Getting Beat Stinks
I don’t think anyone likes losing but I’m pretty sure I dislike it more than most. Getting beat on Full Metal Jousting wasn’t any fun. When I realized I had lost, realized I had failed, my heart sank in my chest. Of course when your heart is down all sorts of negative thoughts and emotions begin to take hold. Excuses, complaints, doubts, what-ifs…all of these and more begin to rush in. While I don’t know if it is possible to keep the thoughts from rushing in, I do know that it is possible to make sure those thoughts don’t hang around. In a way real defeat only happens when we invite one of those thoughts to take up residence. When I decide to take an excuse (no matter how valid) and claim it as my own, or I choose to complain about the outcome, or I get stuck in a never-ending parade of what-ifs then I become truly defeated. So, what do I do? The first thing that has to happen is I have got to get my heart out of my belly and back into my chest, and the only way I know to do that is to begin to think about God and to let Him know how much I dislike what just happened. Then, as my thoughts begin to arise I try to honestly assess what took place. I think about what I did right and where I can improve. (Note: if you try to assess what happened before you get your heart back up you will only see the negative and that is deadly.) Finally, with my heart back in my chest and an honest assessment of what happened, I can begin to look ahead. You see, this looking forward is what all of those negative thoughts are trying to avoid. They want to keep us stuck to this failure in the past to rob us of any future success. I certainly want to learn from the past but I can’t live there. So, I take a quick peek in the rear-view mirror, learn what I can, and with God’s help I begin to prepare myself for what lies ahead.
Finally, I want everyone who reads this to know that I like Josh Avery. He is a gifted, competitive young man with a heart of a champion that cares for his family and friends. In my book that makes him a good guy. So, please stop with the Avery bashing. And keep watching…
Your take on things are very positive and well written. Keep up the good work and thanks for sharing!
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