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...