“But all together they shouted out, “Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us.” (Now Barabbas had been imprisoned for a rebellion that had taken place in the city and for murder.) Again Pilate addressed them, still wishing to release Jesus, but they continued their shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”
Luke 23:18-21
What do you consider a “win”?
Your favorite football team is in the Superbowl, the score is tied and there is less than 1 min left on the clock, they kick a field goal – score, Superbowl champions. I’m sure everyone considers this a win.
You go to Vegas, play a few rounds, and the lights start flashing. People start to surround you as you realize you just hit $50,000. You won!
You’re an addict, you went to a recovery group meeting, you couldn’t breathe, could barely walk due to anxieties and all you could think about was using but you didn’t. Is this a win?
You’re pregnant, the father does not want the baby. You go to an abortion clinic, get the abortion pill and as you hold it in your hand, you decide to keep the baby. Is this a win?
I’ve been reflecting a lot on what “win” looks like. In each of the scenarios each person affected has won in some regard. Which won the most?
We know the crucifixion story. It is the greatest win in history, yet a story of intense suffering. Sitting on the sidelines – didn’t look good for Jesus.
I recall a counseling session with my ex-husband many years ago. My husband, at the time, was telling the counselor that God was love, and in our marriage, if there was no joy and happiness then it wasn’t meant to be in God’s plan because love equated to joy and happiness. I remember the counselor’s words so clearly afterward. He looked at my husband and said, “there is a story in the Bible that is love, but it wasn’t a happy moment.” The love at the foot of the cross is the most explicit “Win” for us. Yet, it was a moment of intense suffering as Jesus experienced so much suffering – physically and emotionally. This is the moment that we experience the greatest mercy of all time. A mercy that frees us from ourselves. A mercy that says even though we are broken and incapable of Heaven on our merit, Christ has won our ticket. We also know the rest of the story, Easter morning He is raised from the dead, and God’s glory is magnified…. for US.
When my sister last visited, we went to an addiction recovery group. She was so anxious when we left that she could barely breathe and barely walk. Not fully understanding what was happening, I tried my best to help calm her breathing and help her walk to the car. I couldn’t relate to what she was feeling at that moment. That evening, she spoke to a friend who told her to look at the wins. She was triggered, she was anxious, but she went to a meeting and didn’t use. It was a WIN.
Hearing that was a paradigm shift for me. That situation was a win? Wow – an awesome perspective of a situation that didn’t seem good as a WIN.
Why didn’t I see it as a win? All I saw was how difficult the situation was, the struggle I had to help her calm down, and get her in the car so we could go home. The friend was looking through the lens of God.
When we put on the lens God wants us to look through, we see wins in a different light. The Superbowl ring, the $50,000 are only temporary wins. They don’t have lasting impacts. God wants us to see the real wins, those that produce fruit for a lifetime, and lasting impacts.
When St. Ignatius of Loyola was recovering from surgery after his leg had been hit by a canon, he had a similar revelation. When he contemplated thoughts of being a valiant hero for the king, the happiness he felt was temporary but when he thought of himself like the saints, a warrior for Christ, consolation lasted longer. When our wins align with the material world, they are temporary but when they align with God’s Will in our lives, they are lasting impacts.
When wins produce HOPE that exudes from the core of our being, we are drawn closer in relationship with Christ. This hope aligns us to discipleship. It is the big WIN.
Imagine the impact a mom has when she chooses life, even when that choice is at the moment, she feels the most fear of making it. It only takes a grain of hope. It’s the same with the addict who chooses not to use. Or the person who chooses love over arguing.
These are monumental WINS as they move a person from a place of despair to a place of hope. St Paul in Romans 5:3-5 tells us that “affliction produces endurance, and endurance, proven character, and proven character, hope, and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the holy Spirit that has been given to us.”
I love that verse. Life’s struggles are truly some of the greatest gifts we could have, not because of the pain they produce but the endurance and the character. From that, hope emerges and with hope, love that pours out 10 fold. God can produce so much fruit through the pain we endure when we surrender it to the power of the Holy Spirit. I have seen this time and time again in my life and the lives of others.
I invite you to look at moments in your life that seem small, and inconsequential, where you made a choice that resulted in hope for you or others. You my friend produced a big WIN!
Women Who Walk By Faith 
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