STADIUM OF DREAMS (AND GRASS)
June 24 Saturday 2006

As most of you already know, I’m a massive fan of the World Cup Rugby Sevens. It’s held every year in Hong Kong Stadium, and is probably the single biggest annual event in this part of Asia. I've seen hundreds of games, both live and on television, and it's always been my dream to someday touch that hallowed turf. Well, I finally got my chance at this years Global Day of Prayer.

This is the second year that Hong Kong has taken part in this historic event, where an estimated 200 million Christians, in more than 220 countries pray together on the same day in stadiums, concert halls, town centers, parks, schools, churches, homes and even prisons all over the globe.

Approximately 40,000 people turned up at Hong Kong Stadium to pray, and thanks to a last minute change in my exam schedule, I was able to be one of them. I was also given the opportunity to co-lead worship with Tom Read and The Vine Worship Band during the celebrations at the end of the night.

As the title suggests, some of my dreams were realized that day. Not only did I touch the grass, but I also got to play guitar and sing in the Stadium… Hong Kong Stadium! It was really something special; looking out across the luminous green pitch from the stage, seeing thousands of people going for it in worship, and singing the name of Jesus.

Three weeks have passed since then, and I still haven’t taken it all in. I sometimes feel like my mind is going to explode trying to absorb all that’s happened. I mean, It’s only been just over a month since we recorded The Vine's first live CD, and similarly, I never imagined that my childhood dream of being involved in something like that would come true...

But what I really want to write about is this: Five-time Grammy Award and Fifty-time Dove Award Winner, Steven Curtis Chapman made a special guest appearance at the Global Day of Prayer. What's special about that (apart from the obvious) is that the first Christian CD I ever bought was "Signs of Life" by Steven Curtis Chapman in a tiny little town called Builth Wells in Mid-Wales.

It's been over 10 years now, but I distinctly remember having dreams as a teenager that I'd be playing alongside Steven Curtis Chapman. Call it coincidence if you like, but I believe that it has God's handiwork all over it. And what makes it more amazing, is that I had these dreams before I'd ever picked up a guitar, or even considered getting involved with worship whatsoever.

So like I said, I really can't believe how much has happened in just the past month, both in Hong Kong and in my own life. I feel so incredibly blessed to be here... How wide, how deep and how great is His love for me.