Drafted ahead of Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson in 2017, so far Bears’ quarterback, Mitchell Trubisky hasn’t performed at their level.

Chicago made the playoffs in 2018, but in 2019, the team took a step back as Trubisky only threw 17 touchdowns, while throwing ten interceptions.

During this offseason, the Bears decided to bring in former Super Bowl MVP, Nick Foles, to compete with Trubisky for the starting quarterback position. They also passed on picking up his fifth-year option for 2021.

But with all of that going against him, Trubisky won the starting job and has contributed to the Bears’ 2-0 start to the season. He’s thrown five touchdowns and had an impressive comeback win in week 1 against the Lions.

Mike Florio on profootballtalk.com shared a conversation he had with Trubisky following their 17-13 win over the Giants on Sunday. Florio writes, “Trubisky, while driving home from Soldier Field, explained that he developed a new mindset after the Bears traded for Foles. The move came during the early days of the pandemic, giving Trubisky an opportunity to “self-reflect” on ‘how I wanted my career to go.’”

Although it’s only been two games and Trubisky still has a lot more to do to secure his future as the Bears franchise quarterback, I appreciate the approach he took this offseason and how motivated he was to prove he should remain the starter.

The aspect I want to pull out and unpack today is how he decided to “self-reflect” after the Bears acquired Nick Foles.

We can relate to Trubisky in the sense that we hear disappointing news that threatens our job, family, or health. Our initial response can be to blame something or someone for our frustrating circumstances and become quickly discouraged.

Trubisky could have responded to his news by asking for a trade himself or allowing the pressure and competition from Foles to cripple him and concede the job.

However, he had the right mindset for the situation and through self-reflection, he thought about how he wanted his career to go and was fueled to get better. Now, of course, he has to go out there and keep throwing touchdowns, but he finds himself in a good spot at 2-0 to keep doing that.

How we respond to unfortunate news and what it propels us to do is very important. We must turn to God first as we place our trust and hope in Him.

As we do that, there’s value in taking the opportunity to “self-reflect” and determine how we want to approach the challenges we face. We can reflect on how the trial can grow us personally and change our character, while also keeping a clear vision for how a setback doesn’t have to derail our life but instead be another building block in God’s plan.

Self-reflection is valuable anytime, even beyond trials, because it causes us to address the condition of our mind, soul, and heart. If we’re always too busy or unwilling to examine what’s really going on with us and what direction we’re heading, we’ll limit our growth and continue to struggle.

Lamentations 3:40 (ESV) challenges us to, “Let us test and examine our ways, and return to the Lord!”

2 Corinthians 13:5 (AMP) says, “Test and evaluate yourselves to see whether you are in the faith and living your lives as [committed] believers. Examine yourselves [not me]! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves [by an ongoing experience] that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test and are rejected as counterfeit?”

Paul writes in Romans 12:3 (NLT), “Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.”

Today, let’s be encouraged to self-reflect and evaluate our lives. Let’s ask God to give us clarity and strength for what we need to do or change and trust His transforming work within us.

I’m Bryce Johnson and you can UNPACK that!

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, I pray You’d guide me in my self-reflection and reveal the truth I need to understand about myself. Show me the areas of my life that need to change and please give me the strength to persevere during trials. I desire to have a deep and genuine faith in You, regardless of the circumstances I face. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.

1. What is your approach to self-reflection?

2. In what ways have you benefited from self-reflection?