I'm Dave.
Jesus-follower. Schoolsworker. Family father. Gym-goer. Wall-climber. Other things too!
I'm grateful to be living life in relationship with God and want to help others join the adventure!
I hope these links help you! There's quite a lot of stuff on this blog from over the years so you might want to use the search bar at the bottom of this page to see what you can find!
Fair enough.
Personally, I love it. I've always enjoyed playing around with tech to see what I can get it to do. This is just the latest way I've been doing that. I'm fascinated by what AI is capable of. When it comes to Suno, I've enjoyed making music that I can enjoy (and maybe others too). Punk and metal versions of psalms and ancient hymns (copyright free). For me it's a great way to enjoy and soak up words and ideas that I love when I'm in the gym or in the car.
I don't think the best musicians have anything to worry about either. I've loved creating music on Suno but none of it comes close to being as good as my favourite bands. Plus AI can't do live shows... or have its own fun!
AI is getting better and better at producing content. So maybe human beings should focus on what only human beings can do - physical skills and talents, inter-personal connection (in real life!), and yes, maybe producing content too - but it'll have to knock the spots off what AI can do - and that means it'll have to be REALLY good! Or we'll just create stuff we enjoy - not because it's the best, but simply for the joy of it - and that's something else that AI can never take away. It can't have fun. But we can!
AI is a handy tool to help us if we enjoy what it can do. And if you don't, that's fine too! :)
Reading Colossians 2:6–23, one phrase keeps appearing again and again:
“In him.”
“In Christ.”
Paul uses it constantly — because it’s at the very heart of what it means to be a follower of Jesus. It’s about our position and our privileges. We aren’t just following Christ from a distance; we’re actually in Him. Connected. Secure. Alive.
But what does that really mean? Here are a few ways to picture it.
1. The Plane
If I want to get to Italy, I need a relationship with the aeroplane.
I could stand under it, follow behind it, or admire it from a distance — but none of those will get me to my destination.
The only way is to be in the plane.
Once I’m in, what’s true of the plane becomes true of me.
If the plane goes up, I go up.
If the plane lands safely, I land safely.
Paul says we’ve been buried with Christ and raised with Him.
What’s true of Jesus is now true of us — because we’re in Him.
2. The Roots
Verse 7 says we are rooted in Him.
Think of a plant in soil — all its strength, nourishment, and stability come from where it’s planted.
If you pull the plant out of the soil, it dies.
Christ is our soil — the one who feeds us, grounds us, and keeps us standing firm.
When we’re rooted in Him, we grow.
3. The Ark
In the story of Noah, everyone inside the ark was safe.
Everyone outside was not.
Jesus is like that ark.
Verses 13–15 remind us of the security we have in Christ — forgiven, made alive, and protected by His victory on the cross.
If we’re in Him, we’re safe.
4. The Clothing
To be “clothed in Christ” is like wearing a bright yellow hi-vis jacket.
People assume you know something about what’s going on!
When we’re clothed in Jesus, the Father looks at us and sees His Son.
Jesus becomes our identity — our “uniform.”
We are in Him.
Don’t Add to What Jesus Has Done
Paul’s writing to correct some “wonky” ideas in Colossae.
People were being drawn away by hollow philosophies and human traditions.
They were turning discipline and self-denial into gods.
Even spiritual gifts — good things — had become ultimate things.
The same can happen today.
We can turn noble causes, politics, or personal convictions into our main thing — and lose sight of the main thing: Jesus.
We can’t add anything to what He did on the cross.
When we try, we only take away from it.
Stay Connected to the Head
Paul says some had “lost connection with the Head” (v19).
In 1 Corinthians 12, he also calls Christ the Head of the body — the source of life and direction.
Without the Head, the body can’t function.
We’re called to stay connected to Him.
That’s where real growth happens — because He is the one doing the building (v19).
A New Status
Because of the cross, we now live in the victory Christ won for us.
It’s like having a new passport — we’re citizens of heaven!
Our status has changed, even though our location hasn’t.
We’re no longer defined by our past, but by who we are in Him.
So What Now?
If we’re in the plane, should we just sit back and enjoy the flight?
Paul would say no — and Romans 6 makes that clear.
We don’t live passively or carelessly; we live gratefully.
I don’t read my Bible because I have to — I read it because I get to.
I pray because I want to know Christ more.
Nothing I do can change my relationship status before God — but spending time with Him helps me live out that reality.
So let’s get in the plane.
Let’s stay connected to the Head.
Let’s remain rooted in the soil of His love.
Let’s trust the One who carries us.
Don’t imitate Jesus from a distance — be in Him and stay there.
My workouts are 90 minutes each morning...
You can see my current training split here.
My food is:
So here's what I'm eating on a typical week at the moment in more detail. A lot of it might seem boring but I love it and there's enough variation for me personally to enjoy it.
