In an short, emotional post Superbowl interview, safety Patriots Malcolm Butler said, “I had a vision, I saw myself making a big play.” That self-fulfilling prophecy made the Patriots Superbowl winners and made Butler a New England legend.
As a teenager, the vision for my life did not involve making a game winning play; maybe because I was never a great athlete. Instead of dreaming and seeing a “big win”, I allowed worst case scenarios to flood my mind.
What if _____________ happens?
What if I don’t get the part?
What if she says no?
I measured my wins on a small scale. If we are not careful, this carries over to our adult lives. In the middle of my career I started to define my ministry in small wins:
– I didn’t get in trouble
– No one complained
– I didn’t cause a fuss
– I didn’t make any one mad
– I broke even
My leadership often made it easy to enjoy these small victories and made it hard for me to dream and risk, so I settled. Small wins are ok if you thats all you want for your life. It’s not what I want. At the end of my life I don’t want to sit back in my old age and open up a photo albums of “small wins”. I don’t see myself breaking out the album and sharing with a guest, “Yes, this is the time I took no risks and skated by. Good times.”.
Malcolm Butler saw himself making making a big play, contributing to a big win. Tomorrow I’ll share what I define as my wins in youth youth ministry and maybe even dream a bit about the big wins for my personal life. Join me.
Your Turn
How did you define “wins” as a teenager?
How have they defined your wins as an adult?
How are are your “small wins” keeping you from dreaming big about “big wins” ?