I’m not a big sports fan but I do enjoy a great game. I am
however a HUGE fan of the Superbowl. Every year some friends and I get together
and cook a ridiculous amount of food and hang out. We eat, we laugh till we cry
and sometimes we even watch a little football.
This year was no different. At halftime it looked like the
game was pretty much over. The Falcons had a commanding lead and it appeared as
though the Patriots forgot to show up. Atlanta fans were already going nuts on
social media. And Patriots fans were, well pretty discouraged to say the least. The commentators were discussing all the historical stats as to why a comeback
from this deficit wasn’t going to happen. But it did. The first Superbowl to go
into overtime. Ever. People who left early and headed off to bed woke up in utter
disbelief.
But what if you knew the final score before the game was
even played? Would it make a difference? Of course it would! If you were a
Patriots fan and knew that they were going to win by 6 in overtime you wouldn’t
have batted an eye at the halftime score. As a matter of fact the further
behind your team fell the bolder you would get – KNOWING that a huge upset was
right around the corner.
See the thing is we do know the final score –
“And they overcame him because of the blood of the
Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not
love their life even when faced with death.” – Revelation 12:11 NASB
We are ‘they’ and ‘him’ is the enemy just to be clear. So
many of us live day to day like we don’t know the outcome. Insecurity, fear,
doubt and unbelief worm their way into our heads and our hearts. Sure we may be
down but WE ARE NOT DONE! As my good friend once said, ‘Your setback might just
be God’s setup!’ We need to remind ourselves and each other what God has said
about the final score…
“And we know that God causes all things to work
together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according
to His purpose.” – Romans 8:28 NASB
“”No weapon that is formed against you will prosper; and every
tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage
of the servants of the Lord, and their vindication is from Me,”
declares the Lord.” – Isaiah 54:17 NASB
And then God gave us a glimpse of the future glory we have in Revelation
22.
When Jesus died on the cross it looked like the devil had won.
The disciples scattered, the woman wept, all hope was lost. But little did they
know that the game had gone into overtime and when Jesus rose from the grave he
emerged victorious! It’s the greatest comeback story the world has ever known.
And guess what? It’s our story too!
