Why Losing Doesn’t Make You a Loser—Part 2

Last week we discussed how sometimes we learn more in losing and how sometimes a win is disguised as a loss.  I shared some personal examples of situations where it seemed like I was losing, but it ended up being a “win” in the end.  There were so many times in my life where I actually won from losing.  Thankfully, I’ve been able to recognize those wins by taking some of the practical steps that I shared last week.  This week I’d like to share some examples from the bible of winning from losing, and I will share some more practical steps that have helped me to realize that losing doesn’t make you a loser and how not to lose hope.

There are examples throughout the bible where God turned losing into a win.  My pastor calls it “turning the tables on the devil”.  There are stories in scripture where it looked like they lost but they really won—a bigger “win” than if they never “lost”. 

Starting in Genesis 37, you can read the story of Joseph (this is one of my favorite bible stories!) and his circumstances of seemingly losing over and over.  First his brothers were jealous of him and hated him.  They originally made plans to kill him but ended up selling him into slavery instead (telling their father that he had been killed by wild animals).  He then worked as a slave in Egypt (Genesis 39) and was eventually put in charge of the entire household, but he was later falsely accused of rape and sent to prison.  There he was favored and put in charge of all the other prisoners.  Ultimately he ended up interpreting some dreams for Pharaoh and ended up being made ruler of Egypt only being outranked by the Pharaoh (Genesis 41).  His brothers who had first meant him harm wound up humbling themselves and bowing before him.  In the end, Joseph was in a higher position than he could have ever achieved without “losing”, and he was able to save his family and the lives of many others through the process.

“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” Genesis 50:20 (NIV)

Have you had someone hate you, betray you, falsely accuse you or forget you?  Remember Joseph.

In Daniel 3 you can read the story of Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego and what appeared to be “losing” for them.  Continue reading →