Well I can't let the week end without mentioning football. I know most of you will stop reading now but hey I just wanted to express the complete and utter joy I feel every time I think about my beloved Man City!!
For those of you who haven't heard, we played Man United on Sunday and beat them 6-1....yes 6-1!!!!!
Not only did we beat our arch rivals at the weekend but we came from a goal down last night against Wolves in the Carling Cup to win 5-2 scoring 3 of the goals in 3 minutes!!! So we're not only top of the Premiership and 5 points clear, we're in the last 8 of the Carling Cup too. A great week's work!!
Now even if you don't know anything about football or indeed don't care, bear with me as I try and explain what this means to me. I have blogged previously trying to explain some of the tension between the two Manchester teams so I won't go there again. What I would like to say is the fact that my hometown has two extremely talented football teams, and it makes me feel proud to be Mancunian.
I know people will quote the figures and announce how much City are worth, but all the money in the world doesn't make a team play as a team. You need good leadership, hard work and good influential players to make it successful. Mancini has done a remarkable job buying the right players and managing their egos well. Players like Aguerro have added not only talent, but influence and hard work to the team. My prayer is that the money being invested in the club will serve as a legacy to the city as a whole. As the Commonwealth Games left a decent legacy I hope and pray the same can be said of Man City's current success.
I can remember all too well going through all the emotions possible while watching City play Gillingham in the promotion playoff final to get us back into the top flight of football in 1999. All the years of watching with uncertainty while Kevin Keegan was manager not knowing if we'd win or lose, a true rollercoaster. Some part of me deep inside misses the anxious moments wondering what kind of performance we'd give. However most of me is enjoying watching slick professional football, solid defending, outstanding passing and movement on and off the ball and wonderful goals. True team work.
I know it's only a game, and there are more important things in life I could be discussing, but it's part of me, it's in my blood. Having followed the blues for some 38 years, most of those living in the south, I've had to cope with ridicule on a number of occasions. So to all those who might want to have a go, or negate Man City's recent achievements or indeed my feelings of joy at the moment, I'd just like you to consider how you'd feel if the boot was on the other foot.
Thursday, 27 October 2011
Friday, 21 October 2011
Let Go and Let God
Well October is nearly over and such a lot has happened since I last blogged!!
The chaos created by losing my kitchen and having walls knocked down has meant life's routines are a little out of kilter. Getting packed lunches ready for Gemma is challenging in a makeshift kitchen situated in the dining room. Entertaining is obviously not an option....... for now anyway!!! Cooking meals using the barbecue, slow cooker and microwave is all ....well interesting!!!
However the wait is nearly over and I will soon be posting pictures of the fantastic changes that I believe will not only bless us as a family, but many other people too, some of whom I don't even know yet. Hospitality is something we as a family love and we're all looking forward to being able to use our new kitchen as a true blessing.
The work projects have been relatively straightforward, which for those of you who've been following my blog will hopefully find encouraging, as I've never really found it that easy before now. However they do take time and so other projects in the house like cleaning and ironing do tend to get put on the back burner, although cleaning at the moment is a bit of a waste of time anyway, with floor tiling and decorating yet to be done!!! I'm really pleased though that I don't seem to have panicked too much and have managed my time quite well fitting in rest times, coffees with friends and taxiing Gems around as usual!!
Losing my computer for a while threw me a little, but again I coped with it ok I think (Wayne may beg to differ at this point!!). The main irritation was having to reload all the programmes I lost Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Adobe, reconnecting the printer etc etc etc...
I played in the Worship band at the Willow Creek conference at the beginning of October. This had a huge impact on me emotionally, physically and spiritually. The conference is a two day event and was attended by around 450 delegates. I've played for these events before on many occasions and have always come away challenged by the speakers. However this year was different.
The lead up to the conference involved three main rehearsals (on top of our usual Sound Professors rehearsals) and lots of practice on my part to be able to play with any kind of efficiency and longevity!!
The whole atmosphere at these events is amazing and you really feel you are part of something bigger, something that God wants you to add to, and be involved with.
However what I didn't know was that God was going to speak directly to me!! He used a very good friend of mine to basically give me a kick up the backside!!
Over the summer I'd been reassessing my purpose and place in the church and hadn't really come to any decision. I was struggling with where I fitted in and yet knew that if God wanted me to be part of the Kerith He'd sort it!! Well He did.
