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Hey guys, welcome back to the Way UK podcast.

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My name is Michelle and today I'm joined by a wonderful friend, Jasper.

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Let's go.

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Hey, let's go.

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And we have a wonderful special guest today, John Bostock.

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Welcome to the podcast.

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Thank you for having me.

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Yeah, yeah, yeah.

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Former pro footballer and the founder of Ballers in God.

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Their ministry is absolutely incredible and we get to dive into their story.

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But guys, you know how it goes.

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If you're listening on YouTube or Apple Podcasts, Spotify, make sure to send these videos over to friends, rate us because our vision over here at The Way UK is to reach every young person with the good news of Jesus and with you sharing our videos you're basically partnering with us with that vision and obviously want people to know the love of God and so please do do that.

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But before we get in, roll the credits.

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Thank you very much for being here.

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I know.

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I mean, the first time we met was like a year ago.

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That was a good day, wasn't it?

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Yeah, how did that go, Michelle?

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It was a good day.

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I saw some videos before we started rolling.

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You didn't see any videos.

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Mate, you're a brilliant penalty taker.

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Oh, at least I won it.

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Yeah.

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So, yeah, for context, you beat an incredibly talented Man City midfielder at a penalty shootout.

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All things are possible when you believe.

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Oh, man.

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Yeah.

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All things are possible.

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Oh, gosh, that's so funny.

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I look back at that video and I decrease sometimes, but it's fine.

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Good content.

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Good content.

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It's good content.

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But John, we want to get into your story.

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We want to hear about, oh gosh, so much.

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I feel like, yeah, you're just a man of prayer.

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And I think it's just so evident throughout your whole story.

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I guess we want to start from the beginning.

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How did you come to faith starting at Palace from the age of six?

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All of that.

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Let's dive into it, dude.

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Yeah, I mean, football has, I like to say this, and I think it's true, football was my first god, really.

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It's the thing I worship.

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It's the thing that gave me my confidence, my identity.

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And I grew up in South London where five people got stabbed on my road in one year.

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Oh, gosh.

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So it also kept me away from that kind of gang culture, which a lot of people in my road, in my area, got kind of...

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Swept up.

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Yeah, swept up in.

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And so I knew from a very young age what it is I wanted to do.

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To be a pro.

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Just to be a pro footballer.

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I used to go to bed every night, sometimes with a ball in my bed, sometimes with new boots on my feet, sometimes with old boots on my feet.

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Come on.

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But falling asleep to Ronaldinho videos, you know, it was an idol in my heart that meant so much to me.

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Yeah.

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And so football was my first saviour.

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It's a thing that gave me my purpose, my identity.

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But growing up, I always had huge questions without huge answers.

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Right.

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So as I went through the ranks at Crystal Palace Academy, I was always pushed ahead of my age group.

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So I was always kind of pipped to be the next best thing to come out of the club and, you know, tipped to really be a success in my career because of my talent.

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So at the time, 13, 14, I had everything a young person would probably dream of having.

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I had a sponsorship deal with Nike.

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I was representing my country at youth level, captain in my country.

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I was training with the first team at Crystal Palace at 14, made my debut at 15.

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Just to paint some context, that's all the things that I thought would really satisfy me.

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But still there was a longing in my heart for true answers.

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I used to lie in my bed sometimes thinking, hang on, so I'm just gonna live my life, play football, retire, have a happy family, you know, try to have enough savings to enjoy my life, maybe retire on a golf course somewhere and try to be a good person.

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I thought surely there's more to life than just this.

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Then I heard about the Goldilocks zone.

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Have you guys heard about the Goldilocks zone?

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That if the world was any further away from the sun, we'd all freeze.

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If the world was any closer to the sun, we'd all melt.

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So it just goes to show that there is design behind what we see.

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And I thought to myself, surely there's more to life than just football and my career and my passions.

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It has to be more to life than chance.

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And I used to think about, you know, look how complex the human eye is.

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there's no way someone can even try to attempt to try to make an eye let alone the rest of creation so I had this talent had this dream but always had these questions of maybe there's a God out there somewhere I don't know who he is but let me just crack on with my own desires then I

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All of a sudden, someone very close to me, I saw their life change from night to day.

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My real father, biological father, left my family when I was two months old.

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My two older sisters were seven and nine years old when he left.

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So they looked for that fatherly love in many places, never found it.

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One sister went down the academic route, tried to, you know, find identity and purpose and success.

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The other one went off the rails, you know, abused alcohol, relationships with men.

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So she was kind of the wild child, we used to call her.

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She's older than me.

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But it was a longing trying to look for a love in wrong places.

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All of a sudden, her name's Tara.

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Tara was like a brand new woman.

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And I said to her, I said, Tara, what's happened to you?

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It's like you're different.

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It's almost like you've been born again.

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And she said, John, Jesus has changed my life.

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Come on, wow.

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And I had no reference of people talking about Jesus in that way.

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I had never, no one's ever told me about Jesus.

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I heard about the historical figure, but it was real to me now, whether it's a placebo effect, whether she's been brainwashed or deceived, or it's actually true.

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Something's happened to Tara's life and I'm closer, so I can see it.

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It wasn't just like she spoke different.

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It's like she was completely new.

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And she said, it's Jesus.

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I thought, she said, come to church with me one week if you want.

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I went, oh, church.

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It's a cold place.

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It's a dead place.

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There's no life there.

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But this is how God works.

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He's so amazing.

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The next day in the newspaper, the world's most famous player at the time, his name was Kaka, a Brazilian legend.

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And he won the Ballon d'Or, which is like the most prestigious award a player can win.

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And I turned over the back page the day after my sister talking about Jesus.

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And he said, after winning the Ballon d'Or, he said, I give the glory to Jesus.

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I thought, oh, wow.

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This is two messages in two days.

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Yesterday, Tara told me about Jesus.

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Today, one of my footballing heroes, Kaka, is talking about Jesus.

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Mm-hmm.

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Maybe if I go to church on Sunday, God can help me win a ballon door.

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That's what I thought.

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So I went to church on Sunday with kind of an open mind.

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I went to see if God can help me.

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Little did I know I would hear the gospel message, the good news of Jesus.

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I had encountered the Holy Spirit, really experienced God's love for the first time.

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And I said yes to following Jesus.

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And so that's how I came to know him.

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It was through my sister's example, but also God following up with other things I couldn't really ignore.

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wow wow that is beautiful and so how did that like because obviously you were um already playing football at this point kind of were you still in the academy at this stage weren't you with crystal palace so all these things were coming along you know how how did that suddenly shift you know when you suddenly knew this person of jesus you know you said at the beginning that football was like your god yeah and then suddenly jesus comes along yeah

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completely turns not just your life around, but your sister's life.

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And, you know, even you're starting to hear other stories elsewhere.

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How did that suddenly change your mindset towards football?

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You know, were you still, you know, just as passionate about it?

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Did that kind of, did you wrestle with that some more?

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What, you know, tell us some more about that.

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It's definitely been a process because although, you know, I surrendered to the Lord that day, it's not just a one-time decision.

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It's a daily decision to abide in him.

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But at the beginning, it was like, right, this is me.

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I'm going to tell everyone about Jesus because it was real to me.

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You know, when you read in scripture, Paul's story from becoming Saul, encounter with Jesus, then became, sorry, was Saul, encounter with Jesus, then became Paul.

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Yeah, yeah.

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He couldn't hide what happened in his heart.

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And it was the same for me.

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Like, it wasn't like I was trying to be an evangelist.

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It wasn't like I was trying to tell everybody.

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It wasn't a trying thing.

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It was just a natural response to this is who I am now.

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So I went from, you know, being in the changing room with all the guys older than me, celebrating what things they would celebrate, looking at all the magazines I'd look at, all the videos I'd look at, as you can imagine.

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To the next day, like, guys, can I tell you what's happened?

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And they laughed.

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They criticized me.

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They used to try and put things in my face, you know, to take me back to some of the things I used to be involved with.

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But half the time they started to see, oh, actually, there's some substance to this.

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And in the group, I used to get criticized a lot.

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But when you get these guys individually and just ask them about their lives and just love on them, they're very different individuals to who they are in groups.

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So we all need the Lord.

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I just came to know that maybe a bit sooner than some other players that I journey with.

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But it was a process, like I said, and the Lord's so gracious to us.

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He doesn't expect us to grow faster than he wants us to grow.

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I look back now on some of the things I've done in the early days of my career.

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I'm like, oh my gosh, I wish I didn't say that.

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I got that wrong.

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But the Lord, you know, I'm a father.

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Yeah.

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When my son was really young, I wasn't upset when he made mistakes.

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He's a kid.

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He's going to make mistakes and, you know, sometimes, you know, wet the bed or sometimes, you know, you need to change him over and over again.

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It's part of growing.

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And it's the same when you come to the Lord, you're going to make mistakes.

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But...

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Ultimately, we have a father who looks after us.

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So, but going back to that part about the idol and football being my number one, it was a process.

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I'll be honest with you.

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Because in my mouth, I would say God's number one by my actions.

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It was a wrestle because I've been trained to think, John, you are the footballer first.

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So now, as it says in Romans chapter two, we are to be transformed by the renewal of our mind.

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It's an ongoing process.

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It's not, I've got it now.

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It's a journey and it's been painful sometimes, but definitely freeing.

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And I'm definitely grateful the Lord didn't let go of the process because I let go many times.

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But the Lord has been faithful to keep teaching me, disciplining me, encouraging me.

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To where I'm now, where I can hold football a lot more looser.

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Still passionate about it.

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I believe it's the world's best game.

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I'll argue and fight with anyone who's anything different.

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It's almost like the world's language, football, beyond the game.

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So I believe it's the world's best game.

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But fortunately, it doesn't hold my life the way it used to.

