Sometimes a loss is a win. It can be hard to know what that means if you have never lived through it. But as Garth Brooks once put it, “sometimes I thank God for unanswered prayers!”
This week, Boston residents understand the idea of a loss-win very clearly. The loss was the 2024 Olympics; the win was the financial stability of the city. And most Boston residents are celebrating the loss.
You see, Boston has been locked in a battle between those who wanted to host the 2024 Olympics and those who fought it. The opposition won by proving that Boston had neither the infrastructure nor the financial capability to guarantee the cost overage that the Olympic Committee requires of host cities. Just see the overage at Sochi as an example of what Bostonians couldn’t afford in tax liability.
So most folks in Boston are saying they won…by losing.
Loss-wins are not new. Consider the greatest loss ever, the beating and crucifixion of the Son of God. How could that possibly be a win? At the end of that horrible day, it looked like Jesus 0, Satan 1. But that was Friday.
By Sunday, the story had changed. What looked like a terrible loss was really the greatest victory ever! It was a loss that was a win for everyone who ever lived…the opportunity to be reconciled to God by the blood of His perfect sacrifice.
Paul understood perfectly. All that he had lost, he considered a victory in Christ.
“More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,” (Philippians 3:8).
What about you? Do you have unanswered prayers today? Do you wonder how God could turn a loss in your life into a great victory for His glory? Consider this: if He worked out Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, don’t you think He can help bring home a win for you too?
