As an elementary school student, I learned reading, writing, and arithmetic. Unfortunately, I also learned that I was poor, dirty, and unpopular.  I am not sure I had ever realized that before being a pupil at Willow Drive Elementary.  Over the six years spent at the school, I became increasingly self-aware and in my case that was not a good thing. 

A memory of fifth grade has been rolling around in my head today.  Each day at recess, we played kickball.  I was a captain and another girl that we will call Beth was a captain.  Each day we would make the same choices of who would be on our team.  One by one we called their names and they came and stood with us as we prepared for the battle on the kickball field.  My team always consisted of the not so popular or not so athletic ones.  Beth would always choose the popular kids and the athletic kids.  Every single recess, my team got pulverized. We could never defeat them. 

One day it dawned on me that the problem was my choices.  Because my mindset was that I was less than or felt rejected, I would never allow myself to make victorious choices.  (That was my mindset, not necessarily those of others.)  I chose to walk in defeat, rather than rise above the lies that I told myself.  Lies like:  nobody wants to be on your team, those other people don’t like you, you will always lose because it’s what you were born to do.  Lie after lie filled my mind.  

I’m not sure what happened, but on a Thursday recess I decided to choose differently. I chose athletic kids, I chose both popular and unpopular people.  I chose differently because I was tired of being defeated.  I can still clearly picture the look on Beth’s face. She was shocked that I would dare choose differently than before, and she wasn’t happy about it.  I marched on the field ready to play ball.  We smoked them that day!   I jumped.  I shouted.  I smiled.  I experienced victory!  

What was the difference between that Thursday and all those other days?  The difference was my choices.  I chose to override what my mind was telling me, and I would take authority over those thoughts, and I would position myself for victory.

“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.” Colossians 3:1-2. (ESV)

As a child of God, we do not have to stay defeated by our thought lives.   As I sat with the Lord this morning, I began to realize how easy it is to live like that fifth grader, never expecting to have victory and making choices that promise defeat.    Too often, we hear about peace from God but never experience it.  We hear about victory from God but feel defeated.  We hear about the joy of the Lord but remain sullen.  Why?  Mindset. 

As believers, you and I have been raised with Christ and we are to seek things above.  We are to set our minds on things above.  That is a choice.   Beth was not happy when I made the choice for victory.  The devil will not be happy when you decide not to keep your mind filled with the problems of earth and a mindset that says that it will always be this way.  There is  a phrase that’s been around awhile and one that we would do well to use.  When we walk out on the field of life and Satan is ready to defeat us, we should be very vocal and very firm, “Not today, devil, not today!”   I must choose to keep my mind stayed on Jesus and the work He has done in my life.   I am going to live and experience the victorious life that is mine!

Today, I am going to walk out on the field of life and choose victory!  Even if Beth is staring me in the face, I choose victory.  Even if Satan is whispering in my ear, I choose victory.   Today, I choose to keep my mind on Jesus Christ who is sitting at the right hand of the Father making intercession FOR ME!  I choose victory!  How about you?