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having that perspective of like as a father and seeing like your son making mistakes but then you're like oh like he's a child and then that sort of relating to your relationship with with god as as your father like i just found that really touching just now um i think

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how did you see going on from like you know obviously you're then able to share your faith with your your teammates your brothers that you're playing with how did you see that impact um from from that place yeah even back to what you just mentioned in terms of like

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realizing God is like who God is as a father.

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I grew up not knowing who my father was.

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I always had the question mark, like, who is he?

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Is he still out there?

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So his name was actually John, John senior.

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And his father was John senior senior.

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So I'm technically John the third, but I never knew him.

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I never, I never saw him.

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I never, and he only came back into my life.

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When I was 21 years old and he passed in COVID.

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So.

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I never got to meet him.

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I never sat down with him.

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So coming to know God as father, it was new for me.

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I had a stepfather who loved me, but our relationship felt like it was really anchored in my career.

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Mm-hmm.

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So it was his way of showing me love.

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But if I played good on a weekend, he would talk to me.

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If I didn't, he would walk past me sometimes in the house for three or four days.

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So I then came to know God that way.

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If I sinned, I can't talk to him for three or four days until I clean myself up, prove I'm not a sinner, then I can talk to God again.

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Yeah.

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But over time, the Lord reveals his father heart for us and helps us to realize he loves us, not based on our performance, but because we're his.

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And so now being in an environment where you're around guys every single day who actually hold on to their, see their value based on how they play on 90 minutes on a weekend.

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Because not only are you based and judged by your manager and the staff, you're judged by thousands and thousands of, if not millions, of people watching the game.

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And it's hard to be able to separate your identity from that.

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You know, I was thinking about when I was a young player, my old chairman, he said I was worth two million when I was a kid.

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Then when I got older, I was probably worth a little bit less.

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And then at the end, you know...

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Value always changes in the eyes of the world, but coming to know God and your identity rooted in him, you carry a confidence that is not rooted in your performance anymore.

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00:13:11.437 --> 00:13:12.257
It's so freeing.

222
00:13:12.297 --> 00:13:18.120
So now to be in an environment where that's just a norm, we're able to help people to see who they are beyond the game.

223
00:13:19.221 --> 00:13:28.466
So sharing hope, praying for people, inviting them to see beyond the minutes that they play on the pitch.

224
00:13:28.526 --> 00:13:29.606
It's new for players.

225
00:13:29.967 --> 00:13:30.587
It's brand new.

226
00:13:32.608 --> 00:13:37.551
I've been in the system every year, I reviewed to see if I want to be kept on.

227
00:13:38.732 --> 00:13:40.273
If you play good, you keep playing.

228
00:13:40.293 --> 00:13:42.034
If you're not, you get subbed, you might not come on again.

229
00:13:43.495 --> 00:13:50.759
So it's not been easy to be in that environment because it's an environment where it's not easy to get access to players.

230
00:13:51.960 --> 00:13:56.923
So for example, players of a certain level, it's hard for them to get rooted in local churches.

231
00:13:57.964 --> 00:14:02.107
You know, it's not easy with their fame and their profile to come into service and to be normal.

232
00:14:02.627 --> 00:14:06.049
People say, oh, that's the player, rather than just saying that's the brother or sister in Christ.

233
00:14:06.690 --> 00:14:14.375
So we realize that God's given us a really unique access point to introduce people to him, you know?

234
00:14:14.435 --> 00:14:15.776
So it's not been easy.

235
00:14:15.956 --> 00:14:18.417
I've been called every name under the sun from my teammates.

236
00:14:18.497 --> 00:14:19.178
You can imagine...

237
00:14:19.838 --> 00:14:41.873
you know god squad you can imagine a lot a lot worse than that um but ultimately um we're very grateful that we've been able to share jesus in places that he hasn't been shared before yeah and like i guess as you know touching into followers and god um i would love to hear about how you caught the vision for that and when you started it and how it started

238
00:14:42.737 --> 00:14:42.997
Sure.

239
00:14:43.117 --> 00:14:45.679
I mean, I think everyone desires to belong somewhere.

240
00:14:45.699 --> 00:14:46.679
Yeah.

241
00:14:46.820 --> 00:14:57.386
So when I was really young, I moved to Spurs, Tottenham Hotspur, after I played for Palace in a hotly contested move that didn't go down so well with the football in public.

242
00:14:57.706 --> 00:15:00.248
Everyone other than Spurs fans were happy with that move.

243
00:15:01.288 --> 00:15:06.393
But in that move to Tottenham, I was growing in my walk with the Lord.

244
00:15:06.533 --> 00:15:11.778
And I opened up my home to be like a cell group for players to come and study the word, pray.

245
00:15:11.798 --> 00:15:14.981
So that was my first kind of experience of actually supporting players.

246
00:15:15.521 --> 00:15:19.685
But it wasn't until I left Tottenham, my confidence was at rock bottom.

247
00:15:20.306 --> 00:15:22.107
I felt like I'd failed in terms of my career.

248
00:15:22.127 --> 00:15:24.810
Although I was still holding on to Jesus, I really felt like...

249
00:15:26.311 --> 00:15:28.913
I was basically ready to quit.

250
00:15:28.933 --> 00:15:33.818
I said to the Lord, I said, Lord, if you want me to retire from professional football and go into full time ministry, tell me I'm done now.

251
00:15:34.898 --> 00:15:44.487
And in that kind of surrender, I felt like the Lord really wanted me to help me to remind me of why I'm called to the game of football, not just for my stats and for my my own accolades.

252
00:15:44.607 --> 00:15:46.789
It was to be a light and to help people to see who he is.

253
00:15:47.980 --> 00:15:52.662
So I left England, went to Belgium, which was great for my career.

254
00:15:52.682 --> 00:15:56.324
But for my faith, I felt like I was really isolated.

255
00:15:57.044 --> 00:15:59.465
I felt like I was the only Christian in the league.

256
00:15:59.845 --> 00:16:05.508
I wasn't, but I felt I wasn't able to plug into online services because this is way before COVID.

257
00:16:05.708 --> 00:16:09.970
Churches did a great job of going online after COVID because of the need.

258
00:16:09.990 --> 00:16:12.491
Before that, I would speak to my pastors sometimes, which is great.

259
00:16:12.511 --> 00:16:16.433
But actually having been plugged into community, you know, we've been made for community.

260
00:16:16.613 --> 00:16:17.214
Yeah, that's right.

261
00:16:17.274 --> 00:16:20.297
When we think about the gospel, we often think about Jesus died for my sins.

262
00:16:21.057 --> 00:16:22.398
Which is true, but it's not complete.

263
00:16:23.079 --> 00:16:29.165
He died for our sins so we could be his people and we could be with him together forever.

264
00:16:30.226 --> 00:16:31.987
And so everyone longs to belong.

265
00:16:32.488 --> 00:16:33.509
So I was in Belgium.

266
00:16:33.589 --> 00:16:36.392
My career was going well, but I felt spiritually weak.

267
00:16:36.512 --> 00:16:37.713
I felt like I was struggling.

268
00:16:37.733 --> 00:16:38.494
I remember praying.

269
00:16:39.134 --> 00:16:40.475
I said, God, I feel alone.

270
00:16:41.215 --> 00:16:41.635
What do I do?

271
00:16:42.696 --> 00:16:46.697
And I think whenever God puts burdens on people's hearts, it's for reasons bigger than yourself.

272
00:16:47.037 --> 00:16:48.978
So it might start with you, but rarely ends with you.

273
00:16:50.079 --> 00:16:51.899
And I sense the Lord encourage me.

274
00:16:51.919 --> 00:16:54.841
Well, if you're feeling that way, how many other players out there are feeling the exact same way?

275
00:16:55.521 --> 00:16:59.462
Struggling, maybe feel guilty about their sin, guilty not picking up the Bible and reading it.

276
00:17:00.423 --> 00:17:02.264
Reach them and serve them.

277
00:17:03.284 --> 00:17:03.744
It's okay.

278
00:17:04.104 --> 00:17:04.385
All right.

279
00:17:04.525 --> 00:17:05.285
We'll crack on with that then.

280
00:17:05.705 --> 00:17:08.106
So I called a few of the players I met along my journey, said, how are you?

281
00:17:08.126 --> 00:17:08.566
How's things?

282
00:17:08.586 --> 00:17:09.886
And the first answer was football.

283
00:17:10.387 --> 00:17:12.027
I'm not in the team or I've not played well.

284
00:17:12.047 --> 00:17:13.108
I said, no, no, no.

285
00:17:13.148 --> 00:17:13.568
How are you?

286
00:17:14.388 --> 00:17:15.008
Away from the game.

287
00:17:15.668 --> 00:17:21.010
And they said, I've been struggling with my purity, argued with my girlfriend, not opened the Bible for weeks, really struggling.

288
00:17:21.030 --> 00:17:21.690
I said, I've been there.

289
00:17:21.710 --> 00:17:22.011
I get it.

290
00:17:22.631 --> 00:17:27.892
How would you feel about just logging on to Skype at the time it was and just seeking the Lord together?

291
00:17:27.973 --> 00:17:28.773
And they said, yeah, I'll come.

292
00:17:29.773 --> 00:17:32.355
So we hosted our first online meeting for four or five players.

293
00:17:34.016 --> 00:17:36.518
And the beauty of having, that's the angle pro to pro.

294
00:17:36.818 --> 00:17:37.719
Yeah, right.

295
00:17:37.979 --> 00:17:39.580
So we had that kind of connection.

296
00:17:39.600 --> 00:17:40.741
Look, no one's ahead of each other.

297
00:17:40.761 --> 00:17:42.242
Let's just come together as a family.

298
00:17:43.122 --> 00:17:48.126
And that first meeting, guys, like we laughed, we cried, we read the scriptures, we prayed for each other.

