In the spotlight

There has been a lot in the press this week about Kaka, and the £100 million transfer negotiations going on around his possible move to Manchester City.

Worth it?
Such events inevitable raise lots of questions and comments on all manner of things, ranging from whether it's right to spend so much money on one person, to whether or not one superstar player can change to fortunes of a football club. Time will no doubt reveal the answer on the latter question. What is certain is that from time to time someone comes along who changes the course of history; Alexander the Great, Comwell ,Churchill, Einstein...pick your own hero. One such person that changed the course of history is Jesus Christ.

A man of influence?
Christ's impact and influence has endured down the years, bringing joy, comfort, wisdom, freedom and hope to countless millions. He is one man that literally changed history. Love Him or hate Him Jesus' influence is beyond doubt. Time will tell what impact Kaka makes on Manchester City's trophy cabinet, but what will matter more will be what personal impact Kaka makes on those who come into contact with him, whether that contact is as a team mate, football fan, or neighbour. No one who has followed Kaka for any length of time will have no doubt of the eternal impact Jesus has made on his life. Kaka is clearly proud to be a disciple of Jesus, he is keenly aware that a value much higher than £100 million was put on his life. What's more Kaka knows that Jesus paid that price, willingly giving up His life so that Kaka might have eternal life.

The ultimate transfer deal
There was never a more expensive "transfer deal" than when Jesus paid the price for our sins on the cross, whatever is paid for Kaka by Man City, it's small change to what has already been paid for each one of us. The question is will we follow in Kaka's foosteps and show our gratitude to Jesus by submitting gladly to Jesus as Lord?

In the spotlight?
For those of us who are Christians, I'd like to encourage people to pray for people like Kaka. We know how hard it can be to walk in the light and live as we should. How hard must it be to stay "in the light", when you are high profile and contantly tracked by the media spotlight? It's particularly hard in the UK at this time when the tabloids would love nothing more than publish a story portraying high profile Christians like Kaka as nothing more than hypocrites. Let's pray that our Father strengthens Kaka for the battles ahead, and that Kaka influences many for the Kingdom!