No one likes to lose. Losing is one of the worst feelings you can ever experience. No one wakes up in the morning and makes plans to lose.
Unfortunately, at some point in life, you must lose. It may involve a job opportunity, a potential relationship, a friendship, an activity / sporting event, even a bet. They key to personal growth is how you handle losing. You must eradicate the intrinsic desire toward becoming a sore loser.
During the 2008 NBA playoffs, LeBron James and the Cleveland Caviliers had the best record in the National Basketball Association. Everyone was anticipating an NBA final, pitting Lebron James against the Los Angeles Lakers and Kobe Bryant. The media, televsion commercials, and sports radio programs were making a lot of money marketing this dream matchup.
Unfortunately, everyone forgot about Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic. During the Eastern finals, Lebron's team was beaten soundly in six games by a better overall team. After the game, what made headlines was not so much that Orlando won the series, but instead that LeBron refused to shake hands with the winning team. It seemed afterwords, all the discussion revolved around one question. Was LeBron James wrong for not shaking the Magic player's hands? Ultimately, LeBron defended his actions by stating that he hates to lose and the last thing he wanted to do was congratulate the winning team. So what happened? LeBron did not lose well. His desire to win outweighed his desire to demonstrate sportsmanship.
This year of course, was "the decision" in which LeBron James joined the Miami Heat in his quest to be a champion. With Dwane Wade & Chris Bosh on board, James predicted he would not just win a championship in Miami, but that he would win five, six, or seven of them. Ultimately, the Heat lost to the Dallas Mavericks in the 2011 NBA Finals. In the process, the pressure was so intense for James, that he did not perform up to his superstar billing. He was good, but he had to be great for the talented, but undermanned Miami Heat to win. In the end, James once again did not shine as his team lost the championship. He did not give the Dallas Mavericks the credit they deserved for their victory. Instead, he focused on his disappointment on his own individual performance.
Unfortunately, everyone forgot about Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic. During the Eastern finals, Lebron's team was beaten soundly in six games by a better overall team. After the game, what made headlines was not so much that Orlando won the series, but instead that LeBron refused to shake hands with the winning team. It seemed afterwords, all the discussion revolved around one question. Was LeBron James wrong for not shaking the Magic player's hands? Ultimately, LeBron defended his actions by stating that he hates to lose and the last thing he wanted to do was congratulate the winning team. So what happened? LeBron did not lose well. His desire to win outweighed his desire to demonstrate sportsmanship.
This year of course, was "the decision" in which LeBron James joined the Miami Heat in his quest to be a champion. With Dwane Wade & Chris Bosh on board, James predicted he would not just win a championship in Miami, but that he would win five, six, or seven of them. Ultimately, the Heat lost to the Dallas Mavericks in the 2011 NBA Finals. In the process, the pressure was so intense for James, that he did not perform up to his superstar billing. He was good, but he had to be great for the talented, but undermanned Miami Heat to win. In the end, James once again did not shine as his team lost the championship. He did not give the Dallas Mavericks the credit they deserved for their victory. Instead, he focused on his disappointment on his own individual performance.
Providentially, God provides these experiences so we can learn from them. Ultimately, it is not whether we win or lose, the important thing to Him is that we continue to develop our character. How do we handle success? How do we handle failure? From the big picture, a person like LeBron James makes millions of dollars on the basketball court and off. From the big picure, God has been good to him and bestowed him with amazing physical ability. One day when LeBron stops thinking too highly of his "talents" and letting the critics get the best of him, he will realize that although winning is important for his legacy, the best thing that happened was that he lost from a maturity standpoint. Ultimately, such a setback will not only make him a better basketball player, but more importantly a better person.
Unfortunately, often, many of us do not realize this at the time because we are involved in the "heat of the moment" in life. But make no mistake about it, God wants us to take a step back from life and be grateful for our successes and failures because they have made us who we are. He wants us to be thankful for what we do have, not just focus on what we don't.
Great men in Scripture lost, Job, lost his children and possessions, Joseph lost his father when he was sold by his brothers, David, lost his infant child, and even Jesus lost the respect and support of his countryman as he was found guilty and sentenced to death on the cross. However, what separated these men was how they handled themselves during those very hard seasons in life. They lost well and God rewarded them. They did not blame God, or others, or make excuses. Instead they continued to be faithful because they knew that in God's sovereignty, good things were in store for those who continue, despite setbacks, to live by God's standards. Ultimately, their stories move us because when all hope seemed lost, God rewarded them for weathering the storm.
When you lose well, you already show yourself a winner.
When you lose well, you already show yourself a winner.
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