Alexander Courtois speaks on faith and authenticity through FCA
Alexander Courtois, a senior at BFA-St. Albans High School in St. Albans, VT, found his way back to faith in God through the Fellowship of Christian Athletes chapter at his high school. The football and track and field athlete is now a huddle leader and has a passion to see others walking in faith and the freedom of Christ.
Q&A with Alexander Courtois
How did you get involved with FCA? FCA brought me back into faith. I went to Sunday school, was raised Catholic, and was baptized as a baby. I started getting rebellious in middle school. There would be moments I’d be scared and yearn for something. Eventually, in high school, I started playing football and working out in the weight room. I gathered a community around me. My grandma gave me a cross for First Communion, and in the summer between 8th and 9th grade, I felt an urge to connect to something. It felt right. I asked my mom for the cross. I put it on, and it felt so right, even though I didn’t have that personal connection with God yet. I felt like it was the right move, and I started praying. I just wanted that connection with God.
In my sophomore year, I connected with my football and lineman coach, Brandon Mooney. I saw him working out with one of my football friends. He saw my cross, and we talked about faith; he gave me the simple invitation to check out the FCA chapter at BFA-St. Albans. I had nothing going on, so I showed up. It was a critical point—a turning point in my life. They gave me a free Bible and a booklet. It sounds silly, but it was super powerful for me. It’s amazing; I received this powerful literature at my fingertips just because I showed up.
In that spring—Easter —I knew I wanted to start going to church. I went with a friend of mine. The place was packed. I got there an hour early the next week, so I could see what people were doing. I’ve been going to church almost every Sunday. Now I show up at the regular time.
What do you like about the FCA community, and why does community matter? It matters so much because I can relate to not having a really strong family connection to faith. After first communion, I was asked if I wanted to keep going to church or stop. I had basketball practice, so I chose to stop going to church. I didn’t realize how much that connection meant to me—and felt that loss. Having the community at the school, you don’t feel like you’re working through things alone. Your relationship with God is so personal, but having that accountability is so crucial.
I’m a huddle leader, and I love to remind people that we can be that light in our school. It can be hard to put yourself out there, but you can be that person who’s happy, who’s doing the right thing. If you can be that leader and that inspiration, that person people are comfortable talking to—that’s being God’s light and being His messenger. I always bring that back when I lead the huddles. It doesn’t have to be directly with words—it’s just being that light.
How does authenticity factor into your faith? Authenticity is a huge part of faith and being a huddle leader. There are so many people with so much knowledge, but they might be a little too shy to show the truth to others. I want to see them step up and be leaders when I pass the torch next year. We all have our own way of leading and of expressing ourselves, but that authenticity—that opening your heart —is the real thing. People know it’s real. They know we don’t walk through things perfectly. We talk about shortcomings and those moments of imperfection; pure honesty is so important. We don’t need to shy away from our mistakes—those are the things that make us ‘us.’ It’s that experience of why do I care and why do I feel this way. Authentic conversations about life and faith.
How has working with younger athletes helped you grow in authenticity? I’ve led the huddles at the FCA summer camp for 11/12 year old. Trying to lead a bunch of 10-12-year-old boys who just want to play the sport—they will call you out if you’re not speaking the truth or being authentic. There’s nothing more authentic than working with that age group. I always think back on those moments. That was a big growing moment for me as a huddle leader.
What’s resonating with you in the Bible right now? I always have my verse that I like to think about—it’s my quote for the yearbook: Psalm 23:4—Even if I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, you are with me. I learned that line from my lineman coach. He said we have so much faith and power, and that we can walk through things knowing He’s such a good shepherd. No matter how far you move away from Him, He’s always looking out for you. It’s so powerful and humbling to know you’re walking with God through this crazy world. I love that it says “I will fear no evil.” It’s such a metal line, it’s so sick! That’s the one I’m always thinking about, and I really like it.
How has your faith impacted you as an athlete? It’s impacted the way I’ve moved through sports. A common fuel athletes gain from sports is this raw pride, especially in a contact sport. When you win, it’s because you’re strong. Understanding things this way, I could lose the next game and feel worthless. You gain strength and all these things from God. There are times we need a little humbling. There are all these learning experiences that are so much more than a win and a loss. Whatever your passion is, He wants to teach you. On a real, solid level, I’ve been affected through prayer—grabbing a group of my friends in football or track and field and praying for them before an event. This year, the football team was amazing—as a team, we’d get together, and the captains would lead with a message. I didn’t know this would happen. We were all gathered at the rock, and he looked at me and asked me to give us a prayer. We bowed our heads and prayed at that rock every game—-win or lose. That’s something I’m eternally grateful for. To know they looked at me and saw me as a beacon—it was so humbling. That made me feel so spectacular to just lead us with a prayer—this moment with my team, regardless of whether they’re walking with Him or not. I’m so grateful for that.
We’re planting seeds. That’s what we’re doing. Our relationship with God gives us this ember, this flame, like lighting a candle with another candle. It creates this whole big light, and it’s super powerful.
What do you want people to know about walking with God? Our society doesn’t pay enough attention to a person on a personal level. God loves you. Even if you hear from someone who calls themselves a Christian and is hateful or mean, it’s not His Word. The true Word of God speaks His love for you. I talk about it with my group—I want people to know that He loves you and He has so much faith in you. I think that’s super powerful, and I want people to understand that.
