The Match II: Champions for Charity was a big hit on Sunday with millions of people tuning in to watch Tom Brady and Phil Mickelson take on Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning in a round of golf.
This unique event was very entertaining - especially watching them ride around in golf carts with cameras rolling and listening to their light-hearted conversations.
The competition came down to the wire with Mickelson and Brady rallying late and Tiger and Peyton hanging on for the win.
Overall, it was a great experience for us fans watching at home, but the players had to deal with pouring down rain and playing the final holes with limited light.
The course was challenging to begin with (especially for amateurs like Manning and Brady), and then with the extra adverse conditions, it made for a wild day.
In David Salituro's article on Fansided.com, “The Match, Part 2 Turns Out to be a Glorious Trainwreck,” I like how he summarizes the day:
“The golf was sloppy, the course conditions at Medalist soggy as a storm swept through South Florida, but The Match: Champions for Charity on Sunday still turned out to be everything you could ask for in a golf competition: exciting, enjoyable, and memorable.”
Considering it was only an exhibition tournament, these four elite athletes persevered in terrible weather conditions when they could have easily given up and stopped playing. Ultimately, however, as they remained in the storm, they helped raise $20 million for charity.
“Glorious trainwreck” describes the day well because although not everything went according to plan (Tom Brady even ripped his pants!), so much good was experienced and accomplished through the storm.
The key encouragement we can glean from this is that "storms" in our own lives can also turn out to be "glorious trainwrecks."
When we feel as though we’re caught in the middle of a storm, with plans getting altered and things getting sloppy, as followers of Jesus, we can be assured He helps us persevere as we “play through the rain.”
2 Corinthians 4:8-9 (TLB) explains, "We are pressed on every side by troubles, but not crushed and broken. We are perplexed because we don’t know why things happen as they do, but we don’t give up and quit. We are hunted down, but God never abandons us. We get knocked down, but we get up again and keep going.”
During the storms in our lives, there's always something good that's experienced and accomplished as we remain rooted in Christ, and we can view parts of the “trainwreck” as glorious.
While putting our trust in Jesus, we can embrace the storms as opportunities to persevere, endure, and grow...instead of giving up.
Today let’s be encouraged by the hope found in Romans 5:2-4 (NLT): "Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory."We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation." I’m Bryce Johnson and you can UNPACK that! PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank You for the comfort, presence, and strength You provide during the storms of life. Thank you for the ways You've developed my character through the challenging times of endurance. Thank you for never abandoning me. In Jesus' name, I pray, Amen.
Discussion Questions for PACKS:
What is something good that was accomplished during a storm in your life?
What has been your experience with perseverance and endurance?
Is there a trainwreck you're going through now that you can see how it's also glorious?
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