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“All I know most surely about morality and obligation I owe to football”,

Albert Camus

Christian experience

through glory and dishonour, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything. 2 Corinthians 6:8-10

In these verses Paul expresses nine experiences in paired phrases. Some of them are hard to understand yet others have clear application to life and sport. “Sorrowful yet always rejoicing” seemed to jump off the page. In life we have often reason to be sorrowful - defeat, not being in the starting line-up, coach’s attitude to us, injury. The more important question is how do we react to it. Are we weighed down by the difficulties or are we rejoicing?

“Poor, yet making many rich”. Many times as I have travelled through Africa, I have been humbled by the generosity of people who have nothing but who insist on giving me gifts. They may be poor but I am richer for knowing them. Poor need not be taken just in terms of money. Many people endure real hardship with such a gracious spirit that they bless others. “having nothing, and yet possessing everything” speaks to us about real riches. So many people have so much of this world’s wealth but lack happiness. The Christian who has little of the material things that the world has to offer but who knows Christ and the certainty of living with him for ever may truly be said to possess everything.

“dying, and yet we live on”. Wasn’t it DL Moody who said that if you read in the newspaper that he had died, one should not believe it. In reality he would be more alive that he ever had been. Amen

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