Defeat!

August 6, 2020

Defeat!

There have not been very many times when I felt defeated.  But, the ones I have experienced have left marks that still linger in my soul.

My high school football coach put me in with the kick-off team and then called a time out to pull me out of the game; that felt like defeat!  I don’t harbor any ill feelings towards that coach.  I just felt sorry for my father who took time off of work to watch one of his sons sit on the bench for an entire season.

My first serious girl friend told me “We are just friends” just before we left school at the end of the spring semester; that felt like defeat!  There are no hard feelings towards her.  I learned what I wanted in a life partner and was later blessed with the woman of God’s choosing. 

My boss decided to transfer me to a different city without first explaining the rationale for the decision; that felt like defeat!  I have moved on from the pain of being dishonored by that person.  I was given an opportunity to serve Christ in ways neither I nor my boss could have ever imagined.

My father died after several months of hospitalizations, rehabilitation centers, and hospice; that felt like defeat!  There are still days when I miss my father.  But, the life-lessons he taught me and the pride he took in me will never die.

Sometimes the defeats we experience leave a mark in our soul.  Some say the experience of defeat shapes our character.  That may be true.  But, what is more important is how our defeats clarify who we are.    

The good news is your temporary circumstances do not define who you are or what you are worth.  No matter what you are enduring, how deep your pain, or how devastating the defeat, you are still a child of God who is loved and accepted and of immeasurable worth.

Your temporary circumstance may be an illness or an addiction or the memory of being abused.  Your temporary circumstance may be too few resources, too few friends, or too few opportunities.  It does not matter what is going on around you, you are still a child of God who is loved and accepted and of immeasurable worth.

Our circumstances are temporary as long as they do not keep us feeling defeated.  The answer to our temporary defeats is an eternal promise.  The promise is that Jesus will always be present with you, Jesus will always protect you, and Jesus will always provide for you.  Jesus will help you win the victory over the defeat that today you believe is impossible. 

You are more than your temporary circumstances; you are a precious child of God!  The light of Jesus’ love is about to shine on the darkness of your defeat.  In Ephesians 1:18 we hear a prayer; “My prayer is that light will flood your hearts and that you will understand the hope that was given to you when God chose you.  Then you will discover the glorious blessings that will be yours together with all of God’s people.”

Jesus will shine light on the darkness of your defeat.  Jesus will give you hope in your temporary circumstances.  Jesus is about to pour out a “glorious blessing” on all who trust Him more than they fear their next defeat.

When that “glorious blessing” comes it will destroy our defeat, crush our challenges, and open a way through our obstacles.  When that blessing comes we will trust Christ rather than fear our circumstances.  Our hearts will skip a beat as we take delight in the Lord’s glorious blessing.

Take Delight In The Lord!

Doug