Not Afraid to Lose

By Staff Writer, Matt Osborne For the first time since March Madness seeding began in 1979, there will be no No. 1, 2, or 3 seeds participating in the Final Four. “Lower” seeds, UConn, San Diego State, Miami, and Florida Atlantic have played their way to Houston for the final week of the season. I've particularly enjoyed seeing how well these underdog teams handled the stressful moments as the pressure mounted with each passing round. You never quite know how a team is going to respond when they make an unforeseen run, but this year’s crop of teams appears to have an extraordinary ability to manage the pressure and remain calm. Of the surprising teams making a Final Four run in 2023, the most surprising of the bunch is Florida Atlantic. The Owls will travel to Houston with the chance to become the first nine-seed to ever cut down the nets as champions. When it comes to handling the kind of pressure these teams have been under, FAU seems to be doing it as well as anybody. The Owls have kept their poise in every contest, and have thoroughly convinced many experts that their historic run is by no means a fluke. The thing I've loved most about this FAU team is the attitude they've taken into every game. Rather than being afraid to blow their “golden opportunity,” the Owls have avoided the fear of failure, enabling them to play easy and carefree. Following his team’s win over Kansas State in the Elite Eight, head coach Dusty May told about his players, "They weren't afraid to lose today and go home. They're not afraid of failure. We lay it on the floor, and whatever happens after that is more than enough because we've done that every single day. So there's never a moment when we get tight because we're not afraid of what happens if we don't get it done."  I love this team’s mindset of not being afraid to lose, and I think there's an important parallel for us as followers of Jesus. Of all of the aspects of the Christian life, there's perhaps none that invokes more fear and anxiety in people than evangelizing and sharing our faith with others. We often get nervous and stressed out because we're afraid we're going to “blow it” as we try telling them the Good News. We are sometimes so desperate for a person to come to know Jesus that we put all the pressure on ourselves to ensure they begin following Him. And though the desire for others to come to Christ is certainly good and commendable, the fear of our failure in evangelism can sometimes cripple us from ever engaging in the conversation in the first place. But what if a simple shift to a more biblical mindset about evangelism helped alleviate the pressure of sharing our faith, allowing us to talk with an easy and carefree attitude? In 1 Corinthians 3:7 (NLT), Paul writes about believers “planting” and “watering” seeds in evangelism. He explains, “It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow.” In other words, we might be the ones doing the talking, but only God is capable of making a person respond to the message. This is such a tremendous truth to think about! When we recognize we're not the ones who make people become followers of Jesus, it takes the pressure off of us to feel like we might “blow it.” Jesus had a similar statement that helps take the pressure off of us in John 6:44 (ESV): “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.” Of course, this doesn’t negate our responsibility to be active in sharing the Gospel with others, but it does hopefully free us from the crippling fear of thinking success in evangelism is all up to us. We might doubt we have the necessary skills or gifts to be effective communicators of the Gospel, but, in reality, no such lofty ability is required. Paul, who had one of the greatest evangelistic ministries in history, writes in 1 Corinthians 2:1-2 (ESV), “And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.” Today, let’s shift our mindsets to recognize that God is not looking for only the most skilled speakers to go out and share the Gospel with others. Instead, He's looking for willing vessels to proclaim the simple Gospel message without lofty speech, trusting that He's ultimately the One who will do the work in drawing people to Christ. I’m Matt Osborne and you can UNPACK that! PRAYER: Heavenly Father, please help me to be bold in sharing the Gospel with those around me. Thank you that you have taken the pressure off of me in evangelism. As I plant and water seeds, I pray that You would cause them to grow for Your glory. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR PACKS:

1. How does knowing God is responsible for drawing people unto Himself change the way you think about evangelism? 2. How have you seen God work in drawing somebody to Himself through an unlofty Gospel conversation?