MONDAY, NOVEMBER 9
“For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.”
1 John 5:4-5 (NLT)
MY GAME PLAN FOR WINNING IN LIFE
It was July of 1961 and the 38 members of the Green Bay Packers football team were gathered together for the first day of training camp. The previous season had ended with a heartbreaking defeat when the Packers squandered a lead late in the 4th quarter and lost the NFL Championship to the Philadelphia Eagles. Author David Marannis recounted that day in his book, When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi: “He took nothing for granted. He began a tradition of starting from scratch, assuming that the players were blank slates who carried over no knowledge from the year before… He began with the most elemental statement of all. “Gentlemen,” he said, holding a pigskin in his right hand, “this is a football.” This is an iconic story about the importance of the fundamentals. The Packers went on to win the championship that year and legend has it that Coach Lombardi started every season with the same four words.
1 John is taking us back to the fundamentals. 1 John is teaching us that “this is a spiritual football.” Much of 1 John has seemed repetitive but God wants us to clearly understand the basics of His winning game plan for our lives. 1 John 5:4-5 uses words like “defeat,” “victory,” and “win.” The word “defeat” comes from the same word we get the name brand Nike. It literally means to overcome. This week we will review some of the fundamentals of the faith that are key to winning.
Reflection
What personal victory or accomplishment are you the proudest of? Take some time to list some spiritual battles God has helped you win. Now make a prayer list of some victories you would like God to help you win.
