Session 13

Winning often doesn’t look the way we think

From Win at Home: A 14-Day Devotional

Some wins don’t result in trophies or medals. Just ask the mom who had three hours of sleep, but still got everyone to school on time. Or the student, who after months of studying, pulled their grade up from a D to a B. Often, life’s greatest victories are over the internal battles no one else sees.

God’s plans for our lives go far beyond a white picket fence and 2.5 kids. Winning at home happens as He builds our character and grows our faith. That is good news when life is good, and it’s even better news when life is tough.

If winning at home isn’t about having it all together, it means we can win even when we’re suffering. If winning at home is as much about persevering as it is about overcoming, then we’re winning even if the battle is far from done.

The reason a Christian can look at life’s the hardest struggles and call them “light and momentary afflictions” is because we know that this world and all its brokenness is coming to an end. And when it does, we will carry the gifts God gives us in affliction with us into eternity.

We never really know what we’re capable of until we’re pushed behind our comfort zone. The same thing happens in our relationship with God. We see and experience new aspects of God’s character when we’re forced beyond what’s comfortable.

That is Jesus’ message in Matthew 5: “You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule. You’re blessed when you feel you’ve lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you” (Matthew 5:3-4, MSG).

No matter how broken things seem at home, fix your eyes on God. For there’s far more to winning than what you can see right now.

Reflect:

• Has there ever been a time when you lost, but still felt like a winner? What did you learn from that experience?
  
• What’s one way that loss and suffering have changed you for the better?