299
00:17:48.206 --> 00:17:51.228
And there was just that understanding of, ah, you get it.

300
00:17:52.008 --> 00:17:52.769
Ah, I'm not alone.

301
00:17:53.850 --> 00:17:54.810
And I like to use this phrase.

302
00:17:54.830 --> 00:17:56.852
We just sense that the signature of the Holy Spirit was on it.

303
00:17:57.532 --> 00:17:59.853
And so we kept going every month.

304
00:18:00.613 --> 00:18:05.155
And before you know it, teammates invited teammates to the point where it grew to a movement.

305
00:18:05.475 --> 00:18:06.436
You didn't have a name at the time.

306
00:18:07.436 --> 00:18:08.517
God gave us Ballers in God.

307
00:18:08.797 --> 00:18:11.638
I even designed a little logo on a little piece of paper.

308
00:18:13.279 --> 00:18:15.480
But from that place, that's where community has been birthed.

309
00:18:15.540 --> 00:18:24.904
So really journeying with people in your sphere and doing life with them, showing them the love of Christ and just holding their hand together as a family in the world of football.

310
00:18:25.604 --> 00:18:29.066
It often seems like God places us in those sort of positions, doesn't he?

311
00:18:29.086 --> 00:18:39.471
Where, you know, we actually realise, we recognise our need for him, but also he wants to teach us how to pray in that moment and to be like, look, I'm putting you in this situation because I want you to learn how to pray into this.

312
00:18:39.491 --> 00:18:48.975
I want you to learn, you know, to dig deep here and to consider the other people, as you say, the other players who are possibly in that sort of situation.

313
00:18:49.515 --> 00:18:56.685
And I think as well, you know, then how as that then developed, he started meeting different teammates and they invited their own teammates.

314
00:18:56.765 --> 00:19:07.099
And, you know, I often think with football, you know, it's a great sport, but obviously then when it comes to the thing like rivalries and stuff like that, it can get a little bit like, you know, touchy at points.

315
00:19:07.639 --> 00:19:17.727
And I think I remember, I remember hearing you say, particularly when you're back at Tottenham, you had this sort of Bible study group as well there with like, and you had Arsenal players coming along as well.

316
00:19:18.087 --> 00:19:23.732
And it's like the two main rivals of North London, you know, coming together to study the word and stuff like that.

317
00:19:23.772 --> 00:19:26.594
So, you know, how did you see with kind of like,

318
00:19:27.074 --> 00:19:49.565
you know with that sort of stuff with the breaking down of um sort of the walls in that sense where football would kind of be like oh you know you're on that team and you're on that team on the pitch you know you you play against each other but suddenly you open the bible and you're yeah you're on the same team literally you know how how did you see that develop and also how how does sort of how do you view rivalries now how do we how do we deal with that as Christians I think that's a great interesting one

319
00:19:50.005 --> 00:19:53.908
I like to say this, football is what connects us, but Jesus is who unites us.

320
00:19:54.449 --> 00:19:56.711
Because you could be connected to people, but not be united with them.

321
00:19:57.431 --> 00:20:00.434
So we have become connected to each other just because we're footballers.

322
00:20:00.474 --> 00:20:09.981
But what has made us really understand the bond of brotherhood and sisterhood, because the female players as well now, we're connected beyond the game.

323
00:20:10.602 --> 00:20:12.063
And I'll be honest with you, as a footballer,

324
00:20:13.937 --> 00:20:16.179
The Fierce's rivals are not the players.

325
00:20:16.359 --> 00:20:17.580
It's the fans.

326
00:20:18.160 --> 00:20:26.867
Go to any barber shop, go to any place, and you'll hear the football expertise of how much they know about the game and how they're always right.

327
00:20:27.027 --> 00:20:28.588
And that's what makes the game beautiful.

328
00:20:28.608 --> 00:20:29.448
Everyone's got their opinion.

329
00:20:30.129 --> 00:20:32.030
But you'll see it in the tunnels of games.

330
00:20:32.431 --> 00:20:38.435
I know Roy Keane doesn't like it, but you'll see players hug before the game from opposite teams.

331
00:20:38.695 --> 00:20:41.557
Manchester derby and North London derby.

332
00:20:42.398 --> 00:20:45.840
You see them embrace on the pitch, their enemies, their rivals.

333
00:20:46.100 --> 00:20:49.842
But as soon as the game is done, their brothers again, especially if they're rooted in Christ.

334
00:20:50.582 --> 00:20:53.503
And I think the game's come a long way in terms of sportsmanship.

335
00:20:55.790 --> 00:20:58.932
And so, yeah, it's not really been an issue for us, I'll be honest with you.

336
00:20:58.992 --> 00:21:03.935
It might start off a little bit cagey sometimes when two guys see each other from, to be fair, there's been some times, I'll be honest with you.

337
00:21:03.955 --> 00:21:08.538
There's been some times where we're coming to meetings and the guy was like, bro, I thought you was a Christian.

338
00:21:08.598 --> 00:21:10.479
Like on Saturday, you absolutely smashed me.

339
00:21:10.819 --> 00:21:12.200
You elbowed me when the referee didn't see it.

340
00:21:12.541 --> 00:21:15.262
I'm like, oh snap, let's do all this quickly before it escalates.

341
00:21:15.322 --> 00:21:17.324
So, you know, that's the beauty on the pitch.

342
00:21:17.404 --> 00:21:19.185
Like if we're doing it for Jesus, yeah.

343
00:21:19.705 --> 00:21:21.286
We're not doing it for our managers or our clubs.

344
00:21:21.306 --> 00:21:24.849
We're going to go all in because our reason is bigger than just three points.

345
00:21:25.049 --> 00:21:28.351
We're doing it to worship as a response to really worship Jesus.

346
00:21:29.352 --> 00:21:33.135
So no matter who you're playing against, whether it's a brother in Christ or someone else you don't know,

347
00:21:34.612 --> 00:21:36.973
our heart is to really go completely all in.

348
00:21:37.594 --> 00:21:43.517
And after the game, you can shake hands and you've seen it maybe at the world cup and other places where actually players and other nations come together.

349
00:21:44.037 --> 00:21:45.298
But it hasn't been too much of an issue.

350
00:21:46.018 --> 00:21:52.642
But I think in the place of, of, of, of, of being with Jesus, there's no high places in Jesus.

351
00:21:52.662 --> 00:21:53.142
Mm-hmm.

352
00:21:53.402 --> 00:21:55.803
when you're at his feet, we all see our need of him.

353
00:21:56.743 --> 00:21:59.524
And so it's not like, you know, he's ahead of me.

354
00:21:59.564 --> 00:22:00.785
He's scored more goals than me.

355
00:22:00.805 --> 00:22:01.525
He's got more money than me.

356
00:22:01.545 --> 00:22:02.105
He's a better career.

357
00:22:02.125 --> 00:22:03.846
It's like, no, we all need who he is.

358
00:22:03.886 --> 00:22:04.866
We all need Jesus.

359
00:22:05.366 --> 00:22:11.589
So that's like the founding block of humility that we all experience together as a family, if that makes sense.

360
00:22:12.489 --> 00:22:12.749
Wow.

361
00:22:13.210 --> 00:22:16.412
And I actually just want to touch quickly on, because you mentioned the World Cup there.

362
00:22:17.353 --> 00:22:25.159
And obviously I think maybe it's just me, but I really felt like when watching that this summer just gone, seeing the faith really lived out on the pitch.

363
00:22:25.199 --> 00:22:27.221
Like I felt like we just saw a complete new angle of things.

364
00:22:27.941 --> 00:22:31.664
And I do think that's possibly, you know, because, you know, the ministry you guys are doing.

365
00:22:31.704 --> 00:22:35.627
And obviously it's come a long way over the years.

366
00:22:35.647 --> 00:22:36.368
Yeah.

367
00:22:36.908 --> 00:22:46.094
You know, tell us a bit more, like, do you think that faith kind of is really being lived out more openly now on the pitch, maybe as a result of what you guys are doing or just because of what God's doing?

368
00:22:46.454 --> 00:22:50.817
You know, I remember, was it Germany and, who was it?

369
00:22:50.837 --> 00:22:51.057
Curacao.

370
00:22:51.077 --> 00:22:51.637
Yeah, that was it.

371
00:22:52.858 --> 00:22:54.978
you know, the players come together to pray after the match.

372
00:22:55.439 --> 00:22:59.159
And you think Germany have just, I think it was like 7-1 win or something like that.

373
00:22:59.620 --> 00:23:07.281
You think if you're on the opponents, you'd probably be feeling a little bit, you know, salty at that stage, but they come together and they pray and they do that whilst cameras are all around them.

374
00:23:08.481 --> 00:23:18.924
So yeah, like, I don't know, I'd love to hear a bit more kind of about your thoughts on just what is, how do you feel like faith is being lived out on the pitch itself nowadays, kind of through what you guys are doing and encouraging them?

375
00:23:19.104 --> 00:23:19.664
Yeah, I think,

376
00:23:20.817 --> 00:23:26.981
So when I made my debut for Crystal Palace in 2007, a long time ago now, I felt like the only Christian in my league.

377
00:23:27.121 --> 00:23:28.362
I wasn't, that's how I felt.

378
00:23:29.343 --> 00:23:33.005
Before me, there were Christians who held up, you know, the banner of Jesus.

379
00:23:33.746 --> 00:23:38.108
Players like Gavin Peacock, Bruce Dyer, there's Linvoi Primus, Darren Moore.

380
00:23:38.629 --> 00:23:39.770
In England, there's been players who...

381
00:23:40.518 --> 00:23:44.019
They've been bold about their faith, but maybe not connected and united in that way.

382
00:23:45.919 --> 00:23:50.860
So it was quite rare for players to really express their belief publicly.

