Cedars, November 2018

by Abby Hintz F or most people, middle school is a time of braces, awk- ward school pictures and growth spurts. No one likes to look back on it. It is an uncomfortable time of life. Middle school was far from easy for Autumn Foust. For her and her three siblings, Foust’s middle school years held abuse, divorce, court trials, and, eventually, lost furniture, burnt pictures and a vacant house. “This is not clean content,” Foust said. “My testimony is kind of sappy, but it is good because it ends with God.” Guillain-Barre Syndrome temporarily paralyzed a young Kyndall Foust and forced an eight-month hospital stay. This hurt their parent’s marriage and was the begin- ning of a devastating time for the family. Kyndall believes the situation forced her and Autumn to mature faster than someone with a “normal” childhood. “We created this bond where we have to have each oth- er,” Kyndall said. Though the trial had obvious downsides for the entire family, it led Kyndall to Christ. She passed the chapel one day and encountered a pastor. He began engaging with her every day she was there, eventually leading her to faith in Jesus. The Foust home wasn’t a Christian environment, but Kyndall was able to show Autumn that there is more to life than school and athletics. This was the beginning of Au- tumn’s interest in God, but He had bigger plans for her sal- vation story. When Autumn Foust got to middle school, she joined Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), though she admit- ted her intentions were a little skewed. “I joined FCA because of some friends,” Foust said, be- fore laughing and adding, “Mostly because of a boy. Honest- ly, if I didn’t pursue worldly things such as a boy I would not be saved today. FCA changed my life.” God continued to pursue Foust through middle school. She decided to go to summer camp after eighth grade, though it was completely out of her comfort zone. Regardless, God had Foust right where He wanted her, and on the last day “Lead Me To The Cross” played. “I literally felt the tug of God. People say that, but it does hit you,” Foust explained. “That’s when I handed my life over to Him.” Foust, however, sees more than her salvation when she looks back on her middle school years. While God took over her life and opened her eyes, there was hardship plaguing the Foust home. Foust’s parents were going through an ugly divorce. Autumn and her siblings were forced to live with their mother who only wanted them for the child support so she could pay for alcohol, drugs and men. They weren’t allowed to see their father, and their lives were full of verbal and physical abuse. Most people would look back on this and question God, but Foust believes this was His way of preparing her for sal- vation. She knows God was working through others’ lives to get to her and show her His character. “I see it so clearly now,” Foust said through tears and obvious heartache. Her suffering didn’t stop there. It was Kyndall’s birthday on Jan. 23. Still in middle school, Autumn walked home only to find no furniture, burnt pictures and no mom. She hasn’t seen her mother since. “I didn’t realize that God’s character means a lot more than just love and peace and kindness,” she said. “He has hard love for you too.” Forgiveness didn’t come easy for Foust. The break- through came at FCA camp in the summer of her junior year when a demonstration caused everything in her mind to fall into place. The athletes were put through intense conditioning ex- ercises. When they got on the line to do another suicide, the coach said something Foust wasn’t expecting. “Ready, set, grace.” The athletes stayed on the line while a different coach started running instead. When he finished the suicide, the in- structor asked the group why they thought he ran for them. “I needed you all to run one more, but he ran for you.” This is when the wheels started turning in Foust’s mind. Then it hit her. “I was realizing Christ died for us and I did not deserve it, and He laid on my heart my mom,” she said. The realization that God forgives sinners who are un- worthy made her want to do the same for her mom. She knew that she would want someone praying for her if she had wronged them. Now Foust is thriving at Cedarville and loving every- thing it has given her. She smiled as she said, “I’m able to share Him more through the ministry of sports, get to know Him, enjoy Him and glorify Him. Volleyball has allowed me to find my true purpose in life of doing ministry.” Foust wouldn’t change how she grew up. God’s hard love changed her life and opened opportunities she would never have gotten otherwise. Though her future is uncertain, Autumn is confident in God’s plans. No matter what it holds, she will continue to live out what she heard at FCA camp. Abigail Hintz is a sophomore journalism major and sports writer for Cedars. She loves sending people GIFs, reading books and watching way more soccer than the average person. November 2018 15 SPORTS Ready, Set, Grace Autumn Foust learns God’s message of grace on the volleyball court Photo by Jillian Strouse Autumn Foust (12) has been through many ups and downs, but she says she is depending on God’s grace to help live each and to forgive the people she needs to forgive.