Video of the Day: Clip from the 2003 movie “Seabiscuit”
Bible Verse of the Day:
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save their life[f] will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. 26 What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? 27 For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done, Matthew 16:24-27.
Biblical Connection:
As the second stage of Horse Racing’s triple crown takes place this afternoon, this year’s Preakness Stakes will write a new name in the history books. Unfortunately, many horses like Seabiscuit never got a chance to compete in the Kentucky Derby, Preakness or Belmont. When immediate progress isn’t demonstrated, some horses are left as partners where they are trained to lose.
Shortly after Peter verbalizes that Jesus is the promised Messiah, expectations are laid out for anyone who desires to become a disciple of Jesus. Following the 3 core principles in verse 25, Jesus transitions to what this spiritual commitment truly means. If you want to save your life, you must lose it. Just as Seabiscuit was trained to lose, Christians must learn to give up their lives for others.
Closing Song:
As a former competitive athlete, losing is something that I despise. Yet, from the spiritual sense, giving up your life for God is a challenging, an ongoing process. Losing serves as a form of humility as God allows failure to occur, eventually leading you to the place where the Lord wants you to be. This trained to lose concept lite a fire deep inside of Seabiscuit to inspire him to reach his full potential as a racehorse. May God use disappointments in life to bring you closer to Jesus.
by Jay Mankus
ExpressYourself4Him 