FCA ResourcesDevotional
The Streak
By Susie Magill
Ready
So we must not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up. — Galatians 6:9
Set
The perfect season was in 1972 when the Miami Dolphins did the improbable. They won seventeen games (including the Super Bowl) in a row. People still call them one of the greatest teams of all time. On the other side of the coin, Northwestern lost thirty-four games in a row over a four-year period. The adjectives used to describe these teams were much different. Streaks—either you love them or you hate them. If you are on a roll and winning games, then everything seems to go your way. But if the steak is the other kind—the bad kind, the losing streak—then it seems the harder you try, the more small things grow into huge problems. When you have been on both sides, you learn the difference between winning and losing is very small. The ability to continue with your very best effort in the middle of an extended losing streak or a real life struggle takes something special.
Go
1. What does perseverance look like?
2. How do you get kids to play hard, with discipline and with enthusiasm, when you are in the middle of a long losing streak?
3. What does the Bible call success? How do you balance that with what the world says?
Workout
Extra Reading: Luke 21:19; Romans 12:12; James 1:12
Overtime
Father, please grant me the strength to continue in the face of adversity. Please allow us, Lord, the ability to look at the big picture and not focus on the immediate setback. Thank You for the hope You provide in the saving grace of Jesus. You have provided the ultimate victory. Please remind us to be gracious when the wins continue to come. Please bless the young people who make up our team, and help us be a reflection of You to them. We ask these things in Jesus precious name. Amen.
Group
Bible Reference:
James 1
Ministry