Be Wary Of Constant Comfort!!

Hello Shetlandites!

The title of this post is the best I could come up with to sum up what I'm going to type about. I am typing this post as a challenge to you and myself to seek to change our mindsets of always aiming for an easy and ultimately Mind Numbing lifestyle. First things first I suppose something needs clarified and that is that the title is not saying to be concerned with any time of comfort in your life and purposefully go looking for challenges or experiences to make your life deliberately more difficult.

Rather this is about noticing opportunities that God allows to cross our paths, opportunities that sometimes will not have an obvious impact on our live's whether we take them or not like the opportunity we have all had to include someone in a conversation that others have left out.

Taking the easy way out in most opportunities means not speaking up, not protecting someone, not sharing, telling lies, not trying to better yourself and Ultimately means disobeying God and battling against the quiet voice of the Holy Spirit.

This is something we all fail at but Practise is what God is looking for, it is how he moulds and defines us, as we put ourselves in an uncomfortable position for him we are saying "Lord, you alone are God and I trust you".

It is also important to remember it's not only about being friendly and Gracious, God will provide strength and Grace for you to; study for grades you want in School/University, train at a sport you love, practise a musical instrument, talk to a friend about Jesus or talk to a stranger about Jesus. I have tried all of these things, succeeded sometimes and failed sometimes but the success is often permanent even just as a happy memory or new skill learned whereas the failure is just an opportunity to try harder or try something new. Failure is not comfort but never risking failure is, and it is that form of comfort which you need to avoid.

As a bit of my own testimony, I only started trying in life and aiming to better myself as soon as I understood how much God Loved me, it gave me validation and made me emotionally secure to know that the God who created the world loves me and aims to prosper me and not to harm me, before when I failed I thought God was laughing at me and setting me up for my next failure but that's a lie from the devil. God was the one picking me up each time and offering his Grace.

If you don't want to succeed and aim to have no aim in life then you are no worse than anybody else, you just haven't realised yet how much God Loves You.

God Bless

Cliff

Forgiveness

Hello everyone,

Thought I’d share a peerie story with you from yesterday.  I was cycling home from work (in Aberdeen) and was going round a peerie round-about when a car almost knocked me over.  It was a bit scary, but also I was surprised that I just stopped and didn’t want to cycle on.  I was paralysed with fear for a split second, and even afterwards it took a peerie start to get going with confidence again.  The driver carried on, and so did I.  Paralysis doesn't just have to be physical, it can be emotional or even spiritual.

There’s a fascinating story in chapter 2 of Mark’s gospel, which talks of a man who was physically paralysed, being brought to Jesus by friends who desperately lowered him through a roof into a crowded room to where Jesus was.  There were lots of “religious” people there who were against Jesus and they thought Jesus was bonkers when he told the paralysed man "your sins are forgiven!"  Jesus could read the minds of those religious leaders (called the Scribes).  The Scribes were very clever, they knew that only God has the power to forgive sins.  By claiming to forgive sins, Jesus was saying he was God.

After that, to prove His power and show that he was qualified to forgive sins, Jesus commanded the paralysed man to get up and walk.  The man was healed, and Jesus’ power was displayed to everyone there.  Everyone was amazed at Jesus, even the unbelieving sceptical Scribes.

Back to being paralysed, you would think that being paralysed and unable to walk was that man’s greatest need, but apparently not.  Jesus saw his main need was for forgiveness, and rewarded the faith of both him and his friends.  Forgiveness came first!

This passage in mark (Mark 2:1-12) shows that Jesus cared not only for the man’s physical needs, but even more importantly he wanted to make him right with God.  Jesus wasn’t just God’s representative, he was God’s Son, who is alive today and is interested in your life and mine.  Through Jesus' death and resurrection He continues to change lives every day.  If you come to him for forgiveness, with a genuine and sincere heart he will transform your life.  Why not have a look at the story of Kaka, former world footballer of the year in 2007, who experienced God’s forgiveness and continues to build his life on the foundation of forgiveness, or speak to a Christian you know, perhaps you could ask them how God has transformed their life.

Well that’s enough for now; hope you are all having a great week.  Kaka's story can be found in the clips at the bottom of this page.

Be Blessed

Matthew

Good Company

Hi Guys!

How 's it going?

i hope you've been well!

I've been very busy these days. Bit annoyed cause I'm dealing with a foot injury so "shouldn't be playing football" but i'm finding it hard to resist! I still play! Which means foot doesn't get any better!
anyway how are you all? i hope you are still warming up with the "cheekey chack" dance? How's you guys of Ghanalalalalala?

Anyway i though I'd finish up with a quote from the Bible:
"Don't be misled: 'Bad company corrupts (ruins) good character'". ( 1 Cor 15:33)
I think so many of us know it's true. There's a saying in Italy (not sure if here too): if you walk with the lame, you start limping.

So true isn't it? Our company makes a lot of  difference to who we are.
That is why we want to keep in touch with you guys. We had a great time in Shetland together; it was good company. And that makes good character.
Also, that is why we talk about Jesus as well. his company produces perfect character, (the bible calls it righetousness) and the promise is that if we believe that, it can never be ruined, corrupted. Actually we are promised an eternal crown, which is incorruptible, cannot be ruined! But that only comes from company with Him! Spend time with Him, pray, read the Bible!

All for now folks,

Stay well,

Steven!

Ghanalalalala!

Next Year's Soccer School! 8th - 12th August 2011

The dates for next year's soccer school have been decided, with a similar style and theme the club will include football coaching, christian teaching, 5 - aside matches and much more!

The dates are Monday 8th August - Friday 12 August.

It would be great to see you there.

Matthew

Welcome to the Burra Soccer School Blog!

Hello and welcome to the Burra Soccer School Blog!

This will be a place where coaches and kids past and present can post comments, suggestions, and their thoughts on the various topics that appear on the blog.

Please sign up if you have been a coach or a participant in the soccer school, this is a great way to keep in touch.

What we will aim to do is have a thought from coaches on a regular basis, to encourage us all to remember the great message of the gospel, and what it should mean to our day to day lives.

Enjoy

Matthew

"Faith is being sure of what we hope for. It is being certain of what we do not see."  Hebrews 11:1