“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” — Galatians 2:20
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At age 22, I moved to Texas to begin my career as a high school girls basketball coach. I put in long hours and challenged my athletes to do their best because I knew in my heart that we could revive the struggling program. When we won, I felt on top of the world. When we failed, I felt like a failure myself.
My entire identity and worth was measured by a set of numbers that flashed on a scoreboard. It wasn’t until a little later in my coaching career that God began to show me that my worth did not depend on how well I performed. The victories and defeats were only victories and defeats. I had to get over the idea that I was only valuable when I was winning and worthless when I was losing.
Our identity is never dictated by how we perform.
Never let the scoreboard determine your worth as a coach or player. The only one who can judge your value is the One who created you. “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).
When we commit our lives to Jesus and make Him the center of our universe, we are transformed. Our identity and worth are not tied up in the outcome. You are who you are because God loves you with a perfect love and has created you for a specific mission that will have an eternal impact on His Kingdom. Only when you realize that your value and significance come from Christ alone can you experience true freedom.
You can walk in this freedom because who you are is no longer attached to what you do. You can play for more — it’s more than winning games, a number on the scoreboard, or success as the world sees it. Use your talents for His glory and to accomplish His purposes. Commit to pursue things of eternal significance instead of trophies that will fade away.
“You know that many runners enter a race, and only one of them wins the prize. So run to win! Athletes work hard to win a crown that cannot last, but we do it for a crown that will last forever.” — 1 Corinthians 9:24-25 (CEV)
— Melissa Motes
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