New Reminders: Winning
by Ardith Hoff
Ohio State’s football team defended their status as the 2025 national champions when they defeated the number 1-ranked Texas Longhorns to start the new season on August 30, 2025. To prepare his team for the year following their championship, coach Ryan Day had his team read, Chop Wood Carry Water: How to Fall in Love with the Process of Becoming Great. In essence, it teaches that excellence is arduous and requires consistent, tiring work. The coach’s decision was based on the author’s perspective. Joshua Medcalf said, “One of the biggest challenges whenever you have won is that winning is a great deodorant. It covers up a lot of stuff, but it doesn’t fix it. So, it’s very important to, every single day, get up and chop the wood and carry the water.” Wall Street Journal, 8/16/25, p.A12
We all like to win at whatever game or competition we engage in, whether as a player or as a spectator. On the other hand, we all hate to lose, and in most cases, there can only be one winner or winning side, and one loser or losing side. There are many kinds of winning and not all of them have a corresponding looser. The best kind of winning is the kind in which everyone has an equal chance to win, and it is possible for everyone to win. In the “game” of life, we all hope to be winners, to succeed at whatever we do and to live a long and happy life. We all know that to succeed, we need to work hard, as in “chopping wood” and “carrying water” and “chopping” and “carrying” for others as well.
The bible tells us that the only kind of winning that matters is the assurance of eternal life. Everything else is just worldly gain for temporary gratification. Matthew 16:26 warns that it would not profit a person to gain the whole world but lose their soul. The verse highlights the futility of pursuing worldly success at the expense of one's spiritual well-being. It's about trusting God completely and asking only for things that are in line with His will.
Colossians 3:23 states: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.” This means that Christians should approach all their work with wholehearted dedication, seeing it as an opportunity to serve God rather than just human masters. The verse encourages diligence, integrity, and are performed for God's glory, knowing that God is the ultimate judge and rewarder. This principle applies to all forms of work and is meant as to reflect one's worship and spiritual maturity. The ultimate goal is eternal life. The key is to follow Jesus’ lead, and through faith in Him, to find not only great satisfaction in this life but to also to have eternal life with Him in heaven. 1 Corinthians 15:57 reminds us that it is God who grants us the victory over death. It is He who has provided the means of obtaining the ultimate prize: “But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”