I was given an ultimatum, which to be honest rocked my world. It was kinda like someone taking you by the shoulders and giving you a good shake. I felt like I'd been punched in the stomach and left to process it all. However I'm finding God rarely tries to make a point by using only one person. After receiving my ultimatum, I had a number of friends encourage me and pray with me and help me process everything I needed to deal with.
The consequences of all of this are a new attitude, a new focus on my purpose and self worth and the start of a new chapter. I read this morning that we have to be prepared to let go of things that God takes away from us, but we should never let go of His hand. There were things that I wasn't letting go of which God had taken away from me. They were blocking my relationship with God, and holding me back from developing my faith and purpose in Him. However I never let go of His hand, and even though sometimes it might have felt like only our fingertips were touching, I knew He was always there.
So are there things you need to let go of and let God work in you?
- My kitchen has been demolished and rebuilt
- I've completed two work projects
- My computer died and has been resurrected!!
- The Willow Creek DVD conference held at Kerith Community Church has been and gone
The chaos created by losing my kitchen and having walls knocked down has meant life's routines are a little out of kilter. Getting packed lunches ready for Gemma is challenging in a makeshift kitchen situated in the dining room. Entertaining is obviously not an option....... for now anyway!!! Cooking meals using the barbecue, slow cooker and microwave is all ....well interesting!!!
However the wait is nearly over and I will soon be posting pictures of the fantastic changes that I believe will not only bless us as a family, but many other people too, some of whom I don't even know yet. Hospitality is something we as a family love and we're all looking forward to being able to use our new kitchen as a true blessing.
The work projects have been relatively straightforward, which for those of you who've been following my blog will hopefully find encouraging, as I've never really found it that easy before now. However they do take time and so other projects in the house like cleaning and ironing do tend to get put on the back burner, although cleaning at the moment is a bit of a waste of time anyway, with floor tiling and decorating yet to be done!!! I'm really pleased though that I don't seem to have panicked too much and have managed my time quite well fitting in rest times, coffees with friends and taxiing Gems around as usual!!
Losing my computer for a while threw me a little, but again I coped with it ok I think (Wayne may beg to differ at this point!!). The main irritation was having to reload all the programmes I lost Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Adobe, reconnecting the printer etc etc etc...
I played in the Worship band at the Willow Creek conference at the beginning of October. This had a huge impact on me emotionally, physically and spiritually. The conference is a two day event and was attended by around 450 delegates. I've played for these events before on many occasions and have always come away challenged by the speakers. However this year was different.
The lead up to the conference involved three main rehearsals (on top of our usual Sound Professors rehearsals) and lots of practice on my part to be able to play with any kind of efficiency and longevity!!
The whole atmosphere at these events is amazing and you really feel you are part of something bigger, something that God wants you to add to, and be involved with.
However what I didn't know was that God was going to speak directly to me!! He used a very good friend of mine to basically give me a kick up the backside!!
Over the summer I'd been reassessing my purpose and place in the church and hadn't really come to any decision. I was struggling with where I fitted in and yet knew that if God wanted me to be part of the Kerith He'd sort it!! Well He did.
I was given an ultimatum, which to be honest rocked my world. It was kinda like someone taking you by the shoulders and giving you a good shake. I felt like I'd been punched in the stomach and left to process it all. However I'm finding God rarely tries to make a point by using only one person. After receiving my ultimatum, I had a number of friends encourage me and pray with me and help me process everything I needed to deal with.
The consequences of all of this are a new attitude, a new focus on my purpose and self worth and the start of a new chapter. I read this morning that we have to be prepared to let go of things that God takes away from us, but we should never let go of His hand. There were things that I wasn't letting go of which God had taken away from me. They were blocking my relationship with God, and holding me back from developing my faith and purpose in Him. However I never let go of His hand, and even though sometimes it might have felt like only our fingertips were touching, I knew He was always there.
So are there things you need to let go of and let God work in you?
Friday, 30 September 2011
Team Player
My beloved Manchester City had a Champions League game on Tuesday night against Bayern Munich. Now I know this won't have registered as very important to many of my friends, but if you know me at all or have been following my blog you may understand some of what I'm going to blog about. We lost the game 2-0 which in itself was a little disappointing as we've waited so long to reach this competition and hopefully get through the first stage and into the knockout stage (bear with me non football fans!!). However the most disappointing thing on the night, was the apparent lack of interest displayed by Carlos Tevez. Tevez was a key player for City last season, and helped us win the FA Cup and finish fourth in the League, our best season in the history of the Premiership. However this season we have added to our squad and he has not featured quite so often in the starting 11. On Tuesday he started the match on the bench as a substitute, and then when the manager, Roberto Mancini asked him to take to the pitch he seemingly refused.
