LOSERS VS WINNERS
LOCATION:
Colossians 3:23 Whatever you do, do it enthusiastically, as something done for the Lord and not for men.
HEADLINE:
“You are never a loser until you quit trying” Mike Ditka, Super Bowl winning coach
GAME SUMMARY:
We can always feel like winners, when we know we have tried our hardest.
My team, the Byng Lady Pirates went into the 4A Oklahoma Fastpitch District Playoffs, feeling pretty good about how we were playing. However, I don't think most people thought we had it in us to make any kind of run in the playoffs. After all we had lost a bunch of games and we were unranked. We were one of the smallest schools in our class but boy were they wrong! After winning the first two games of a three game series against our rival Ada, we were District Champs, and on our way to Regionals.
As a sophomore during playoffs, I was a little nervous. The first game of Regionals was against the mighty Cache team that had won state the previous year. We played hard but Cache got the best of us and handed us our 1st loss in a double elimination format. It was time for our second round of regionals, nerves were kicking in and all I could think about was pitching strikes.
It was the bottom of the seventh inning, we were down two runs and up to bat. There was a full count and two outs on one of our seniors, Layna Abbott. There were two runners on base and from the dugout I sensed the tension. I was standing there nervous and all I could do was hope. The next thing you know, Layna was standing on third base giving the Coach a high-five. I remember hugging our 2nd baseman, Alexis, and thinking “yeah, we’re about to win this.” When the inning ended the score was 5-5.
After shutting them out in the eighth we were ready to finish. They scored one and it was our last turn to bat. We were all nervous hoping someone would do something big, but it just didn‘t happen. That game was full of web jems, clutch hits, and a lot of cheering. We weren’t meant to win that day. The ending score was 6-5 after nine innings, but everyone watching that day left knowing there wasn't a loser on the field.
Sometimes after a loss like that, you still feel like you won because you gave it your all and were beat by a better team. As a Christian in life and sports you will go through many hard times and even feel like a "loser", but remember God created all of us to be winners in the good and the bad times. Stay strong in your faith and ask forgiveness for your sins and you will be a winner for Jesus!!
MVP:
2013 Byng Lady Pirates fastpitch softball team
RECAP:
Have you ever done well at something when no one was expecting you to (class project, a game, etc.)?
If so, what was it and how did you feel at the time? Did that cause you to raise your personal expectations?
Did you feel disappointed the next time when you didn’t do as well?
The Scriptures say to rejoice in all things. Does this mean we should rejoice, win or lose? When we trust Jesus, even when we are weak, the Holy Spirit makes us strong. Where in your life do you feel you need to rely on the Holy Spirit for your strength?
Knowing it’s about doing your best is what counts.
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