Monday (Shake day)
BREAKFAST - Eggwhites and Toast
SNACK - Oatshake
LUNCH - Tuna & Chicken Sandwich
SNACK - Oatshake
DINNER - Beef Burger with Egg
PUDDING - Protein Yogurt Mix
Tuesday (Bar day)
BREAKFAST - Eggwhites and Toast with Oatshake
SNACK - Protein Bar
LUNCH - Tuna & Chicken Sandwich
SNACK - Protein Bar
DINNER - Beef Burger with Egg
PUDDING - Protein Yogurt Mix
Wednesday (Shake day)
BREAKFAST - Eggwhites and Toast
SNACK - Oatshake
LUNCH - Tuna & Chicken Sandwich
SNACK - Oatshake
DINNER - Beef Burger with Egg
PUDDING - Protein Yogurt Mix
Thursday (weigh-in day, treat day too!)
BREAKFAST - Eggwhites and Toast
SNACK - Big Cake (500 calories-ish)
LUNCH - Tuna & Chicken Sandwich
SNACK - Protein Bar
SNACK - 150g boiled potatoes
DINNER - Beef Burger with Egg
PUDDING - Protein Yogurt Mix
Friday (Shake day and Curry!!)
BREAKFAST - Eggwhites and Toast
SNACK - Oatshake
LUNCH - Tuna & Chicken Sandwich
SNACK - Oatshake
DINNER - Curry!!
PUDDING - Protein Yogurt Mix
Saturday (Bar day)
BREAKFAST - Eggwhites and Toast, Oatshake
SNACK - Protein Bar (bigger cookie one)
LUNCH - Tuna & Chicken Sandwich
SNACK - Protein Bar
DINNER - Beef Burger with Egg
PUDDING - Protein Yogurt Mix
Sunday (Bar day)
BREAKFAST - Eggwhites and Toast, Oatshake
SNACK - Protein Bar
LUNCH - Tuna & Chicken Sandwich
SNACK - Protein Bar
DINNER - Beef Burger with Egg
PUDDING - Protein Yogurt Mix
And right now I'm also loving swapping my pudding for the following...
Microwave Protein Cake!!
I'm also really enjoying it because 90-minute workouts 7 days a week means I can eat more! Plus, the cardio time gives me time for watching stuff or getting through audiobooks, which helps pass the time but also makes me feel like I'm achieving other things as well as a physical workout.
My goals are to maintain muscle and good fitness, maybe build more muscle if I can, whilst keeping low body fat (currently around 15%). I'm feeling lean, fit, strong and enjoying bouldering so being strong and light helps with that too. I'm happy to gain weight but ideally muscle rather than fat. This plan seems to be working well for my goals at the moment. I'm sticking to the workouts and finding it easy these days to be up at 4.30am for the time to myself at the gym before the busy day kicks off! This does mean I go to bed anywhere between 8.30 and 10pm latest but that's good for me too and seems to be sustainable.
My food is:
See here for my current food plan in detail
For the lifting part of my workouts, I've been using a HIIT timer to try and not waste any time having longer rests than I need. I set the app as follows:
If I'm working out for an hour I'll hit GO again on this and do another 5 exercises.
For the cardio I'm doing 1-1 intervals for fitness.
So here's my split:
Mondays - 60 minutes Upper Body, 30 minutes cardio
Exercises:
1. Chest press (usually machine)
2. Chest flies (machine)
3. Shrugs (cables)
4. Shoulder press (usually machine)
5. Lateral raises (cables/dumbbells)
6. Lat pulldowns (machine)
7. Seated rows (machine)
8. Bicep curls (dumbbells/cables)
9. Tricep extensions (cables usually)
10. Decline situps/leg raises
Then 30 minutes intervals on the bike usually
Tuesdays - 30 minutes Legs, 60 minutes cardio
Exercises:
1. Seated squats, wide stance and super deep (machine)
2. Seated squats, narrower stance, heavier, hit quads (machine)
3. Calf raises (on seated squat machine too)
4. Leg extension machine
5. Leg curl machine for hamstrings
Then 60 minutes cardio - mix of machines
Wednesdays - 60 minutes Upper Body, 30 minutes cardio
Same as Monday
Thursdays - 90 minutes cardio
A mix of machines but often it's:
15 minutes on stairs
30 mninutes variable depth cross-trainer
30 minutes bike
15 minutes standard cross-trainer
Always 1-1 intervals to push myself
Fridays - 60 minutes Upper Body, 30 minutes cardio
Same as Monday
Saturdays - 30 minutes Legs, 60 minutes cardio
Same as Tuesday
Sundays - 90 minutes cardio
Same as Thursday
These are ones I use a lot at the moment for the stuff I make...
Chat GPT - All sorts of creative assistance
You can also ask it to make you an image. It might take a few tries to get it right but if you're specific and bossy enough it usually gets there in the end. But you only get a certain number of tries at once on the free version.
Click on 'Explore GPTs' for other things the AI can do for you. There's a slide maker that will give you a Powerpoint file to download. But if you're good at making nice looking slides, you may be disappointed. But still worth a play!
Unsplash.com - Copyright free images
Pexels - Copyright free clips for videos
Perchance - AI images
