In my face

My friends have been in my face the last two days. Barcelona winning against Manchester United in such an easy fashion has made me the laughing stock of my circle of friends. One would think I chose the team that started the match that night, or that I was the most dependable player on the night. Strange, how connected we are to events that happen so far away. I am yet to receive an apology from any of the Manchester team members in relation to their abject display on Saturday night. I have also not received any donations from Messi and company towards my favourite charity (me).

I was very amazed to discover that the prices of essential commodities haven’t been the least affected by the outcome of the match. One would have been excused for expecting the insurance premiums at AON (Manchester’s shirt sponsor) to dip significantly due to the embarrassment now attached to the shirts that bear their name, but news of this is still forthcoming.

In summary, it may have been important, but it was just a game and crying about it doesn’t change the result or affect climate change. There are more pressing matters in life, such as preaching to a lost world about Jesus and sharing the love of the Saviour with an increasingly wicked and wounded generation. I am looking forward to the point when we will only be ‘bending over’ when it is time for prayer. Think about it.

Off with his head

The thought passed fleetingly through my mind and then began to become more and more concrete as I sat in the shadows of the hall. My thoughts allowed me to picture me hitting his head with a well-angled kick. It would have to land on the side of the head so as to avoid permanent damage; all I wanted was to hurt him, not to kill him. I took one deep breath and perished the thought; it wasn’t such a Christian thing to do. I promised myself that I would leave as soon as the half-time whistle blew and that is exactly what I did. Most people thought that I could not handle the impending massacre of my team, or the Messi-cre as one Piers Morgan calls it. I kept the reason to myself and only a few close friends knew the real reason I was leaving.  I am talking about the incredibly annoying man who kept shouting anti-Manchester United sentiments at the top of his voice.

We discussed something similar in our Bible study meeting yesterday. The question read as follows: have you ever had a situation where your stand in God was tested? Have you ever had to lie or to participate in something wrong or sinful in order to avoid punishment or to avert failure? The prophet Elijah had to stand up to more than 900 people who were actively engaged in something openly ungodly and he took a bold stand against it. In our sin-saturated society, have you learnt how to flow so effortlessly with the crowd on its path to damnation or are you setting the standard, raising the banner for JESUS? I had to choose last night, and I chose to walk away from an unnecessary confrontation when I would have rather bashed the guy’s head in.

The Excel Girls High School hosted us today morning and I must admit that I had not been looking forward to the ministry. If my going there depended on my feelings, I would not have gone at all. I felt unprepared and unmotivated, and yet I knew I could not fail to go. I arose in the morning and prepared myself then go to join the others so that we could go together. I was playing the guitar and singing and I was also our team coordinator of service. I joined the Diguna Champions League in time to officiate in two Under 19 matches and had a generally good time. Right now, my joints are aching and I can’t wait to fall asleep. I am so glad I have Mondays off.  

European Idols

By midnight tonight East African Time, many will be weeping in pain and horror and myriad others will be congratulating each other and possibly shedding tears of joy. The match between Manchester United and Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League final will probably have come to an end and one of those two teams will have won a double of their league title and the cup on offer tonight. Here in Kenya, some will lose their temper and hurl insults and probably other objects at opposing fans while some will show more sportsmanship and graciously shake the hands of the winning team’s fans.

 One thing that will definitely happen tonight is that the day will end and the events in London on that famous Wembley pitch will not have affected the fuel prices or the rate of inflation in our land. (Wayne) Rooney and his cohorts at Manchester will not donate part of their immense salaries to my favourite charity nor will (Lionel) Messi and his armada fatten my bank account. They will do what they love doing, and are paid to do and then go home to enjoy their success, or lack thereof. Whether they win or lose tonight, every single member of the two teams on display tonight will have earned a place in the annals of football history as successes in their own right.

