In It To Win It!

Winning is not an event, a time and place, and an action. It is not the sudden celebration of being on top of your goals, your dreams, or your fights. Winning is much more than the comparatively brief moment of excitement when all is said and done, at the end of the day when you receive the reward of your labors.

Winning is an attitude. It is a way of life.

Winning is every second of all four quarters of a game. It is every burn and muscle ache of a marathon; it is every minute and hour of study, every moment of initiative and extra hard work, every decision to put away the weights and hinderances from you, regardless of how petty they may seem, or how long the temptation persists.

In everything a real winner does, he wins. The final score may not show it, the last blow may be the one that knocks him out of the rink, and the last shot that falls may be the nail in the coffin that sinks his every effort to come out on top. But he wins. He wins because no matter what he does, he leaves everything, his heart and his soul, on the floor and leaves that fight knowing he did his best. In victory, he cherishes it. In defeat, he learns from it, making it not a defeat for him, but a lesson.

Winning is an attitude.

"Yeah, doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,..." Phillipans 3:8

I have won many things, and in this world, there is much allurement out there to win and to succeed in various things. As with any winning, it comes with much sacrifice. But this is the part of winning that makes most people losers. It is hard, sometimes painful, to sacrifice in order to win. Consider a fighter, who gives up all foods that would hinder his physical shape or bodily systems, keeps a sleep log, trains for hours a day. etc. He gives his life, literally, to be the best fighter he can be. Or an athlete, who does similar routines in health and dieting, physical exercise and training. Or an elite soldier, who once again demostrates unquestioned determination in giving up his home and family to be the soldier he needs to be.

Winning takes sacrifice.

But to win Christ? As I stare in amazement at the phrase itself, it seems an impossibility. For one thing, he had to win me, sacrificing himself on Calvary! How could I win him?

This is ultimate sacrifice. It is not sacrificing family, food, fellowship, or life itself. It is being willing to sacrifice any and all of those things, including any honor you would receive for those sacrifices! At least with a fighter, you may enjoy the benefits of a healthy life and good self defense. At least as an athlete, you enjoy health and millions of dollars due to the idolizing of American sports today. As a soldier, should you truly give up life or limb, you will have much honor in this country, whether you died or were injured in an act of courage and bravery for this country and for your comrades. These are no small things to speak of.

But when you become a pursuant of winning Christ, it is of no benefit to you. It is all a benefit and glory to Christ! In the pursuit of winning Christ, you will have nothing of which to boast, nothing to claim, and should you sacrifice all, and "count them but dung," you will, in the end, hope against hope that you may get closer to understanding what Paul meant when he said, "Let this mind be in you..." You will chase that presence of God that demands ultimate sacrifice of self and pride. YOU gain nothing.....except the likeness of Christ!!! And even this serves only to glorify his name and further his cause, leaving you the with only the blessed priveledge of knowing you gave to him somewhat similar of what he gave to you. Self sacrifice is a pursuit in a Christians life that desires to make him more like Christ, so that you can aim to live in his steps, spending and being spent for others.

I can only hope that I can come close to pleasing my Saviour as much as he pleases me.

I don't suppose I will ever fully understand the concept of winning Christ. I can only pray and work, so that when I stand before him, he will say, "Well done!" If I could hear those words one day from my heavenly Father, I'd say that would be winning enough for me.

When you don't understand, just understand!

Sometimes we have a thought processes that lead us to believe that what we think is important. "I think....", "I believe...", etc. I have come to the conclusion that what we think is not only unimportant, but also unnecessary. We think too much instead of focusing on what we know.

In the military, it doesn't matter what you think. It matters what you know. In the academy where I work, there is a chain of command from the top to the bottom, and it doesn't matter what you think, it only matters what you know. The Christian life is no different.

In a battle situation for the military, you thinking could cost lives. It's not your job to think, and it's not your job to weigh options, it's only your job to act on what you know is right. Do. Quit thinking! When the order comes, don't think about it...just do it. It comes from the top, and you aren't going to be held responsible for the right or wrong of the order, only whether or not you obeyed.

That brings me to the point of this post. Sometimes things don't make sense. There always will be things that don't make sense. But when you don't understand, just understand this: you understanding is not a priority! When you understand that, understanding everything else becomes a commodity. We need to quit thinking like we as Christians have to understand things that happen.

I think of David...he was completely misunderstood. He did not understand why he couldn't be king from the day that God annointed him. But the important thing was he didn't let his lack of understanding God's doings get in the way of him allowing God to work on him. There are things you will never understand...and there are people who will never understand you. They misunderstood David and read into his actions because they had a plan. Others around him had reason to read into his actions so they could call him subversive. This was a plot to find reason for Saul to kill him.

There is not one whose actions have not been misread or read into. Everyone has been misunderstood at some point. None was misunderstood and misread like our Lord, though. He was killed for claiming to be who he was, being charged with blasphemy.

Like Christ did, and like David did, we should not worry about what we can't control, what others think, what we think about things we don't understand, and focus on what we know. And Christian, you know what's right! Quit thinking...just do right. If you do that, your misunderstood and misread actions will be explained by your steadfastness in what is the truth.
What's right? Do it...and leave the rest up to God to sort out.

Don't think. Do right.

I Am a Soldier

I am a soldier in the Army of my God

I promise to support and defend the Word Of God against all enemies!

The Lord Jesus Christ is my Commander in Chief, The Holy Spirit is my Secretary of Defence, The Holy Bible is my Code of Conduct, Faith, Prayer and the Word are my weapons of warfare!

I have been taught by the Holy Spirit, trained by experience, tried by adversity and tested by fire! I am a Volunteer in this Army, and I am enlisted for eternity! I will either retire from this Army at the Rapture..or die in this Army!

I will not get out, sell out, be talked out, or pushed out!

I am faithful, reliable, capable, and dependable!

If my God needs me, I am there! If He needs me in Sunday School, working with youth, helping adults, or just sitting and learning, He can use me because I am there!

I am a Soldier! I am not a baby! I do not need to be pampered, petted, primed up, pumped up, picked or pepped up!

I am a Soldier! No one has to call me, remind me, write me, visit me, entice me, or lure me!

I am a Soldier! I am not a wimp! I am in place saluting my King, obeying His orders, praising His name and building His Kingdom! No one has to send me flowers, gifts, food, cards, candy, or give me handouts! I do not need to be cuddled, cradled, cared for, or catered to!

I am committed! I cannot have my feelings hurt bad enough to turn me around! I cannot be discouraged enough to cause me to quit!

When Jesus called me into this Army, I had nothing! If I end up with nothing, I will still come out even! I will win! My God will supply all my needs! I am more than a conqueror! I will always triumph! I can do all things through Christ!

Devils cannot defeat me! People cannot disillusion me! Weather cannot weary me! Sickness cannot stop me! Battles cannot defeat me! Money cannot buy me! Governments cannot silence me and hell cannot handle me!

I am a Soldier! Even death cannot destroy me! For when my Commander calls me from this battlefield He will promote me to Captain and then bring me back to rule this world with Him!

I am a Soldier, in the Army, and I am marching, claiming victory! I will not give up! I will not turn around! I am a Solider, marching Heaven bound!

Here I stand!

Taken from the Soldiers for Christ Ministries

Edited and formatted by Clay Maynard