383
00:23:51.241 --> 00:23:52.321
And you look at social media.

384
00:23:52.861 --> 00:23:55.001
I mean, we probably wouldn't be sat here if it wasn't for social media today.

385
00:23:55.021 --> 00:23:55.481
That's right, yeah.

386
00:23:55.922 --> 00:24:05.284
So yes, it can be a distraction, but also what an incredible tool, where now you are able to see people's true selves, whether they're involved in charities, whether they're involved in fashion.

387
00:24:06.024 --> 00:24:09.645
And so I think that through Ballers and God and other ministries,

388
00:24:11.566 --> 00:24:12.606
the Lord is doing his work.

389
00:24:13.407 --> 00:24:15.749
We're just, we're just invited to partner in what he's doing.

390
00:24:16.229 --> 00:24:23.214
I believe the Lord's allowed us to be a part of what he's doing in culture, especially in the world of football, because it's such a language that people speak.

391
00:24:24.255 --> 00:24:25.856
I believe that boldness breeds boldness.

392
00:24:26.616 --> 00:24:31.160
So when other players see, oh, he's, he's, he's lifting his hands to Jesus or he's praying on the pitch.

393
00:24:31.380 --> 00:24:32.881
Oh, that means I can potentially do that.

394
00:24:33.201 --> 00:24:33.881
And I think that's,

395
00:24:34.702 --> 00:24:40.884
That's something that we should take into consideration that players have now seen a place where there's more.

396
00:24:41.404 --> 00:24:42.104
There's more players.

397
00:24:42.124 --> 00:24:42.924
There's others out there.

398
00:24:43.725 --> 00:24:46.105
And so the church in football has always existed.

399
00:24:46.125 --> 00:24:51.747
There's believers everywhere, but maybe hasn't been a central hub to kind of present it to the world.

400
00:24:52.407 --> 00:24:54.508
So through our social media, that's been a big part of our...

401
00:24:55.208 --> 00:24:57.131
our reach to the world.

402
00:24:57.191 --> 00:24:59.273
I mean, there's kind of three aspects that we have in Ballers of God.

403
00:24:59.293 --> 00:25:04.460
The changing room, which is our internal discipleship group for pro players and their wives and girlfriends.

404
00:25:04.980 --> 00:25:09.746
Then there's the stadium, which is like, you know, our following online.

405
00:25:09.946 --> 00:25:12.309
Then there's the world of people that we love to reach in the future.

406
00:25:13.190 --> 00:25:16.691
And I think that the stadium, the people out there, they've actually gotten a bit of an insight.

407
00:25:16.731 --> 00:25:18.512
Oh, this is what's happening behind the scenes in the world of football.

408
00:25:18.532 --> 00:25:19.552
And you would have seen at the World Cup.

409
00:25:19.732 --> 00:25:20.132
Yeah, yeah.

410
00:25:20.212 --> 00:25:21.973
So we got a chance to be a part of that.

411
00:25:22.053 --> 00:25:23.513
I got a chance to be part of the conversation.

412
00:25:24.233 --> 00:25:28.275
We held a meeting before the World Cup with all the elite players playing for the nations.

413
00:25:28.335 --> 00:25:30.275
And they said, how can we glorify God at this World Cup?

414
00:25:31.256 --> 00:25:32.456
We were part of the conversation.

415
00:25:32.476 --> 00:25:34.977
They said, what would it look like if we came together?

416
00:25:36.017 --> 00:25:39.659
And every time someone scored, we laid our crowns at his feet.

417
00:25:40.239 --> 00:25:50.745
What would it look like, symbolically, what it looked like if after every game, whether you played, you scored, if you're on the bench, you came to the center circle and you prayed with another believer from the other team in arms.

418
00:25:51.406 --> 00:25:56.028
And so you think to yourself, the World Cup has been going since 1930, the world's most watched event.

419
00:25:56.208 --> 00:25:59.470
The last World Cup, 5.5 billion viewers watched it.

420
00:26:00.050 --> 00:26:00.831
Three quarters of the world.

421
00:26:02.032 --> 00:26:03.352
It's an event like none other.

422
00:26:03.432 --> 00:26:04.013
Yeah, yeah.

423
00:26:05.273 --> 00:26:07.374
this tournament's been going for over 90 years.

424
00:26:08.434 --> 00:26:19.596
For the first time in history at the last World Cup, you've seen players play individually, play individually in their nations, but this is the first time ever where you saw two nations come together and say, look, you're looking at us.

425
00:26:20.076 --> 00:26:22.357
We love the game, but actually Jesus is at the center of our lives.

426
00:26:23.397 --> 00:26:27.058
And you saw it with Germany, Curacao, Ivory Coast and Curacao, Ecuador.

427
00:26:27.078 --> 00:26:29.698
You've seen that England against France in the last game.

428
00:26:29.818 --> 00:26:32.179
And you just think, if I was a young person seeing that, I'd be like,

429
00:26:33.695 --> 00:26:34.836
I want to know more about this Jesus.

430
00:26:34.856 --> 00:26:41.859
If these stars who have everything the world has to offer are still looking to Jesus, I want to know more about who he is.

431
00:26:42.219 --> 00:26:43.940
So it's been an honour to be a part of it.

432
00:26:44.420 --> 00:26:45.260
And long may it continue.

433
00:26:46.501 --> 00:26:46.701
Wow.

434
00:26:47.582 --> 00:26:50.323
I mean, that's how you came to faith, right?

435
00:26:50.663 --> 00:26:51.143
It's true.

436
00:26:51.423 --> 00:26:54.625
You saw one of your heroes.

437
00:26:54.685 --> 00:26:55.105
It's true.

438
00:26:55.505 --> 00:26:56.906
He gave glory to God.

439
00:26:57.006 --> 00:26:58.827
And like, why do you...

440
00:27:00.485 --> 00:27:04.649
Why do you think that's important to like display your faith?

441
00:27:05.230 --> 00:27:16.461
Why is that something that's like, I guess the core of kind of, um, ballers and God in a way is to like share your faith and be like public about it.

442
00:27:16.742 --> 00:27:17.963
Why would you say that's important?

443
00:27:18.542 --> 00:27:22.063
I think it's vital, but I think that's not the place we start.

444
00:27:23.164 --> 00:27:28.185
I think if, so for example, if I said to a tree, tree, why do you think it's important to make apples?

445
00:27:30.126 --> 00:27:32.327
Firstly, the tree can't talk.

446
00:27:32.347 --> 00:27:33.727
You'd look a bit weird if you did that.

447
00:27:33.767 --> 00:27:36.208
Yeah, secondly, secondly, um,

448
00:27:37.008 --> 00:27:39.750
it's just a natural production of what the tree does.

449
00:27:39.790 --> 00:27:43.873
You know, when the tree is so full of sap, it natural responses to produce an apple.

450
00:27:44.033 --> 00:27:44.473
Yeah.

451
00:27:44.693 --> 00:27:49.496
So I think that sometimes as believers, we can start from the point of, I have to use my platform.

452
00:27:49.516 --> 00:27:50.477
I have to share my faith.

453
00:27:50.817 --> 00:27:53.019
No, we get to, we get to do it.

454
00:27:53.079 --> 00:27:55.821
And I think the focus needs to be on when you know who the Lord is,

455
00:27:56.601 --> 00:28:00.544
And not only do you love him, because that's not our focus, the focus is actually receiving his love.

456
00:28:01.305 --> 00:28:03.807
As a natural response, you'll start to think differently.

457
00:28:03.827 --> 00:28:05.208
You'll start to see your life differently.

458
00:28:05.649 --> 00:28:10.333
And also the natural apple, the fruit that you'll produce is that you won't be able to deny it.

459
00:28:10.393 --> 00:28:11.073
Now, I get it.

460
00:28:11.274 --> 00:28:15.918
There's a place where sometimes we can need to be encouraged and we need to also look at what we have in our hands.

461
00:28:15.958 --> 00:28:17.659
Sometimes people don't even think they have platforms.

462
00:28:17.699 --> 00:28:18.200
We all do.

463
00:28:19.140 --> 00:28:23.704
If it's on socials, if it's not on socials, we all have platforms and we all can reach people that others can't reach.

464
00:28:24.004 --> 00:28:24.205
Mm-hmm.

465
00:28:24.665 --> 00:28:31.630
There are people watching this, that there's people in your life that we will never get the chance to meet and share the gospel with.

466
00:28:31.911 --> 00:28:35.213
No pastor will ever maybe have the opportunity to speak into their lives, but you can.

467
00:28:36.514 --> 00:28:42.379
And so, yes, you want people to be equipped to share their faith, but first understand, firstly, who you are in Christ.

468
00:28:42.939 --> 00:28:45.401
And from that place, Scripture says, God,

469
00:28:46.702 --> 00:28:48.682
How will they be saved unless they hear?

470
00:28:49.463 --> 00:28:51.343
And how will they hear unless someone is sent?

471
00:28:51.983 --> 00:28:58.124
And so firstly realizing that life, it's not just what we see.

472
00:28:58.584 --> 00:29:01.885
People that you spend time with day and day out, they're not just people.

473
00:29:02.625 --> 00:29:04.886
They're children of God who don't know it yet.

474
00:29:05.586 --> 00:29:14.588
And so for you now to partner with God in displaying your faith through the good, the bad, the ugly, sometimes we feel pressured to actually feel like we have to be the perfect example to people.

475
00:29:14.648 --> 00:29:14.968
We're not.

476
00:29:15.728 --> 00:29:16.168
Jesus is.

477
00:29:17.329 --> 00:29:40.591
but sometimes we miss the opportunity where when we do make mistakes and we do something we do you know lose our temper that's an opportunity for you to actually rectify and say look i'm sorry through humility for example through sharing our faith sometimes through praying for others i think that one of the most important mindsets and mentality you can have as a believer is having a scent mentality um

478
00:29:41.111 --> 00:29:44.194
When I came into football, I thought it was about what I could get from the game.

