There is so much diversity here - so many different ethnicities, religions and perspectives. In a way, I feel I was trapped in the private school world all those years. It’s so different here. Often, I have to step back and evaluate what I’m doing with my life. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about things since I’ve been here.”
One thing he’s been thinking about is how to stay close to the Lord when few people around him even know Him.
“It’s not easy to be a Christian and I don’t get it right a lot,” he shares. “I’m on a team where there really aren’t any Christians. I’m a freshman and there aren’t any juniors or seniors that are Christians for me to learn from and be influenced by. That’s been hard, but it’s forced me to become a leader even now, and it’s forced me to take a stand for what I believe.
Because of his lacrosse practice schedule, Dudley is usually unable to attend church. He does, however, faithfully attend FCA huddles during the week.
“FCA has been a huge help to me,” he said. “FCA helps me grow. I’ve learned so much from watching the lives of the people involved with FCA Lacrosse - people like Josh Hoffman, who is one of the biggest influences of my life. I met him on my first National High School tour and he is one of my best friends. That’s why FCA is so special. It’s not just an organization; they are my best friends.”
Dudley has also been giving a lot of thought to his future lately.
“I talked to my mom last week about how I feel that I’m supposed to do something that I’m not planning to do,” he said. “Sometimes I think we trap ourselves by planning everything out. Sometimes, God has other plans for us – something else for us to do.”
Dudley is listening and waiting for the Lord’s direction. His friend Josh Hoffman is currently on the mission field “having the time of his life,” Dudley said.
“I would like to do something like that, too,” he said. “I’m just trying to see what the Lord has for me. I feel like He has something unexpected for me to do.”
