We Won!

by Patrice Tsague, RCE Partner

And He said to them, "What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad?" Luke 24:17

To win means to obtain the advantage over the opposition. Another definition is to successfully achieve set goals and objectives. When our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was sent to earth by His Father, His assignment was to give up His life in exchange for the salvation of all those who would believe in Him. He came to establish a family of believers called the body of Christ who would continue to carry out His message.

To accomplish His mission, He recruited 12 disciples. He trained and equipped them to carry out His message throughout the earth after His return to His father. Although one of the disciples betrayed Him, which was a part of the plan, Jesus accomplished His objectives. After His death and resurrection, He found His disciples perplexed, sad, and confused because it was the third day, and they had not seen Him. They concluded that the goal He set forth was not accomplished. He did not rise as He said He would. The disciples must have thought, "Everything He taught us was not true. What are we to do now?"

As they were having their pity party, Jesus Himself drew near them and began to listen in. "Why are you so sad?" He asked. "Why are you talking so negatively?" They responded by reciting to Him what happened; how the Christ was supposed to rise after His death, but it had not happened. He responded by rebuking them and reminding them of the scriptures and then revealing Himself to them as the risen Christ. Here He was! Jesus' disciples had been walking around defeated, sad, talking negatively in unbelief, and thinking they had lost, when they had actually won!

Many of us may currently have the same attitude. Because of what we are seeing, hearing, and experiencing in the current economic crisis, we conclude our fight is lost. But I have news for you: We have won!

Yes, winning is an attitude, and the person who has a winning attitude will be the ultimate winner. Jesus said in John 16:33, "In this world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." The Psalmist said in Psalm 34:19, "Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all." No matter what you are going through right now, you must maintain the attitude of a winner. Remember, a high price was paid for your victory.

Maintaining a winning attitude is not easy, given the fact that although we are called in scripture to live by faith, many of us are continuously led by sight. We allow what we see, feel, and experience to influence our state of being, thus determining the outcome of our objectives. In order to maintain a winning attitude, you must practice the following mental disciplines:

1. Focus on your relationship with the Lord: The most precious and valued asset you have is your relationship with the Lord; do not allow anything to interfere with that.
2. Keep a consistent mental diet of the Word of God through personal study and hearing the word: Our attitude is shaped by the information we receive. Put the word of God in you through your personal devotions and listen to Bible-based teachings, because faith comes by hearing.
3. Maintain a steady prayer life: Pray without ceasing. Constant communication with your Father is essential to achieving a Kingdom assignment.
4. Keep your eyes on the prize: Your ultimate reward is not here but in eternity.
5. Stay on mission: Your mission is the unique calling that God has placed on your life. Your personal mission rarely changes although the strategies for achieving your mission certainly can change. Do not confuse your mission with your strategy.
6. Change strategies when necessary: Be flexible and adjust your plans based on new information and circumstances. When things are not working, seek the Lord for a new direction; one where you can experience His grace and blessing. Do not stay stubbornly committed to a strategy that may have been a good idea at one time, but the Lord is not blessing it now. This is not giving up; it is merely being flexible. Giving up is allowing life's challenges and circumstances to cause you to abandon the pursuit of God's plan for your life. Never give up on your mission.
7. Walk by faith and not by sight: Do not allow external circumstances to influence your feelings and emotions. Be directed by your internal belief and the Word of God.

These seven things will keep you on the winning side every time. Remember, in spite of how you feel and what you are going through, we have won. All you have to do now is execute. As you execute, stay away from losers and surround yourself with other winners. A loser is someone who allows circumstances to determine his outcome. A loser maintains a negative and defeated attitude that is contagious. A winner is someone who has an attitude of success. The winner knows that no matter what, he has the advantage-because he has already won!

Copyright © 2008 Patrice Tsague ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.