We indulge our favourite teams and footballers with our time, emotions, energy and finances. We revere them to the point of near idolatry. We research more about them and the game than we do about our own family history or the life of Paul the Apostle. We prefer to brave the bitter chill of the night to watch the game, even risking possible muggings on the way home from the game, yet it would be a challenge to get us to attend an evening service in a cosy church. We buy team jerseys at more than a thousand shillings, yet consider buying a good Bible a costly investment. There are many ways we could show God how much we care about Him, or how much we don’t care about Him. I have noticed that my obsession with the ‘beautiful game’ has eaten into my adoration for my risen Saviour.

How is it with you? Perhaps you haven’t reached my levels of infamy, but there could be something or someone that has gradually replaced God as the sole focus of your life. This could be your spouse, your romantic involvement, your career, your education, your favourite soap opera or TV series or your hobbies. For some of us, the work we do for God in the name of ministry could have become our god. I think a self assessment is necessary, if for no other reason, just to allow us time to focus on God a little more than we normally would. Food for thought.

Girls! Girls! Girls!

Girls! Girls! Girls! I have been thinking a lot about girls of late, but not in the way you are probably thinking. We have a youth center, called the Turning Point here at Diguna Mbagathi and I have been cracking my head recently trying to think of ways we can get the girls and young ladies from our neighborhood to be regulars at the center. Most of the events that happen under our sports ministry attract more boys than girls and this is a pretty lopsided approach to ministry. Jesus also cares about the ladies.

I am now thinking about what attracts ladies most to a place or to an event and it is dawning on me that I may actually not have the faintest clue what we should do. That's what happens when you have too many men leading a department. I have now decided to do that which I should have done from the very beginning, I am going to ask girls what we should do! Pretty simple, huh? I mean, instead of trying to decipher the mind of a woman (something men have been trying to do since creation, and failing at) and simply ask the women what they want.

In many aspects, this is what God would expect of us. Sometimes we try to do stuff with the aim of pleasing Him and yet we have no idea what really pleases Him. We should just ask! The interesting thing is, the clues to what God likes are all in the Bible. He doesn't want us to grope around trying and testing with large margins of error. He has already told us what He fancies and one great clue is in John 14:21, obedience! So now, no more nerve wracking for me, I am going to read that Bible and find out what makes God happy. In the meantime, girls please let me know what would be attractive to you as far as a youth center goes.

anthonyouma@gmail.com

On the Job

Grass, weeds, small and large stones and small trees have been my companions for the last week and a half. I have been removing, cutting, throwing, raking, collecting and staring at various forms of God's creations but the most exasperating creatures have to be the ants. I have been encountering various colors and types of ants as I labored with some friends to clear our overgrown sports fields in Diguna. We had a deadline for clearing our playing surface that we almost managed to beat, but there were still patches of untamed ground by the time the Diguna Champions League began on Sunday.

The commencement of the league itself had its fair share of drama. All of the players in the two age categories (under 19 and under 13) were supposed to provide us with proof of their age and only five teams out of a collective 30 were able to meet this requirement. This led to long discussions and arguments and we had no choice but to deny the remaining 15 teams the opportunity to play in our league. In the past, we have been lenient and this has led to a lot of cheating and unfairness, something we are committed to dealing with this time.

There have also been a lot of opportunities for me to share from the Word of God and from my personal experiences last week. I shared at the Diguna Makuti devotion that happens on Monday mornings, at our local house fellowship at Alan Kariuki's house on Thursday and at the Kabaa Boys High School on Sunday morning during their church service. I am currently enjoying a season of being given the opportunity to share from the Bible and from my heart and I am relishing every moment of it. I had been enjoying a break from leading praise and worship but it seems the break is over, because I am leading in our Diguna Wednesday fellowship tonight and at the African Nazarene University Christian Union fellowship tomorrow. The songs for both fellowship meetings are ready and I look forward to the awesome presence of God as we worship Him.

I am now looking forward to the football training session this evening and then to the fellowship. This will be followed by some team bonding over coffee, and then to my current book, Why Revival Tarries, by Leonard Ravenhill. I can't wait. I am possibly one of the lucky few who gets to immensely enjoy his work. What about you?

