“Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.” (Romans 8:35-37 NLT)
It was a late afternoon, but you could not tell it when you entered the locker room of a highly touted team, destined to win a title at the end of the season. Heads were bent down, jerseys were thrown down, and the facial expression of all the players was down. It was indeed a down moment. Lockers were opened with force, displaying a sign of anger. No one could downplay the high level of disappointment. After showering, the team members threw their sweaty towels down on the concrete floor of the equipment room. That might have been the best “shooting” of the night. Eventually everyone is dressed and ready to depart, but the departure is delayed waiting for the coach to come in and deliver his post-game speech. The coach does not disappoint the team. He enters the locker room, opens the door with force and it slams against the grey wall, seemingly an appropriate color for the day. He tells the team to have a seat. He paces back and forth, either patiently waiting for everyone to comply with his command to be seated or he was preoccupied with coming up with just the right words to say or he was praying that he would communicate in an appropriate way.
The coach did not talk about individual failings or the team’s failure to win the game. He did not place a sense of guilt on any one player, and he did not go over any highlights or the lowlights that led to their team’s loss. Here is an unofficial transcript of what he said. “You do not go out the floor to impress anyone in the crowd. You do not play to win a letter to place on your school jacket or sweater. You did not enter the game to sway the interests of any scouts around. You were not out there to merely get your name in the box score. You went out there to win. What you lacked was the winning mentality. You had the talent, but let me emphasize again, ‘You lacked the winning mentality!” The coach headed for the door, but suddenly he stopped, turned around, and said two words with a loud, strong voice; in a tone that revealed his seriousness about the winning mentality. He says, “Find it!” The team did “find it” and won the next 20 straight games, all because they embraced the winning mentality.
Well my friend, regardless – of your age, your generation, your race, your ethnicity, your place of origin, or the space where you presently live; regardless – if you are in school are out of school, there is something you need to know that pertains to your Christian walk. What am I talking about? It is Friday, “game time,” the start of the weekend and Friday is one of the most challenging days when it comes to winning against the tempter’s enticement for you to forego the all-out effort to have a victorious experience. I’ll be transparent. I remember those days well. Expected to win like the highly touted team above, I lost more than one game in the long season called life or referred to as “The Christian journey.” What was the reason? I lacked the winning mentality. This Friday, I am determined to have the winning mentality! I am determined to be more than a conqueror! I have decided to have the victory! You are a member of the same team I am on; the universal church! Coach Jesus wants you to do the same. If you got up without the winning mentality, “Find it!” Sing the “team song” below! Have a great start to your weekend! Be blessed!
“Victory is mine! Victory is mine! Victory today is mine. I told Satan to get thee behind, victory today is mine.”
Still committed to the climb,
Mark L. King