Sports are filled with stories of individuals coming from behind to claim victory. The feeling that it creates, when it is someone you support, is wonderful. When it is your team or player that lost, there is few sporting moments that are worse. Something about having victory and then losing it, or snatching victory when everything was dark brings out the extremes in our emotions.
A dominant team was being interviewed recently about the margin of victory. The consistency of their remarks struck a chord. Paraphrasing, “it does not matter how much we win by, it just matters that we win. One or two points are as good as thirty or forty.” With that as a backdrop, my assessment of their chances just went up. Nobody will be taken for granted. Showboating when one has a lead will take second place to consolidating the potential victory and claiming the win.
I wondered about my response to evil. Do I want, need to dominate others to show I can win? I would like to think not, yet the question of consolidating and closing out on good ideas often goes partially unanswered. As the ideas are being adopted, I move on to the next. My rush for more often leaves me with less.
David described his response in blunt terms of conflict. “You made my enemies turn tail, and I wiped out the haters.” (Psalm 18.40) As brutal as it sounds, he does have a point. Without closing out the haters, could he claim a real victory?
There are three elements that I often release in the move towards more.
Patience. It takes more patience than one anticipates to embed ideas into lives of others.
Tenacity. However difficult, problematic, and long you think it will take, it will take more.
Engagement. Others will “get” your idea while not getting it fully. Learning is rarely a singular event.
Life reminds me that it is more important to close opportunities that to have many near victories. It is a lesson that is at the heart of Divinity’s relationship with us.
