26 May 2026

We watched ‘Dear England’ on the television. It was based on James Graham’s play about Gareth Southgate and his extraordinary leadership of the England men’s football team. It is an exploration of the transformation which he made to the fortunes of the team.

There were two significant strategies. The first was the employment of a psychologist to work on  enabling the footballers to open up emotionally – to acknowledge fear, to work through failure and to find some joy in playing their football..

The second was to give the players a sense of history. They were part of a long line of England footballers stretching back to 1872. He worked out what number each player was in this national line-up. Harry Kane had an England  legacy number of 1207.

He wrote a letter, ‘Dear England’ and concluded, ‘But the reality is that the result is just a small part. It’s about how we conduct ourselves. And how we bring people together. That lasts beyond the summer. That lasts forever.’ Perspective. Relationships. Unity and love which is eternal.

The Kirk can learn from these two strategies. Our life is centred on the fulfilment of ‘The Five Marks of Mission’. We are looking for a successful outcome. But the Gospel is not about success but failure. The Kirk needs to explore the emotional dichotomy between aspiring to success and living with failure.

The Kirk and, in particular, worship has become flat-lined. We have lost our historical perspective which gives two things. Firstly, an enlarged perspective. We are not alone we belong to something much bigger than ourselves. Secondly, our distinct identity. Preaching, Presbyterianism, Psalm singing, the priesthood of all believers.