As I explained in an article a few weeks back, I got more into reading this summer. One book I read was “The Ragamuffin Gospel” by Brennan Manning. This is one of those books I had heard lots of people talk about over the years, so I had good expectations going in. I’m not going to say it was a book I couldn’t put down or that it drastically changed my perspective because that wouldn’t be the truth. However, there is a phrase from the book that has run through my head many times since reading it.
“We are victors regardless of how we have played the game.”
I don’t know about you, but when I read that, I breathed a sigh of relief. Over the past few years, as I’ve grown in my faith, I also have grown in awareness of my sin. I have become painfully aware of the depravity within myself. And I think what happened is that as I became more aware of how broken I am, the harder I tried to put myself back together. I saw life as a race against others but even more so, I saw it as a race against myself. I needed to make sure I was doing everything I could to be “less sinful”. And when I messed up, no one was more disappointed in me than myself. I would beat myself up and ask for forgiveness over and over again. Of course, asking for forgiveness is a GOOD and NECESARRY thing. But I had to ask myself, why was I asking for forgiveness? Was I asking because I felt I had wronged God or was I asking because I wanted to clear a guilty conscious of my own?
Along with trying to be “less sinful” came trying to be a “good Christian”. The term “good Christian” is one I despise but also one that I think I use too often. I mean really think about it, what does it mean to be a good Christian? What does it mean to be a bad Christian? I don’t think God looks at us and sees us in a hierarchy ranging from “good” to “bad” or “more saved” to “less saved”. But I know He looks at all of us and simply sees “saved”, “redeemed”, “victorious”.
What would happen if we began living like that? What would happen if we stopped striving, pushing, and running to win and instead embraced the fact that we already have. I think if we stopped wasting our time trying to “win” spiritually, we would actually have more time to do the things we’re actually called to as Christians. Like help those in need, show kindness to everyone, be a friend to the lonely. A mind that is set on “winning” is a mind that is set on itself. We are called to have a mind set on others.
I think in summary this is what this phrase “we are victors regardless of how we have played the game” has taught me. Live in the freedom Christ has won for you. Don’t be motivated to live your life for Christ because you’re trying to win. Be motivated to live for Christ because you know that you’ve already won. Remember, you’ve already been announced as a victor.
