The 2010 FIFA World Cup begins today. The Church of England has composed three prayers for the World Cup: two for the teams, the hosts and the fans - and one for those not interested. The prayers ask for blessings on all those involved, for generous sportsmanship and for the competition to be a source of celebration.

The prayer for those just not interested:

Lord, as all around are gripped with World Cup fever,

bless us with understanding,

strengthen us with patience and

grant us the gift of sympathy if needed.

Amen

Renewed strength for the weary

Following an earlier post that sparked interest in it, some of Infusion watched Chariots of Fire last night. In the film, Eric Liddell reads from Isaiah 40:

Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall;
but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.

[stained glass window in St Bernard's Church, Wengen, Switzerland]

What should Christians make of the Olympics?

As the 2008 Olympics draw to an end on a Sunday, you may be interested to read a thoughtful blog post on What should Christians, especially those who are non-sports fans, make of the Olympics?

Animal Olympics

I had been hoping that the 2008 Olympics might be an excuse for the BBC to show again two "documentaries" from earlier Games. In the run-up to the 2004 Olympic Games, BBC One's Animal Games proved to be a big hit with viewers. "Athletes" from the mammal, fish, bird, herptile (reptiles and amphibians) and insect worlds competed in human events. All competitors were scaled to human size to allow them to compete against each other. This was followed by the Animal Winter Olympics (which doesn't appear to be available as a DVD) in 2006.

The programmes were light-hearted but informative. An online photo gallery from Animal Games is available.

The obligatory Olympics post

The 2008 Olympic Games commence today after what seems to have been a very long build-up.

I caught this morning's TFTD on the Olympic Games are a metaphor for life itself with a reminder of Paul's use of this metaphor in 1 Corinthians 9. I also appreciated the mention of Olympic athlete Eric Liddell , who was immortalised in the film Chariots of Fire.

[Posted on 08/08/08]