479
00:29:44.815 --> 00:29:47.918
When I came to know Jesus, it was about, okay, Lord, what are you doing in the world of football?

480
00:29:48.078 --> 00:29:49.059
How did I get to be a part of it?

481
00:29:49.980 --> 00:29:56.165
And it's so much more freeing to now actually offer my platform, offer my experience,

482
00:29:56.806 --> 00:29:59.728
to now share it so that others can see him through me.

483
00:29:59.928 --> 00:30:02.170
That's the biggest invitation we can ever receive.

484
00:30:02.991 --> 00:30:08.976
And so I always, it's probably one of the most famous statements we say, people might never read a Bible, but they read your life.

485
00:30:09.476 --> 00:30:16.942
And it's true, not just what you say, but how you live, the things you invest your time in, how you act, what you carry, what you, your essence.

486
00:30:17.302 --> 00:30:19.664
People, they're looking and studying you every single day.

487
00:30:20.484 --> 00:30:25.227
So we have a wonderful opportunity to be able to share our faith, but we're not pressured to do that.

488
00:30:25.307 --> 00:30:28.429
Sometimes you can encourage people from a place of pressure or fear.

489
00:30:28.489 --> 00:30:31.111
If you don't just share your faith, they're never going to know the Lord.

490
00:30:31.151 --> 00:30:32.872
That might be true, but it's not completely true.

491
00:30:33.472 --> 00:30:34.273
God is doing his work.

492
00:30:35.714 --> 00:30:41.162
He just wants us to partner with him in loving people and as an overflow of who we are, sharing who he is.

493
00:30:41.382 --> 00:30:41.662
Yeah.

494
00:30:42.143 --> 00:30:44.145
And I think just you saying that has reminded me.

495
00:30:44.346 --> 00:30:47.330
So, you know, I'm an Arsenal fan for those who don't know.

496
00:30:47.350 --> 00:30:49.693
Congrats, current champion.

497
00:30:50.313 --> 00:31:15.766
yeah congrats we're winning the lot this season um and i was so like inspired so like last season when you suddenly started to hear these stories of um like the bible study of the group they had you know i can't remember exactly who was in it but you had like saka and timber and um madueke i think was in it and you know lots of like the the first team players and the lads were like coming together in the changing room before the game reading the bible together um and and i just

498
00:31:18.187 --> 00:31:26.570
Mikhail Arteta, the manager, was actually asked this in one of his press interviews, being like, you know, we hear there's some sort of Bible study going on.

499
00:31:26.850 --> 00:31:27.830
You know, what's that all about?

500
00:31:27.850 --> 00:31:28.951
And he's like, oh, well, I don't mind it.

501
00:31:29.171 --> 00:31:31.171
It helps the morale in the changing rooms.

502
00:31:31.632 --> 00:31:38.254
And I think just kind of to build off what you were saying there, like, actually what they're doing in that secret place with one another is having an impact.

503
00:31:38.734 --> 00:31:54.965
you know, outside on the pitch and with the fans and, you know, the same thing you're looking through social media or even looking on the news and it's coming up, you know, on there that people are recognising it, that there's something different, which I just thought, you know, is really powerful and I think that's inspired other people.

504
00:31:55.625 --> 00:31:57.407
Um, so yeah, that's, that's really cool.

505
00:31:57.427 --> 00:32:06.994
And is that, you know, I'm curious, is that kind of, again, something you've guys been involved in, you know, in terms of connecting those sort of people and encouraging that sort of stuff in, in those sort of teams?

506
00:32:07.054 --> 00:32:11.117
Yeah, I think, I think we're really slow to encourage people to do something that wouldn't fall natural to them.

507
00:32:11.757 --> 00:32:19.863
I think once you, uh, journey with players and really help them to uncover who they are before the Lord and his love for them, um, um, um, um, um, um, um, um, um, um, um, um,

508
00:32:19.963 --> 00:32:24.866
by natural response, you'll want to share who you are and love other people.

509
00:32:25.467 --> 00:32:27.468
And so I heard about the Bible Brothers at Arsenal.

510
00:32:27.548 --> 00:32:28.509
I'm connected to some of them.

511
00:32:28.709 --> 00:32:30.970
It's wonderful to hear their journey.

512
00:32:31.991 --> 00:32:33.252
And they won the league last year.

513
00:32:33.272 --> 00:32:37.495
I'm not saying it's the reason they won the league, but it's incredible to hear the unity that they have.

514
00:32:37.555 --> 00:32:39.736
And Mikel Arteta, he said it.

515
00:32:39.796 --> 00:32:43.319
He said, it unites my boys and I'm all for it.

516
00:32:43.439 --> 00:32:43.639
Yeah.

517
00:32:45.880 --> 00:32:56.007
I heard from one of the one of our guys that, you know, England at the World Cup this year, nine players were in a Bible study and they went every day to be able to spend time together in the Lord's presence.

518
00:32:56.287 --> 00:33:00.589
And so you don't do that to win the World Cup, but it's just who they are.

519
00:33:01.050 --> 00:33:05.933
So you're hearing it, you're hearing it with the French national team, you're hearing it about the other nations and other clubs.

520
00:33:05.953 --> 00:33:09.435
You're like, Lord, you're doing something incredible in our sport.

521
00:33:10.295 --> 00:33:24.820
um and so every time you hear a story like this we're like lord you're just so incredible because some years ago this would have been so foreign yeah but we've been praying for it others have been praying for it um and like i said the lord's doing his work and we're just so honored to be a part of it yeah that's beautiful

522
00:33:25.120 --> 00:33:34.007
In terms of stories, I like since, I don't know, since you were talking, I was just been thinking of like, I bet there's just so much fruit that's come from ministry so far.

523
00:33:34.668 --> 00:33:45.277
I like, are there any stories that you can share of like, I guess the players and their faith, but then also how their faith has had a knock on effect in other people like.

524
00:33:45.752 --> 00:33:51.279
Yeah, I mean, so as of the last three years, we've also been serving the wives and girlfriends of players.

525
00:33:51.499 --> 00:33:53.421
So my wife leads the WAGS ministry.

526
00:33:54.903 --> 00:33:57.786
So wives and girlfriends, but also she's coined the phrase women about God.

527
00:33:57.987 --> 00:34:00.810
So she's tried to redeem it a little bit, which is wonderful.

528
00:34:00.870 --> 00:34:01.130
Yeah.

529
00:34:01.891 --> 00:34:07.513
So we, we are focused in the beginning was players, but now our heart is to serve football in families.

530
00:34:08.493 --> 00:34:12.274
Um, because there's a danger when you look at a player, you just see him.

531
00:34:12.495 --> 00:34:12.755
Yeah.

532
00:34:12.855 --> 00:34:14.915
Actually behind the scenes, there's a family there.

533
00:34:14.995 --> 00:34:15.235
Yeah.

534
00:34:15.255 --> 00:34:18.577
When a player moves to another country, it's not just him normally.

535
00:34:18.777 --> 00:34:19.537
Sometimes it is, but,

536
00:34:20.157 --> 00:34:25.079
there's family implications of children moving schools and the wife being in a new environment, plugged out of the local church.

537
00:34:25.860 --> 00:34:27.740
And so our heart is to serve families.

538
00:34:27.760 --> 00:34:32.583
And so there have been people that we've been able to journey with where they were on the brink of divorce.

539
00:34:33.483 --> 00:34:34.664
You know, their marriage is on the rocks.

540
00:34:34.684 --> 00:34:39.506
There's been things they've been going through and it almost seemed that they've gone too far.

541
00:34:40.126 --> 00:34:46.229
But to the point where by the grace of God, they've come into our community, they've received help, counsel, love.

542
00:34:46.609 --> 00:34:47.429
Marriages have been strengthened.

543
00:34:47.449 --> 00:34:48.510
So you just think about actually...

544
00:34:49.190 --> 00:34:49.550
What does it mean?

545
00:34:49.570 --> 00:34:50.830
Not just for them, but for their children.

546
00:34:51.091 --> 00:34:52.271
An example that they've experienced.

547
00:34:52.291 --> 00:35:09.515
We've journeyed with single players who they've said if they didn't come into ball as a God at a certain time, they would have turned their back on the game because they were so, like how I was when I was young, lost complete confidence in themselves and placed their identity in something that it shouldn't have been wrapped up in.

548
00:35:10.115 --> 00:35:12.196
So there's many testimonies I could share.

549
00:35:12.216 --> 00:35:13.836
I mean, God's supernatural healings.

550
00:35:13.976 --> 00:35:14.956
You've been on Zoom praying.

551
00:35:14.976 --> 00:35:15.896
God's healed people online.

552
00:35:15.916 --> 00:35:17.777
You're thinking, all right, Lord, this is incredible.

553
00:35:17.917 --> 00:35:18.257
Gosh.

554
00:35:18.497 --> 00:35:21.900
I think the greatest testimony, though, is when people come to know Jesus.

555
00:35:22.600 --> 00:35:25.502
There's no miracle greater than that of people who didn't know who they were.

556
00:35:25.522 --> 00:35:27.103
They encounter the love of God.

557
00:35:27.124 --> 00:35:27.884
They hear the gospel.

558
00:35:28.004 --> 00:35:29.345
They place their faith in that.

559
00:35:30.106 --> 00:35:33.829
And actually, they now go on to make more disciples and actually lead people to.

560
00:35:34.309 --> 00:35:37.251
That, for me, is like, hey, Lord, that's the original assignment.

561
00:35:37.892 --> 00:35:41.895
You said to go into all the world and to make disciples of all nations.

562
00:35:42.095 --> 00:35:42.255
Mm-hmm.

