Raw products are nearly useless.
You cannot clip wool from a sheep and weave it into a sweater until you refine the wool by cleaning it and spinning it into yarn. Ditto for cotton. Crude oil is a great discovery, but little of it is used in its raw state. Instead billion-dollar factories refine oil into gasoline, diesel, lubricants, plastics, and more. Silver and gold are beautiful, but must be put through intense heat to remove impurities.
People are the same way.
We are born raw but life has a way of removing impurities and making us useful. We are refined through adversity. Everyone in the gym says “no pain, no gain.” That’s how we build muscles—by breaking them down.
Losses make you grow.
But wins also make you grow.
Small victories prepare you for large victories. And there is a LOT to learn: how to be a gracious winner. How to be humble when you are the king of the mountain. How to give glory to teammates and to God. And most of all, how to maintain perspective so you don’t get a big head and ruin everything. Honestly, great success is a heavy burden and most people are not ready for it and handle it badly. Politicians, performers, and athletes are destroyed by their own successes every day.
Believe it or not, winning can be harder than losing.
“The crucible is for silver, and the furnace for gold, and a man is tested by the praise he receives” Proverbs 27:21.
THE WAY YOU RESPOND TO COMPLIMENTS IS IMPORTANT TO GOD.
(Did you know that?) God will PURIFY you and REFINE you with praise. Don’t disagree with compliments. Let people praise you. But when you accept compliments, say ‘thank you,’ and SHARE the credit, share the glory by pointing to everyone who helped you including God Himself.
Accept kind words, but accept them with humility.
God, prepare us for success. Make us gracious winners. Make us humble. Fill us with genuine gratitude for the team supporting us. IT’S NOT ABOUT ME.
ΑΩ
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