“Every game is winnable if you change your mind about what the prize should be and your perspective about the players at the table.”

Shannon L. Alder

One in a while everything lines up so beautifully that the day is just about perfect. The location, the weather, the people, the cause, the result.

Monday was one of those days. I had been invited to play in a fundraising tournament for Scouting, the location was one of those places “the likes of me” would never get to be in any other circumstance, the day was sunny and nowhere near the heat of summer and the sponsor dropped me into a foursome with three of my favorite people from Wake Forest Presbyterian Church.

“Winning”

Oh, and one more thing: we won. We “won.”

Well, we won according to the definition implicit in the quote at the beginning of this post. We won because we all understood that “the prize” was contributing to a good cause, it was enjoying every moment of the day, and it was celebrating the company of great people.

It is possible – indeed likely – that other groups out there turned in lower scores. But it is impossible to imagine that anyone had a better experience that we did.

We played respectably, scoring a 60 by shooting 30 on each side, but we seriously could have come in with an 80 and it would have been fine.

I have driven down Falls of Neuse Road hundreds of times over the years without noticing the presence of North Ridge Country Club. It’s a pristine location, featuring two beautifully laid out courses that are meticulously maintained.

Over two hundred golfers were on hand and over $100,000 was raised for Scouting (specifically, Exploring).

I believe that the truth carried in the above quote – that every game is winnable if we get more clarity regarding the prize – dovetails beautifully with the heart of the Gospel.

The Apostle Paul said it well in the first chapter of 2 Corinthians. In Jesus, he wrote, the message is always “YES”!!!

For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.

2 Corinthians 1:22

God’s yes! Now that is something to celebrate. And God’s “YES!” is the only way to navigate this challenging life.

– DEREK