563
00:35:43.523 --> 00:35:45.105
And that's the Great Commission.

564
00:35:45.306 --> 00:35:57.824
And so I could share personal testimonies of many players, but when you actually see God doing his work and you get to be a part of it, of people actually entering into an eternal relationship with Jesus, there's no greater testimony than that.

565
00:35:58.445 --> 00:35:59.746
But also maybe I want to share.

566
00:35:59.786 --> 00:36:04.249
So that's me talking about the changing room of our internal group, but then also the stadium online.

567
00:36:05.070 --> 00:36:11.274
We've had testimonies of we've done Instagram lives before where people have said, I was about to take my life tonight.

568
00:36:11.774 --> 00:36:15.437
Something told me to go onto Instagram and I stumbled across your Instagram life.

569
00:36:16.578 --> 00:36:19.020
And I heard you talking about Jesus and I gave my life to the Lord tonight.

570
00:36:19.160 --> 00:36:19.540
Thank you.

571
00:36:20.146 --> 00:36:21.506
And you think to yourself, hang on a minute, Lord.

572
00:36:22.547 --> 00:36:25.608
All these thousands of followers who apparently follow, sometimes you can see those metrics.

573
00:36:25.728 --> 00:36:32.570
Actually, these are people who the Lord loves, the Lord who's knocking people that God is pursuing in his own beautiful way.

574
00:36:33.111 --> 00:36:39.913
And they actually stumbled across an Instagram account led by footballers, hear about God's love for them and choose not to overdose.

575
00:36:40.994 --> 00:36:58.656
online you think Lord this you are so phenomenal um and so we don't know what the impact that we're having we'll never see it I believe until glory but these are just some of the testimonies that we've experienced in our in the changing room aspect but also in the stadium you know that people people are looking for him they just don't know where to find him

576
00:36:58.957 --> 00:37:00.337
It's far bigger than us, right?

577
00:37:00.878 --> 00:37:02.438
It's so much bigger than us.

578
00:37:02.518 --> 00:37:10.881
Like you said, when God gives you a vision or a burden for something, it might start with you, but it doesn't end with you.

579
00:37:10.901 --> 00:37:12.101
Aren't you so relieved, though?

580
00:37:12.282 --> 00:37:12.882
So relieved.

581
00:37:12.942 --> 00:37:13.422
Oh, thank goodness.

582
00:37:13.442 --> 00:37:21.385
Because if it was just to start at the end of us, we would take all of our strength, which runs out every day, all of our love for God, which isn't something to boast about.

583
00:37:22.025 --> 00:37:24.766
If it starts with him, birth through us, it will end of him.

584
00:37:24.786 --> 00:37:28.307
We just get to be part of it for this short period of time whilst we're here.

585
00:37:28.647 --> 00:37:40.055
I just find it incredible that God, his heart is for everyone, even for the people that we don't even know and we don't know their names, but he does.

586
00:37:40.575 --> 00:37:42.496
And I just find it incredible that he...

587
00:37:43.977 --> 00:38:05.716
yeah he would he would be so kind to use us to want to reach them like yeah he goes far and be yeah i don't know above and beyond to to reach his people i just find that like incredible and i love that that like bullies and god are a part of that and like you're a part of that and you giving your yes to god and you submitting your life and saying okay god like it

588
00:38:06.737 --> 00:38:06.977
Yeah.

589
00:38:07.097 --> 00:38:14.039
I mean, from a young age to say, God, if I'm meant to retire from my football career, then make it evident and do it now.

590
00:38:14.119 --> 00:38:19.260
But like to see how you've submitted your life to Jesus and your wife as well.

591
00:38:19.740 --> 00:38:21.241
You guys are a power couple.

592
00:38:22.321 --> 00:38:24.001
It's so amazing to see.

593
00:38:24.721 --> 00:38:34.424
But I'm curious to know how's all of this impacted you and your relationship with God and how you see God.

594
00:38:34.444 --> 00:38:35.164
Yeah.

595
00:38:35.560 --> 00:38:36.260
What a question.

596
00:38:39.502 --> 00:38:53.611
Serving footballers is an interesting position to be in because a lot of footballers, they have, like all people, we have entitlement, you know, but footballers particularly are entitled just because they have a lot of things done for them.

597
00:38:55.252 --> 00:38:59.155
And especially at a certain level, you know, they have a level of influence.

598
00:38:59.195 --> 00:39:03.437
And there was a point when I was, I remember, in Ballers in God when I was maybe 2017, 17.

599
00:39:05.178 --> 00:39:08.021
I'd be preparing sermons every week for the guys to come and no one would come.

600
00:39:08.983 --> 00:39:09.843
I'm thinking, Lord, I'm done.

601
00:39:09.883 --> 00:39:14.088
Like these, these footballers are spoiled, you know, you can raise someone else up.

602
00:39:14.328 --> 00:39:16.911
I've had enough, but the Lord also helped me.

603
00:39:17.071 --> 00:39:21.156
He just mentioned Michelle, like he's the God who, who, who leaves the 99 to go after the one.

604
00:39:21.336 --> 00:39:21.636
Yeah.

605
00:39:22.117 --> 00:39:22.257
Um,

606
00:39:23.735 --> 00:39:24.775
And it takes risks to do that.

607
00:39:24.975 --> 00:39:28.256
And it takes a heart to see beyond what you can currently see.

608
00:39:29.256 --> 00:39:31.497
And so the Lord helped me to keep going.

609
00:39:32.177 --> 00:39:35.838
But what I've learned in this journey is that I'm not the answer.

610
00:39:35.858 --> 00:39:44.620
There's been times when I felt like I need to tell the people about Jesus, raise them in the Lord, completely disciple them.

611
00:39:45.760 --> 00:39:46.980
And that brings a burden.

612
00:39:47.621 --> 00:39:53.142
Scripture says that, you know, Paul planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase.

613
00:39:53.922 --> 00:39:55.663
And there was a time when I was trying to do everything.

614
00:39:55.683 --> 00:39:57.684
I was trying to put their shoe on, tie it, make them walk, push.

615
00:39:58.064 --> 00:40:00.946
And the Lord told me one time, he's like, John, just give them the shoelaces.

616
00:40:01.967 --> 00:40:02.847
Just give them the shoelaces.

617
00:40:02.867 --> 00:40:03.888
I was like, oh, I like that, Lord.

618
00:40:03.908 --> 00:40:04.388
That makes sense.

619
00:40:04.408 --> 00:40:05.889
I like it when the Lord talks to me in simple format.

620
00:40:05.909 --> 00:40:07.750
Because I was trying to do everything.

621
00:40:07.770 --> 00:40:09.371
But it was give them the shoe.

622
00:40:09.411 --> 00:40:10.211
Teach them to tie.

623
00:40:10.291 --> 00:40:11.092
Teach them to know the Lord.

624
00:40:11.152 --> 00:40:13.493
Teach them to be able to know who he is and to be able to walk.

625
00:40:14.133 --> 00:40:17.334
But it's the Lord's work.

626
00:40:17.794 --> 00:40:18.614
We get to be part of it.

627
00:40:18.634 --> 00:40:22.695
He said, I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.

628
00:40:22.735 --> 00:40:25.216
It doesn't say John or the way or ballers and God.

629
00:40:25.436 --> 00:40:25.936
I will do it.

630
00:40:27.056 --> 00:40:27.576
Partner with me.

631
00:40:28.236 --> 00:40:32.437
So I've learned, Michelle and Jasper, I've learned that I'm very needy.

632
00:40:32.757 --> 00:40:38.398
I need the Lord, not just to play football, not just to lead well, but just to breathe, just to live.

633
00:40:40.919 --> 00:40:42.361
I have got a lot wrong over the years.

634
00:40:44.043 --> 00:40:48.969
And I think my favorite verse in this season is in 2 Timothy.

635
00:40:49.009 --> 00:40:54.335
It just speaks about how even when we're faithless, he remains faithful.

636
00:40:54.375 --> 00:40:55.396
He cannot deny himself.

637
00:40:55.977 --> 00:41:00.623
I'm so glad that God is not reliant on my faithfulness to fulfill his purposes.

638
00:41:01.343 --> 00:41:05.664
Because my energy, my time, my heart for people, it runs out all the time.

639
00:41:06.225 --> 00:41:07.025
His heart never does.

640
00:41:07.685 --> 00:41:10.966
So I'm able just to abide in him and to rest in him and receive his heart for people.

641
00:41:11.846 --> 00:41:12.546
I'm able to flow.

642
00:41:13.227 --> 00:41:19.208
So I've also learned that it's a lot bigger than football, what he's doing in this, in the world.

643
00:41:19.288 --> 00:41:19.548
Yeah.

644
00:41:20.069 --> 00:41:21.509
It's mind blowing.

645
00:41:21.969 --> 00:41:23.129
It's incredible.

646
00:41:23.230 --> 00:41:24.390
And the Lord doesn't need us.

647
00:41:24.710 --> 00:41:27.631
Like you said, Michelle, he just, he's so kind to allow us to be a part of this.

648
00:41:29.211 --> 00:41:31.612
And so, but with the positions that we have comes a lot of opposition.

649
00:41:33.093 --> 00:41:47.178
There's been times I've been very down, really upset, you know, almost tasted depression in some seasons where, you know, the weight of sometimes what we carry or our heart for people and even our own sin, it can really condemn you sometimes.

650
00:41:47.838 --> 00:41:51.580
But it's learning to come back to him again, to not be in condemnation, but to be with him.

651
00:41:52.320 --> 00:41:53.682
for there's no condemnation in Jesus.

652
00:41:53.982 --> 00:41:55.964
So I've learned a lot.

653
00:41:56.344 --> 00:41:59.948
And I think overall, it's learning that I'm part of his bigger picture.

