Rachel Hockaday immediately knew her season was over. In Iowa State’s opening match of the 2010 season, she jumped for a spike against Florida and landed awkwardly on her left leg, tearing her ACL.
At the time, the star junior tried to stay positive.
“The injury has given me a chance to show the other girls on the team that my life isn’t over,” Hockaday told FCA’s Sharing the Victory (now FCA Magazine) soon after it happened. “It’s a faith-tester and a time for building my character because I know that God has a plan even greater than what I pictured at the beginning of the season.”
Hockaday didn’t fully realize the truth behind that statement.
Hockaday going up for a kill
Like many injuries to college athletes, it was hard to swallow. How could such a promising career go sideways in the blink of an eye? She’d been named to the Big 12 All-Freshman team in 2008 and was honorable mention All-Big 12 the year after that. She’d racked up a couple all-tournament honors and was a preseason All-Big 12 member in 2010.
But then, the awkward landing came before Hockaday’s season ever really began.
It took some separation from her circumstance to see the bigger purpose behind everything that was taking place.
“My first two years, everything went better than I could ever imagine,” Hockaday says. “I was a starter. I played in every single match. I never got subbed out. I was getting a lot of attention. Our team had a lot of success.
“But, now that I look back on it, I was in a place of pride.”
Even though she says she knew God and was doing the “typical things that Christians should do” like attending church and FCA, Hockaday can now acknowledge she was thinking too highly of herself. God had a way of humbling her.
She spent the rest of the 2010 season rehabbing her knee and cheerleading from the sidelines. But when she returned as a redshirt junior in 2011, she promptly lost her starting job.
“Wasn’t up to par,” as she puts it. Yet another humbling experience for an athlete whose confidence was already shaken.
At the time, Hockaday was actively engaged with the campus FCA Huddle. Kevin Lykins, then an FCA area representative and now a pastor in Texas, helped her soften the blow by using the demotion as an evangelistic tool.
“I’ve been at the top and I’ve been at the bottom,” Hockaday says. “Being able to go through that and see God work through it all, I can now relate to players who come in and work their absolute hardest every single day and don’t get to experience the glory or see the court.”
All Roads Lead To … Ames?
Hockaday is still amazed she even ended up at Iowa State in the first place.
Originally from Decatur, Ill., she was a volleyball and basketball athlete from an early age, joining Bloomington’s Illini Elite Volleyball Club as a fifth grader and remaining on the team through high school.
Raised by two strong Christian parents, Hockaday believed in God and went to church but didn’t develop an intimate relationship with Him until her senior year at Maroa-Forsyth High School—about the same time she committed to play at Ohio University. But when the coach who recruited her left his position at Ohio, Hockaday opted to reopen her recruitment with just three months left in the club season.
“It was a huge leap of faith,” she says. “I told God, ‘I’m giving it to You.’ I had no idea where I was going to go for college, but it all happened so perfectly and so divinely. God placed me exactly where I was supposed to be. It was so cool to see Him at work.”
Hockaday admits to getting caught up in “the typical freshman things” during her first year, but she could still sense that God had something more in store for her. Lykins and his wife led the campus FCA Huddle that year.
“They had a huge influence on my walk,” Hockaday says. “(Kevin) asked me to be a Huddle leader starting my sophomore year. To be honest, I didn’t think I was equipped. Obviously he saw something in me, but I was still not where I needed to be. Even through all of that, I felt God tugging at my heart.”
New Passion, New Purpose
During the summer of 2010, Hockaday volunteered to coach at an FCA Power Camp in Ames. She worked with girls anywhere from third grade to junior high, which offered a brief taste of what was to come.
This past summer, Hockaday spent three months interning for FCA Volleyball in Huntington Beach, Calif., along with five other college athletes. She still stays in touch with the girls from her Huddle.
“It was the best experience of my life,” she says. “God taught me so much. I realized that I have a passion for young girls and for sharing what God’s done in my life. I enjoyed being open and honest with them about what I’ve been through.”
Hockaday leading girls in prayer at a 2012 FCA Volleyball Camp.
FCA Volleyball Director Daniel Rich watched closely as Hockaday’s perspective was gradually and eternally altered through her interaction with the campers.
“It really clicked for Rachel this summer,” Rich says. “She recognized God’s desire to be with each kid the same way He had revealed His love for her personally. Through that, she was able to see who she was designed to be.”
Hockaday admits that one of her biggest struggles has always been staying faithful to both Christ and her teammates simultaneously. But Rich and the FCA staff shed some light on the concept of playing with God, not for God.
“They taught us how to incorporate Him on the court, every single moment, every single play,” Hockaday explains. “God doesn’t need us to do anything for Him. He’s given us this ability, and He just wants to enjoy it with us.”
Away from the action, Hockaday says her focus has continued to shift towards building relationships with her teammates and using her influence as a conduit for sharing her faith—both directly and indirectly.
“It’s not always about what you say,” she says. “I could sit and tell someone all of these things, but actions speak louder than words. There are people who aren’t going to have the same beliefs, but that’s OK. I’m not here to judge. I just want to be a friend. When you start building relationships that way, they can see God shining through you and then maybe they can start to ask questions like, ‘Hey, what’s different about you? What do you have that I don’t have?' That’s when you can start sharing how God has worked in your life."
With all she’s been through in the past two years—an injury, losing a starting spot, a growing role as a campus leader, and a life-changing experience with FCA Volleyball—Hockaday is still unsure of what lies ahead. She plans to keep looking for opportunities to minister to young girls through FCA and in the Ames community. Rich has a pretty good idea of what Hockaday’s future holds.
“God is going to use Rachel to teach many girls how much He loves them because He made them each perfectly and on purpose,” he says. “Rachel understands this good news and is a natural leader. She will enjoy restoring the world with God, because this is just what daughters of the King do.”
But Hockaday isn’t too worried about the details. She’ll trust God and commit to a life of “daily dependence upon Him.” That’s why one of her favorite verses is found in Hebrews 10:23: “Let us hold on to the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.”
“I love that verse,” Hockaday says. “It’s one that I always come back to because, no matter what situation you’re facing, whether it’s good or bad, He is faithful to the end. You may be going through something hard, but you can hold on to that hope. If you seek Him and trust Him throughout the entire situation, He’s going to bless that. He’s going to be faithful.”
Originally Published: November 2012
Photos courtesy of Iowa State Athletics Communications and Meghan Locklair/FCA Volleyball