Even if you're not a football fan, I'm sure you'll understand the frustration and outrage of the manager and the fans, as they saw him remain seated on the bench when his team needed him on the pitch.
I've always thought of myself as a team player, and this open display of dissent and disregard for his team and manager, from a player I have admired in the past for his work ethic both on the pitch and in training, really through me off guard. Now I know in the scheme of things football or sport is not the be all and end all of life, however having been involved in team sports for much of my life I believe it has taught me a number of life lessons. Lessons about working with different people, about right attitudes and working for the good of the team.
As I've blogged previously I have the privilege of playing in a band, 'The Sound Professors'. As well as giving me a sense of connectedness, playing in the band helps me to practice my sense of being a team player. Only when you are a team player can a band be successful. Only when you listen to one another properly, and are sympathetic to the harmonies, riffs and rhythms being played around you, can you add your own embelishments, improvisations and sounds that fit. Only then can the band play as one and sound fantastic.
I know that when I play in the band I have a sphere of influence and a sphere of concern. I influence how the band sound, and I'm concerned about the overall sound we create.
I believe in life we all have a sphere of influence and a sphere of concern. We all have peers, colleagues, friends, family who we affect by what we say and do. Carlos Tevez, as do many professional footballers, has a significant sphere of influence of his own, over many people. Over young aspiring footballers, as well as long standing faithful fans who may have never played the beautiful game!! Manchester City have suspended Tevez for two weeks and further talks on his future at the club are taking place. I don't know how this will all pan out, but I hope that Tevez will be more aware of his sphere of influence and change his attitudes, so that his sphere of concern becomes wider, and he appreciates the consequences of his actions on his followers.
As a christian I think this sphere of influcence is key to the way we behave and the things we say. The bible has much to say on this subject and in my daily readings today, I read the following from 1 Corinthians Chapter 10 vs 23-24:
Even if you're not a football fan, I'm sure you'll understand the frustration and outrage of the manager and the fans, as they saw him remain seated on the bench when his team needed him on the pitch.
I've always thought of myself as a team player, and this open display of dissent and disregard for his team and manager, from a player I have admired in the past for his work ethic both on the pitch and in training, really through me off guard. Now I know in the scheme of things football or sport is not the be all and end all of life, however having been involved in team sports for much of my life I believe it has taught me a number of life lessons. Lessons about working with different people, about right attitudes and working for the good of the team.
As I've blogged previously I have the privilege of playing in a band, 'The Sound Professors'. As well as giving me a sense of connectedness, playing in the band helps me to practice my sense of being a team player. Only when you are a team player can a band be successful. Only when you listen to one another properly, and are sympathetic to the harmonies, riffs and rhythms being played around you, can you add your own embelishments, improvisations and sounds that fit. Only then can the band play as one and sound fantastic.
I know that when I play in the band I have a sphere of influence and a sphere of concern. I influence how the band sound, and I'm concerned about the overall sound we create.
I believe in life we all have a sphere of influence and a sphere of concern. We all have peers, colleagues, friends, family who we affect by what we say and do. Carlos Tevez, as do many professional footballers, has a significant sphere of influence of his own, over many people. Over young aspiring footballers, as well as long standing faithful fans who may have never played the beautiful game!! Manchester City have suspended Tevez for two weeks and further talks on his future at the club are taking place. I don't know how this will all pan out, but I hope that Tevez will be more aware of his sphere of influence and change his attitudes, so that his sphere of concern becomes wider, and he appreciates the consequences of his actions on his followers.
As a christian I think this sphere of influcence is key to the way we behave and the things we say. The bible has much to say on this subject and in my daily readings today, I read the following from 1 Corinthians Chapter 10 vs 23-24:
"I have the right to do anything," you say - but not everything is beneficial.
"I have the right to do anything" - but not everything is constructive.
No one should seek their own good, but the good of others.
So as christians we have the freedom to behave in any way we like, but we need to consider how beneficial and constructive that behaviour is for the good of those we influence, for the good of the team we're part of, the church, and for the good of reaching people who don't consider themselves christians.
So who are you influencing and are you concerned?
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