654
00:42:00.149 --> 00:42:01.610
He's building his family, I'm a part of it.

655
00:42:03.800 --> 00:42:07.043
And what a pleasure and privilege it is to be part of his bigger narrative.

656
00:42:07.063 --> 00:42:11.987
So that and just keeping the main thing, the main thing.

657
00:42:12.007 --> 00:42:23.297
I've learned that it's very dangerous to be in the public line, public sphere, public exposure to where you're also leading because you can actually do things for Jesus without doing it with him.

658
00:42:23.457 --> 00:42:26.139
And that's such a dangerous place.

659
00:42:26.239 --> 00:42:29.242
I've done so many things for him, but actually not done it with him.

660
00:42:29.442 --> 00:42:31.324
So on the outside, it's like, oh, John, you're on fire.

661
00:42:31.344 --> 00:42:31.464
Yeah.

662
00:42:31.864 --> 00:42:34.486
People don't know that I've not even been at his feet this morning.

663
00:42:34.506 --> 00:42:40.231
I've not even been, you know, engaging him and asking him what he thinks of where I am and stuff.

664
00:42:40.891 --> 00:42:41.672
So that's a danger.

665
00:42:42.853 --> 00:42:43.913
And I'm very aware of it.

666
00:42:44.033 --> 00:42:49.678
So I ask God for help daily to help me to pray, help me to have a heart in the right place.

667
00:42:49.718 --> 00:42:52.920
And also, I've realized I've got so many blind spots I can't see.

668
00:42:53.160 --> 00:42:53.421
Yeah.

669
00:42:53.761 --> 00:42:54.321
We all have.

670
00:42:54.622 --> 00:42:54.922
Yeah.

671
00:42:55.615 --> 00:42:57.017
And we can't see them, literally can't see them.

672
00:42:57.537 --> 00:43:02.644
So having people around us to help us see those things and to keep us in check, we were made for community.

673
00:43:03.805 --> 00:43:05.508
And so that's been the key thing.

674
00:43:06.068 --> 00:43:07.150
I've been able to birth community.

675
00:43:07.170 --> 00:43:09.192
The Lord's done it through me, but I need it.

676
00:43:09.993 --> 00:43:10.254
Need it.

677
00:43:10.674 --> 00:43:10.875
Mm-hmm.

678
00:43:11.935 --> 00:43:12.536
Yeah.

679
00:43:12.696 --> 00:43:16.317
And I think what you're talking about there, just about obviously needing to rely on God.

680
00:43:17.237 --> 00:43:24.060
And we've kind of spoken a little bit, quite a bit already about how actually doing our football can be really quite unpredictable at times as a player.

681
00:43:24.520 --> 00:43:28.982
You know, you can perform well one week and then the next week you're not even on the bench, you know, and it's...

682
00:43:30.343 --> 00:43:38.147
you know, and also for you, you spoke about how obviously there are times when you move to Belgium and then, you know, lots of kind of changes and moving clubs.

683
00:43:38.707 --> 00:43:41.849
And, and so again, just, just tell us some more about that in your personal life.

684
00:43:41.869 --> 00:43:51.754
Cause there might even be some, some young footballers watching, you know, now who are kind of want to start their career or already in it and are living it, you know, how did you manage and perhaps are there any stories?

685
00:43:51.774 --> 00:43:58.498
Cause I know there was particularly one when you were kind of thinking about moving back to England to play that, you know, how God kind of really, you know,

686
00:43:58.858 --> 00:44:17.524
showed his faithfulness there as well in like what might seem quite small but actually was was massive um for you at the time um tell us some more about that yeah great question i've learned that god's faithful even when he even when we can't feel it there are many times we can't feel his faithfulness but he's so faithful even in times where it feels like we're losing

687
00:44:18.184 --> 00:44:19.224
Sometimes it feels like we're alone.

688
00:44:19.424 --> 00:44:20.325
He's so faithful.

689
00:44:22.545 --> 00:44:27.186
And I remember I was playing in France for Toulouse, playing at a high level.

690
00:44:27.286 --> 00:44:28.586
My career was going really well.

691
00:44:28.606 --> 00:44:34.248
We faced some really tough news as a family in terms of health for our son.

692
00:44:35.568 --> 00:44:39.249
And I felt like, Lord, I've been faithful.

693
00:44:40.049 --> 00:44:41.229
Like, I've been faithful.

694
00:44:41.810 --> 00:44:44.590
I've tried to, you know, share you wherever I go.

695
00:44:44.650 --> 00:44:47.691
I've tried to live a life worthy of the calling that I've received.

696
00:44:48.920 --> 00:44:49.782
I deserve better than this.

697
00:44:50.243 --> 00:44:53.128
You know, what we're going through and I deserve a club back in England and all these things.

698
00:44:53.168 --> 00:44:55.272
And actually, we don't deserve anything.

699
00:44:55.733 --> 00:44:55.954
Yeah.

700
00:44:56.394 --> 00:44:59.320
You know, the only thing that we brought to our salvation was our mess.

701
00:44:59.821 --> 00:45:00.021
Mm-hmm.

702
00:45:00.892 --> 00:45:03.453
But God is so faithful to give us what we don't deserve.

703
00:45:03.753 --> 00:45:10.896
And it reminds me of the prodigal son, actually, because there are actually two lost sons in the story, not the one who just left.

704
00:45:10.916 --> 00:45:12.576
It was the one who was actually at home.

705
00:45:12.836 --> 00:45:13.176
Yeah.

706
00:45:13.457 --> 00:45:16.398
He didn't think he was lost, but he felt, I deserve my inheritance.

707
00:45:16.898 --> 00:45:17.618
I deserve it.

708
00:45:19.039 --> 00:45:19.679
So give it to me.

709
00:45:20.379 --> 00:45:23.580
And the older son still didn't know who the father was.

710
00:45:23.780 --> 00:45:25.421
So he actually showed that he was lost himself.

711
00:45:26.061 --> 00:45:27.842
So sometimes as Christians, we feel like we deserve more.

712
00:45:28.822 --> 00:45:33.365
But that being said, God's purposes and plans for us far outweigh our own desires for ourselves.

713
00:45:33.445 --> 00:45:34.146
And he is so faithful.

714
00:45:34.166 --> 00:45:38.249
It might not look like it, but he is so faithful to a point where he's playing in France.

715
00:45:38.729 --> 00:45:42.312
And I said, Lord, as a family, we really need to be rooted back in England now.

716
00:45:43.857 --> 00:45:51.921
I refused to let my wife and son go back and me to be without them because just the way our unit is, we're really strong as a team, not so great, divided.

717
00:45:52.721 --> 00:45:55.783
And I felt as a husband, as a family shepherd, I felt like I need to be there for them.

718
00:45:55.823 --> 00:45:57.124
But my career is going so well here.

719
00:45:57.144 --> 00:45:59.705
I said, Lord, please, would you give us a club in England?

720
00:46:01.269 --> 00:46:03.030
Anyway, my wife dreams quite prophetically.

721
00:46:03.311 --> 00:46:05.052
So when she dreams, I listen to her dreams.

722
00:46:06.213 --> 00:46:07.153
I had a dream last night.

723
00:46:07.174 --> 00:46:08.915
Oh, what was it?

724
00:46:09.035 --> 00:46:11.357
I had a dream that you were holding up a red shirt.

725
00:46:11.717 --> 00:46:11.937
Wow.

726
00:46:12.758 --> 00:46:17.061
And we went downstairs to the kitchen and you open up the fridge and the fridge was full of watermelon.

727
00:46:17.601 --> 00:46:17.882
Okay.

728
00:46:17.962 --> 00:46:18.602
Well, what does that mean?

729
00:46:19.303 --> 00:46:20.423
Watermelon is my favorite fruit.

730
00:46:21.204 --> 00:46:22.065
I felt in that dream.

731
00:46:22.505 --> 00:46:25.928
God is going to provide a club in red and you're going to give us what we desire.

732
00:46:26.768 --> 00:46:52.854
something that we really want okay the next day this is how god works we had a phone call from um the club in uh aberdeen in scotland a huge giant of scottish football red kit hi john can we do the deal try to make the deal happen deal fell for i was like lord you have to be kidding me what's going on here two days later i got another call charlton athletic team in south

733
00:46:57.556 --> 00:47:07.590
we tried to do the deal the deal fell through as a lord you didn't need to do this to me this is painful the last day of the transfer window Nottingham Forest came in

734
00:47:09.485 --> 00:47:12.906
team that wears red, huge club in the Midlands.

735
00:47:14.446 --> 00:47:17.266
And we signed on loan there for the year.

736
00:47:18.127 --> 00:47:20.707
And on the outside, it looks like, oh, John Bost is coming home.

737
00:47:20.727 --> 00:47:28.769
But on the inside, as a family, we were desperate to be together and desperate for the Lord to really open up the door for us to be back home so my son could get the care.

738
00:47:28.809 --> 00:47:35.570
And also my wife, because she was carrying that weight of my son needing more than what he had been receiving in France.

739
00:47:36.370 --> 00:47:37.211
And that's just one story.

740
00:47:37.231 --> 00:47:41.253
And I mean, I'm sure we could all share stories of just God's faithfulness, where he came through at the right time.

741
00:47:41.293 --> 00:47:45.676
And if he didn't come through what we think is the right time, just because it wasn't his timing, he's so faithful.

742
00:47:45.696 --> 00:47:50.679
Scripture says that he who began a good work in you, he's faithful to bring it to completion.

743
00:47:50.759 --> 00:47:50.999
Yeah.

744
00:47:51.259 --> 00:47:52.460
So we don't need to try and force it.

745
00:47:53.080 --> 00:47:54.721
He's faithful to bring it to completion.