Moving on

The weeks flow by as yet another month comes to an end. Friendships blossom as other relationships crumble and some grind to a complete halt. Some find love while others lose meaning and take their own lives. The rains pounded and then suddenly halted and the sun hides although she occasionally graces us with her warming presence. 

We play football today in a friendly match against the Africa Nazarene University on our home turf. We have unfinished business with them so I hope the match stays friendly. Alan Mwangi, a friend of mine, hosts a fellowship tomorrow evening at his flat in Ongata Rongai and we conclude the week with another possible friendly match against the Mbagathi View High School. We have unfinished business with them too. 

The Diguna Champions League (formerly called the Little Champions league) resumes for its fourth season this Sunday afternoon and we are really looking forward to it. I will be joining the Diguna School Ministry team on Sunday morning for a church service at Kabaa Boys high school, and I am the preacher. Seems like a full enough week and yet I have time for my delightful fiancée, and even more time to pray and prepare the sermon for Sunday. 

How are you handling your time?

Switching Jobs

We have been digging trenches, arranging stones and cutting grass for the last few days. The weather has generally been agreeable, but today has seen a radical shift from the otherwise predictable rains. We thank God for sending the rain, and we have had to learn how to adjust our work assignments with the weather. So today I am taking care of the paperwork for the Diguna Champions League™ (formerly called the Little Champions League), the game rules and the entry forms and so on. 

We have also been playing football in the evenings so my day officially runs from 8.30am to 6.30 pm. Sleep is sweet for the sleep of a laboring man is sweet. The waking up in the morning part is the one I am yet to come to terms with. The body would like to remain rested, but duty calls and the call must be answered. 

Now for something spiritual. I learnt this morning, that God needs us to stay away from the stuff we used to do in the past. Now that we are forgiven, we need to focus on things that add value to our lives and give glory to Him. How much of your life is a true reflection of God? 1 Peter 1

All in vain

Suppose you had some money to spare. You could do anything with this money and no one would have anything to say about it, because it was your money and you were allowed to spend it without question. Just to make it more interesting, suppose it was a really good amount of money, not too much and not too little. What would you do with it?

Perhaps you decide to spend it on some clothes you had really desired for a while, or a new computer or a really nice phone. Or maybe you could finally have that guitar you saw at the concert.

Now suppose you decide to spend this money on some people. These people aren’t necessarily your friends and there is no guarantee of return on your investment in these people. Would you still invest in them or spend your money on them?

Let us take a scenario where you actually give some of the money to some of the people in the group you desire to spend the money on. Sometime later, you realize that these people have spent your money on alcohol, prostitutes and drugs. How would you respond to this situation? You gave them the money willingly, and gave no conditions with that money, would you still feel aggrieved?

What if you had given the conditions that the money was only for their education, school fees perhaps and they still spent this money on drugs, alcohol and prostitutes. How would you feel?

God has given us life, and the time we have on this earth is the currency. He has given us TIME to spend here in His work and His service. Some of us spend this time and this God-given breath on things that hurt God rather than glorify Him. Romans 1:18-32 has a lot to say about misuse of God’s gift of life and His revelation of Himself to mankind. Please take some time to read this portion of Scripture and consider how God feels about the issues highlighted in there.

Feel Free!

2 Corinthians 5:17 talks about a new creation. It gives hope to those of us in Christ. It assures us of the blotting out of our pasts and the fresh start offered to us as we begin our future in Him. Romans 12:1-2 directs our walk in our salvation. It recommends that we keep from copying what the world presents as right; and instead get the mindset of God concerning how to live our lives.

It is amazing how many times God has offered this forgiveness to us. Of course He knows the future and He can see how many times we will mess up in the days, weeks, months and even years to come. He has already made provision for our failures and has dealt with our past, present and future sin.

We are truly forgiven, but we have not been given the license to sin, simply because of the grace made available through the life, death and resurrection of Christ and the apostle Paul deals with this in Romans 6.

So, as you go about your activities, it should be comforting to know that you are truly and fully forgiven. No longer do you have to walk around with trepidation waiting for God's lightning rod to hit and finish you. You are free from sin, death, hell and the grave. John 8:36. Feel free!