Overcoming the Odds

I am a big Ohio State fan. Even though I didn’t go to Ohio State, I grew up with my family always cheering for the Scarlet and Gray. This coming Monday night, the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Oregon Ducks will go head to head to pursue the title of National Champions 2015. It is an honor for a team to make it to this game, but it requires so much work and determination to get there.

The Buckeyes have not had the season they thought they would. Granted, they did want to get to the National Championship game (who doesn’t?), but their hopes were dashed just 12 days before the beginning of the season. Their Heisman candidate quarterback, Braxton Miller, re-injured his shoulder and was declared out for the season. The Buckeyes would have to use their second string, freshman, non-experienced quarterback, JT Barrett, for the season. The season got off to a rough start with a tough loss at the home opener. For the next several games, the young team struggled as they learned to work with each other. However, the team managed to keep pulling out wins, and with each week, kept improving, moving back up in the polls. By November, rumors started to circulate that they might have a shot to get into the playoffs. In the final game of the regular season, the Buckeyes lost JT Barrett to a leg injury. All hopes were dashed once again to be in the playoffs. Not only did the Buckeyes lose their first quarterback, they lost their second quarterback. And, in the midst of all of that, the team also lost a teammate in a tragic passing. They had only one week to recover and prepare for the conference championship game. What team could do that and pull through the adversity?

The Buckeyes won the Big Ten Championship, propelling them into the #4 slot of the playoffs. Number one Alabama Crimson Tide was a huge opponent to face in the first round of the playoffs; no one thought the Buckeyes could beat them, except for those who had faith in the team that had been built over the season, the team that had overcome all of the obstacles. They beat Alabama, and they now have a chance to win the National Championship title. They do have another big opponent to face, and it will be tough to win, but I am not going to say it can’t be done. It is an obstacle to overcome, and they have proven they can overcome adversity. Why not once more?

So, why should we care about the Buckeyes’s season and what they have accomplished? What does that have to do with life? It is just sports! It is, but I feel that what the Buckeyes have done this season is a great example of how to overcome the odds, to throw down any hardship that you are facing and say, “No, this shall not overtake me.”

In our lives, we find ourselves facing adversity nearly everyday. No matter how small or big it is, we all have some obstacle in our lives that has to be overcome. Sometimes we wish it would just go away or we could try taking the easier path. However, we should never let the obstacles we face take us down and defeat us. We have a greater Strength that can help us conquer them. Jesus is always there to help us face those obstacles, struggles, addictions, choices, pain, hurt, and fear. He helps us conquer those opponents, and we can overcome those because He has overcome the world. He wants us to lean on Him to move ahead and move beyond those things that trouble us.

With 2015 stretching out before us, why not laugh in the face of adversity this year? Be an overcomer. If you are holding onto something or are too scared to face the mountain in front of you or are too tired to climb it to see the top, reach out to Jesus and ask for His strength, His endurance, His wisdom, and His comfort. See what He does with it, how He helps you through it, and He will get you to the other side.