746
00:47:55.001 --> 00:47:59.884
Doesn't mean the journey is going to be easy because at that year at Forest, I thought, right, this is it, I'm back in England now.

747
00:48:00.205 --> 00:48:00.865
I'm going to shine.

748
00:48:00.885 --> 00:48:02.566
I'm going to take this team to back to the Premier League.

749
00:48:02.866 --> 00:48:03.367
I didn't play.

750
00:48:04.762 --> 00:48:07.984
I couldn't get Ben Watson, who was a player in front of me, out of the team.

751
00:48:08.284 --> 00:48:08.984
He was on fire.

752
00:48:09.725 --> 00:48:11.306
I'm thinking, Lord, here I am back in England.

753
00:48:11.326 --> 00:48:13.887
I've got one year loan to try and prove myself and get a contract here.

754
00:48:15.368 --> 00:48:19.370
Give it to us, you know, where we can be here, but beyond the years moving forward.

755
00:48:20.010 --> 00:48:20.171
And...

756
00:48:21.123 --> 00:48:21.883
I was there for a year.

757
00:48:21.963 --> 00:48:23.724
My son got rooted in England.

758
00:48:23.804 --> 00:48:24.425
So did my wife.

759
00:48:24.485 --> 00:48:29.167
And so although it was great on paper, still at the end of the year, I had to go back to France.

760
00:48:30.207 --> 00:48:30.948
So there was a sacrifice.

761
00:48:30.968 --> 00:48:35.390
When I went back to France, I had to make a sacrifice and cancel my contract and say, look, I love this club.

762
00:48:35.470 --> 00:48:38.331
I love my career here, but my priority is being home with my family.

763
00:48:39.112 --> 00:48:40.732
And I thought, God's going to bless me now in England.

764
00:48:40.752 --> 00:48:43.714
He's going to give me a great club because I sacrificed for my family.

765
00:48:43.834 --> 00:48:46.035
And I had to take a step down one or two levels.

766
00:48:46.775 --> 00:48:54.079
So I say all this to say that you can be a success in the eyes of the world, but still be a failure at home with your family.

767
00:48:54.179 --> 00:48:58.602
You can be a success in the eyes of the world, but still be off of God's purpose and plans for you.

768
00:48:59.002 --> 00:48:59.922
But the opposite is true.

769
00:49:00.443 --> 00:49:06.886
You can be pleasing to God and be a faithful husband or father or partner or whatever role you have and the world not value you much.

770
00:49:06.906 --> 00:49:09.928
And that's okay because we're doing it for the audience of one.

771
00:49:10.728 --> 00:49:12.949
That's just one story of God's faithfulness over the years.

772
00:49:13.069 --> 00:49:13.749
And he's kept us.

773
00:49:13.889 --> 00:49:19.592
You know, I think about the fact that when I started Ballers and God, my wife was with my son, you know, always faithfully looking after me while I'm doing the meetings.

774
00:49:19.652 --> 00:49:21.893
And she was never a part of the meetings in that way.

775
00:49:22.313 --> 00:49:23.674
And now she's serving alongside me.

776
00:49:23.834 --> 00:49:25.955
Now I'm out of the game and she's now having an impact.

777
00:49:25.975 --> 00:49:27.715
You think, God, you're just so faithful.

778
00:49:28.636 --> 00:49:32.317
So anyway, that's the one story of God's hand behind the scenes in my life.

779
00:49:33.258 --> 00:49:33.478
Wow.

780
00:49:33.662 --> 00:49:34.843
That's so beautiful.

781
00:49:35.203 --> 00:49:38.746
I love that like you guys get to serve alongside each other.

782
00:49:38.766 --> 00:49:41.589
I bet that's such a gift for you.

783
00:49:41.689 --> 00:49:45.092
And it's like such a joy to get to do that together.

784
00:49:46.773 --> 00:49:49.235
Just to land before we land, one last question.

785
00:49:49.756 --> 00:49:59.344
What would be some advice that you'd give to young ballers out there who are, I guess, maybe having their debut scene or whatever it is?

786
00:49:59.984 --> 00:50:01.946
What would be your advice to them?

787
00:50:02.721 --> 00:50:03.501
Great question.

788
00:50:04.261 --> 00:50:12.743
I think football is probably the most individualistic team game where, yes, we are a team, but we want to shine.

789
00:50:12.763 --> 00:50:18.605
There's been times when I've been on the bench and I haven't wanted my team to do well because I wasn't playing.

790
00:50:18.865 --> 00:50:20.185
I hate to admit it, but it's just true.

791
00:50:20.985 --> 00:50:21.965
I'll be honest.

792
00:50:22.746 --> 00:50:24.446
And footballers will know exactly what I'm talking about.

793
00:50:25.166 --> 00:50:28.287
Where the person playing in front of you scores, you're like, yes, oh, no, he scored.

794
00:50:28.307 --> 00:50:29.587
I don't want to play for another few weeks.

795
00:50:30.287 --> 00:50:32.368
So I think it's helping players to realise that

796
00:50:33.469 --> 00:50:35.090
naturally, we all want it to be about us.

797
00:50:37.712 --> 00:50:40.474
The bigger picture is that it's not about you, your story.

798
00:50:40.734 --> 00:50:44.277
It's not just about your story, your name, your fame, your glory.

799
00:50:44.437 --> 00:50:52.283
Actually, if you're able to just have open hands, yes, it might feel uncomfortable with your career because naturally you want to hold on tight.

800
00:50:52.984 --> 00:50:55.366
But if your hands are closed, it's very hard to receive more.

801
00:50:56.527 --> 00:50:59.909
If your hands are open, yes, you might lose what you have, but you're able to receive more.

802
00:51:00.210 --> 00:51:00.370
Mm-hmm.

803
00:51:01.030 --> 00:51:06.115
more of God's leading, more of his intimacy, being a part of the bigger picture, what he's doing in culture.

804
00:51:06.715 --> 00:51:14.662
And so I would advise any player growing up who's got a faith or exploring faith, it's realised firstly, God loves you beyond what you do.

805
00:51:15.763 --> 00:51:17.705
He loves you for who you are because you're his.

806
00:51:18.866 --> 00:51:20.347
Performances will try to...

807
00:51:23.189 --> 00:51:36.997
lock you into your identity and you'll be sometimes felt feel like a failure if you play bad which is normal for an athlete but ultimately our identity is not something you can achieve or earn it's something that you receive from the lord

808
00:51:37.777 --> 00:51:41.681
And secondly, I would say, you know, really think about who you're doing life with.

809
00:51:42.082 --> 00:51:43.804
I keep mentioning we're made for community.

810
00:51:44.424 --> 00:51:49.110
So if it's a local church community, if it's local Bible studies or people who are like mind, get plugged in.

811
00:51:49.710 --> 00:51:50.832
I used to think I could do it alone.

812
00:51:51.713 --> 00:51:53.835
It was an unwise thought process.

813
00:51:54.115 --> 00:51:55.277
You can't do life alone.

814
00:51:55.297 --> 00:51:56.578
You weren't made to do life alone.

815
00:51:56.698 --> 00:51:56.998
Yeah.

816
00:51:57.199 --> 00:51:58.140
We were made for community.

817
00:51:58.160 --> 00:51:59.101
We're the family of God.

818
00:51:59.702 --> 00:52:01.765
Um, so those are two things I would say.

819
00:52:01.885 --> 00:52:05.009
Firstly, realize that you are loved beyond your performances.

820
00:52:05.790 --> 00:52:07.853
Your identity is received, not achieved.

821
00:52:07.894 --> 00:52:12.220
And also get plugged in, get plugged into people running the same race.

822
00:52:12.540 --> 00:52:12.741
Wow.

823
00:52:13.021 --> 00:52:14.283
Um, cause we all need it.

824
00:52:15.789 --> 00:52:16.990
Thank you so much, John.

825
00:52:17.430 --> 00:52:34.285
Thank you so much for giving us a window into into this world, into your world and to like hear the faithfulness of God in your story and your family story, but also just how great God is using this ministry.

826
00:52:34.845 --> 00:52:49.367
um how can people get in touch if they wanted to like I'm talking more about the bowlers if there are any bowlers listening but how can they get in touch with you um if they want to be a part of that community but also like I guess fans as well

827
00:52:49.647 --> 00:53:11.121
yeah yeah how can they best support your ministry thank you i mean in terms of support the first thing we say is please pray for us god's doing an incredible work and you can partner with us in the place of prayer um please pray that more footballers will come to know jesus that god would make himself known in the world of football families as well um also the women's game we're really passionate about the women's game as well um

828
00:53:12.041 --> 00:53:13.203
And so be praying for that.

829
00:53:13.263 --> 00:53:22.454
But in terms of getting in touch and if you're a baller or if you want to get to know our journey and just be involved with what we're doing, follow us online on Instagram, Ballers in God.

830
00:53:22.614 --> 00:53:24.837
We're on all social outlets.

831
00:53:24.877 --> 00:53:25.577
Drop us a message.

832
00:53:26.158 --> 00:53:26.799
We've got a great team.

833
00:53:26.819 --> 00:53:27.580
We'll get back to you.

834
00:53:29.242 --> 00:53:42.837
and yeah we host meetings for pro and elite players behind the scenes but publicly we also have Instagram lives where you can interact and gain gauge yeah consume our content and we believe you'll be encouraged so that's what I'd say

835
00:53:43.097 --> 00:53:59.993
amazing guys so make sure you go do that if you want to um support these guys and be a part of their ministry because we really really love them and but yeah thank you guys for tuning in and hopefully this um podcast blessed you as much as it blessed us i definitely feel so encouraged i

836
00:54:03.296 --> 00:54:17.824
yeah so make sure to send this to people that you think would really i guess be blessed by listening to the story and to see what god is doing in the world of football um but yeah thank you guys bless you guys and see you in the next episode see you soon bye