For those who have visited my office at the Church building, it won’t come as a surprise to learn that I am a fan of the Kansas City Chiefs. I have a Chiefs pennant proudly displayed by my desk. Since living in Mississippi for the last couple years, my interest in them has been heightened by learning that they have a couple of players from Mississippi State on their roster. I have followed the Chiefs from the time I was a little boy and continue to be interested in how they are doing.
Being a life-long Chiefs fan has taught me many things. I saw them win their first Superbowl in 1970. Soon after that started a long period of time where the team just wasn’t very good. They seldom made the playoffs and following them was filled with few highs but many lows. Every year or so, they might have a breakout season and make the playoffs, only to get quickly knocked out with thoughts turning to “next year”. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen the Chiefs blow leads in games and seemingly give up as the game approached the end. Still, I persisted as a fan.
This past Sunday evening, the Chiefs played a playoff game against the Buffalo Bills. Everyone predicted the game would be evenly matched. I watched the ups and downs of the game and was elated when with 1:02 left of the clock, the Chiefs scored a go-ahead touchdown and a lead of 4 points. I nervously watched the clock move forward as the Bills got the ball and started driving down the field. Surely, the Chiefs will be able to keep them from scoring a needed touchdown. And then, the worst happened: The Bills did score a touchdown leaving only 13 seconds to play.
What I did next is really the focus of this blog post. I turned off the game. I gave up hope. I couldn’t take it anymore! I thought that this was just another time when my hopes had been crushed and the season was over. I missed the end of the game.
The next morning, I looked at an app to see the world’s reaction to the Chief’s loss only to discover the headline that the Chiefs had won the game in overtime! I looked at the screen a couple of times to make sure I had read it right. I found the video highlights and saw what I had missed because I had given up the possibility that they could or would win. And I felt very conflicted about how to feel and what to do next.
Many people suggest that that game might be the best playoff game of all time! I missed it and I can’t really enjoy it, even though my team won, because I had given up on them. Some might even say that I am a “fair weather” fan.
I started thinking about how I feel sometimes about the world in which we live. There is so much struggle now. There is so much anger and anxiety. There is so much uncertainty and frustration. As a follower of Jesus, I know that He is at work presently in this world as well as in the future. But sometimes, we wonder. I wonder.
I am happy to tell you that my response to the world’s mess is to remind myself of God’s promises and also the thousands of examples of His faithfulness. I have learned to not be distracted by the mess but rather lean into the Lord of the universe. I have seen enough of His hands at work to know He has it under control, even though it doesn’t seem so at a particular moment. He has a perfect track record. He has never lost and will never lose. I think I can say with humble confidence that if I found myself in what appears to be a hopeless situation as a Christ-follower, I will not give up. Even if there is only 13 seconds left. Even if everyone says, “give up”.
How about you? Some may be in the middle of some really rough stuff right now. Some may think that God can’t make a way for them. Some have been whipped so many times before that they think they can’t continue. Remember, our God isn’t a sports team! Our God is in control and my hope is that you will find peace in that and continue to be faithful to Him even though everyone else has given up. He is winning and He has won! Hallelujah!
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