The FIFA Challenge

Last night, my best friend James and myself went to Tesco's at midnight to buy the new FIFA 14. Upon entering the store, we were greeted with what can only be described as 'a long line of lads'! It's the day that every football fan everywhere waits for every year - the release of the new FIFA game. Regardless of what console you play, it's something that we all eagerly and expectantly look forward to. Just look at her in all her beauty and glory:

We arrived home and got stuck into it. Before we knew it, it was nearly 2am and James had to go home to bed as the poor guy was getting up at 7am for work. hehe... I played on until 4am and can honestly say I regret nothing! I woke up today and sure enough wasted no time resuming my manager mode as the Spurs manager.

FIFA is undoubtedly a great game. But it comes with a challenge for a committed follower of Jesus. How much time will we spend smashing goals into the back of the net in a virtual reality? And how much time, in comparison, will we give to our Father? Thinking about this today after a few hours on the Xbox, I felt a little bit ashamed. Of course, it's impractical and unreasonable to say reading our Bible or praying needs to take up more time than anything else we do in our daily routines. But I think it speaks hugely about priorities... Follow on

In Luke 10, Jesus goes to visit Martha and her sister Mary. All the time, Martha is rushing around preparing the dinner and making sure everything was perfect - and I don't blame her. It would probably be my first response to if Jesus came to my house too! Her intentions may have been sound, but her priorities perhaps weren't so good. Her sister Mary definitely knew the score, and her priorities set. Check it out:

'Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord's feet, listening to what he taught.' 

- Luke 10 v 39

Taking time with God takes precedence over everything else in our lives. No questions. No excuses. Not even FIFA 14 is a valid reason for not sitting at the Lord's feet and listening to His teaching. Lads, maybe ladies too, of course play your FIFA 14 and enjoy it. 

I failed the FIFA challenge today - I picked up the controller before I picked up my Bible. Let's make sure every day, we are taking time out to learn from God; to be in His word and connect with Him in prayer. Let's get our priorities straight...

It's more important than winning the league...

New Year. New Faces.

Hey guys,
this is the first time that I've updated the blog since last month and I'm sure that in both my own life, and your lives, things have changed a lot. Mainly, apart from a lot of University students who seem to be off more than in lectures, the summer has ended once more for us all. We're back to school. Back to work. Back to life. No more sun and free time with friends, or at least not so much.

I started University for the first time also this week: I'm studying Youth Work and Practical Theology for those interested! Starting for the first time meant that there were a lot of new aspects to my life. New routines, new location, but most of all - new people. On my course, in my year specifically, there are 15 of us students. So that's 14 new faces, new names and new individuals to get to know. Still struggling a bit after the third day with the names alone but I'm getting there!

This led me however on one of my many day dreaming sessions in lectures to think about introductions, meeting new people and developing relationships with some of them. We all have a choice when we meet a new person for the first time, do we not? We choose either to get to know that person more, or we don't ever develop the relationship with the person. The last response leads to 2 outcomes. Firstly, they're in our lives barely: we don't know them very well, we don't tend to spend much time with them, and although we know a little bit about them, we don't really bother with them too much. Or finally, they simply aren't our lives at all, we make no effort with them and continue living as if we never were introduced to them.

"Not everyone who calls out to me, 'Lord! Lord!' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in Heaven will enter. On judgement day many will say to me, 'Lord! Lord!'... But I will reply, 'I never knew you'..." - Matthew 7 v 21 - 23

It's true for God too. I'm sure lots of us have heard about God, been "introduced" to God if you will. Maybe we didn't think about it at the time, but we all made a subconscious decision either to get to know Him further or not to. Some of us, like me, are developing our relationship with our Father God: always getting to know Him more and deepening our relationship with the Lord. What about you? Maybe you aren't. So what are you guys doing?

Is God in your life at all? Did you just forget about hearing about God for the first time, and have went on living ever since regardless? Or is God in your life, but not really changing how you live? It's like a best friend. If they're really in your life, you make a lot of time for them. They change how you live.

It's important to never assume we're in the category that is pursuing our relationship with God - even as Christians. I need to check every day, that I'm making enough time for God and really being intentional in getting to know Him more. I challenge you all to do the same.

Time to Recharge... Again!

Upon coming back to Northern Ireland from Latvia last month, I knew that I had to get my priorities right. So without wasting much time, I went and got myself an IPhone 5. With my previous phone was just about ready to fall to pieces, combine this with the fact that my best friend James was able to get me a staff discount as he was working in the phone shop, I decided it to be a wise investment.

I'm happy to say that I haven't been disappointed by the latest IPhone to take the market by storm. Equipped with my Spiderman cover for it I don't only feel cool, but I look it too! I spend most of my time on my IPhone either listening to music or playing Plants vs Zombies. However, after a while of doing these most enjoyable things, a problem seems to rear it's ugly head. Does this look familiar to you IPhone users?

The IPhone charger! A necessary piece of equipment for all IPhone owners. The battery life on the IPhone is the only problem I have with my new phone. It depletes at a ridiculous rate, especially due to constant use and more so when it's being used for multiple tasks.

I would need to charge my phone every night without fail, and on days when I would be especially determined with Plants vs Zombies then I'd find myself charging it in the afternoon as well so I'd have sufficient battery to last me through the evening.

But this is not just an IPhone 5 review, no! The comparison I am making today is that we are like IPhones. God is our power source. We need to recharge frequently.

We are like the IPhone 5 in many ways. The basic truth and similarity is that we need to be charged every day. Our battery runs low too. Maybe it's from work, University or school. Possibly it's from people; friends or family, or just those we interact with on a daily basis. Sometimes we are emotionally drained from things that happen too. The only way to survive the day when we're at a low, is to plug in to God - our power source. It's important to get our energy and power from the Lord daily, through being in His Word and through prayer. This is how we, as Christians, recharge our battery.

Just like the trusty IPhone, the more we do then the more our power is depleted. Of course, with multiple apps open and the music playing, the IPhone battery runs out quicker. The same is true for us, and it's noticeable. The more we do every day, then obviously the more tired we become. Possibly the more stressed we become. As a result, the more reliant on God we become too. As I've said, I charge my IPhone every night. However, if I've used it a lot and it's been a busy day for him then I'll charge it during the afternoon. If we are having a particularly trying day as Christians, sometimes our time with God in the morning isn't enough. Sometimes, we may need to take some free time in the afternoon just to seek regeneration from God by being in His presence. At least once a day is vital to keep the battery topped up, but sometimes we need to charge more than once.

"Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest." - Matthew 11 v 28