DeJuan Jones Testimony

Look at that! DeJuan! DeJuan is a child of God. Jones! What an assist! A joyful person. Someone who always finds the positives. Recovery there from Jones to keep the possession alive. Someone who loves to connect with people and make everyone feel special. DeJuan Jones! Head in! You know, to play for your national team, it's everything you dream of as a kid. It's an amazing accomplishment, amazing feeling. When we come out on game day, it looks great. You know, everyone's here to watch us play. My family was there, my parents were there, and it just felt like a culmination of, you know, when I started playing soccer when I was 5 and all the teams, all the things I've done, all the sacrifices my parents have made. So To have that moment with them was really special. But again, it's important to realize that that can't be your everything because it's fading. You know, there's going to be a next camp and your name might not be on it. So it's important to, again, be grateful and enjoy the experience, take full advantage of it, but also realize that you can't find your identity in that because it's fleeting. That's why it's important to have your faith in Christ and really just realize that there's more. There's more to this world than accomplishing things. Win, lose, or draw on the field, You know, having Jesus in your life, that's ultimately what's going to be a victory for you in the long run. Whenever I do my Bible study in the morning, I— my days are always much better. I have His Word, you know, kind of flowing through me and on my mind, and I just have better days. And I see— I always see the positives. Getting in God's Word has been massive for me, and it always gives me a good fresh perspective. Everything I do, just doing it for His glory and not to impress other people and not to find my identity in anything else other than God. And as an athlete, you need to be steady, you need to be consistent. And if you're listening to all the good things people are saying, listening to all the bad things, you'll be on the roller coaster ride. So just being consistent and knowing that, you know, I'm a child of God and He's going to take care of me. I was on the— what do you call it— preliminary rosters. So basically, if someone were to get injured or they couldn't make it to camp, you know, I could be the next guy to get called in. So in my head, I'm like, just focus, stay healthy, you know, have a great season. And then, you know, things happen around World Cup time. We were going to Vancouver, who was like the other top team in the West. So I really wanted to, you know, help my team out and make sure we got that win and also be in contention for getting called in for the March camp. I kind of felt something on my left hamstring, but I felt something before and, you know, I've been fine. So I was like, 45 more minutes, I'll just, I'll push through. And they gave me the option to come out of the game. They were like, "Can you play?" So I decided to stay in the game. About 10 minutes later into the second half, my winger plays me a ball. I take a touch with my right foot to my left foot, and then my right foot goes in front of me to accelerate. And with that stretching sensation, honestly, I'm in shock at first. And then as I realize I can't put any weight through it, And the snap, I'm like connecting the dots. And the doctor comes in to the locker room. They did the Achilles test. And yeah, that was a really tough moment. You know, it's World Cup dreams, dreams of the season. You know, all the things that we plan, you know, kind of out the window in that moment. But it took me like maybe 5 minutes and I was really quick just to realize that, you know, God's got me. God's in control and whatever it is, I'm gonna learn from it. I'm gonna grow from it. And obviously with the injury, I completely took myself out of the equation. And I think honestly, pushing for it may have led to my injury. There was a camp coming up, so I'm like, let me push through and, you know, I might have a chance. And again, I think from that I can learn to just listen to my body and realize that, you know, there's gonna be another game. You know, you don't have to force things. And again, just realizing that at the end of the day, God's going to take care of you. And trying to force it yourself is— that's when it can get away from you. So really just trusting God's plan. If you put your faith in your results and on the feedback you get from coaches, it's going to be a roller coaster ride your whole career. But if you find your identity in Christ, you know, He's the same today, tomorrow, and forever. There's so much freedom in that. I think that's one of the biggest things I've learned over my years of following God is just the freedom in playing for an audience of one. When you're grateful for your abilities and the things that He's given to you, then you can really just play free. And I think that's what led me to the position I am today, you know, playing for the national team, you know, winning a couple of different trophies on the Rebs and Columbus. Having fun and appreciating the talents that God's bestowed upon me and really expressing that when I go out on the field.