Strange Things Happen All The Time
National Champs!
I grew up in Indiana, and Monday night I was proud of it. After sixteen long football games, the Indiana Hoosiers college football team won the national title. Hoo, Hoo, Hoo, Hoosiers! That’s the battle cry of Coach Cignetti, who only became the head coach of the previously struggling program last year. Since then, the Crimson and Cream have lost just two games while winning both the Big Ten and national championships. In the pigskin world, this is akin to Jesus walking out of the grave.
Consider the history. Indiana is known as a basketball state, and the Hoosiers have a long tradition of elite-level hoops. Indiana University displays five national championship banners in the historic Assembly Hall. The university also boasts the only championship-winning basketball team to have an undefeated season (1976). The state was also the setting for one of the great sports movies starring Gene Hackman – Hoosiers! This film tells the true story of a tiny Indiana high school that once marched into Butler Fieldhouse in Indianapolis and won the high school championship by defeating one of the Goliaths of Indiana high school basketball.
Indiana University isn't a small school like David was compared to Goliath. The university has the biggest alumni network of any university in America, with 805,000 members. But when it comes to football, IU even David against Goliath would have been a stretch traditionally. Usually, one thing was as certain as gravity – Indiana losing football games.
Which brings me to my point. Indiana did win the national championship, just like Jesus did walk out of the grave.
Past failure does not always predict future loss. Before Jesus, the mortality rate for humans was 100%. Even after Jesus’ resurrection, people still die, but we understand it does not mark the end of their existence—only the start of a new, eternal life for those who trust in the Savior’s power. Jesus broke the cycle of human failure once and for all. His power surpasses even Curt Cignettis!
Are there parts of your life that feel like a long, tedious chain of failures, setbacks, and losses? Most of us go through that discouraging side of being human. Our win/loss record looks like a Hoosier football team’s historical stats.
I can’t seem to hold onto a job. I can’t get an “A.” I can’t find a better job. I’ve been treated poorly again and again. I can’t stop drinking, smoking, cussing like a sailor. I can’t find the right person to marry. I can’t shake this feeling of depression very often. I can’t figure out this parenting thing. My bank account looks like the Sahara Desert.
The list is endless – yard after yard after yard of loss on a never-ending gridiron.
But then something unexpected emerges from the ashes: a football game in Miami, a basketball game in Butler Field House, a new coach, and a new future. It happens!
An empty tomb.
Past failure does not predict the future. Things change. Strange things happen all the time. Sometimes, what seems strange to us is just another chapter in God’s unfolding story of our lives.
God has an incredible history of turn-arounds. You can be one of them. Chances are, you're already on that path. You're wiser, stronger, smarter, and closer to your next victory than you might think. Your Coach knows the path, and He has the personnel and plays to get you there.
Perhaps it is time to change your record books. Here are a few suggestions.
· Stop your stinking thinking based upon yesterday. When interviewed earlier this winning season about his first goal at IU, Coach Cig explained that he had to convince the administration, alumni, fans, and coaches that they could win.
Regarding his challenges, the Apostle Paul discovered something about Jesus which he summed up in a few words: “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” The sage Apostle was not lying or exaggerating. He was sharing what he had experienced in his own life and the lives of thousands of others.
Jesus can and did defeat our greatest nemesis – death. For Him, your problems are quite manageable. Let Him coach you. To the Coach, your losing seasons are just shadows of the past, not predictors of the future.
· View your losses as wins because they make you wiser and stronger. You now know lots of ways not to do things. You might have read about Thomas Edison’s attempts to create a light bulb. When asked about his numerous failures, the inventor said, “I have not failed, I have just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”
10,0001 proved fruitful.
Turn your loss on its head, upside down. It is likely one of your best friends today.
· Stop thinking you are a poser. For the past two seasons, after each win, pundits proclaimed, “Indiana is a fluke.” Look who’s the fluke now.
Understand, nobody deserves to be where they are in their success. Every one of us got to our present level of success because many people helped us along the way. Kind parents, friends, mentors, and coaches saw something in us we likely didn’t see in ourselves. They gave us a hand up. They also put up with our foibles.
We observe someone’s success from the outside. We don’t know their inner story. Social media makes us see others’ success, which leads us to compare it with our failures. We compare our worst moments to their best. It’s nonsense!
Everybody is a poser. So just pose your way forward. Our alumni base is huge.
· Take some chances. Captain Kirk of Star Trek fame explained the mission of their spaceship. “To boldly go where no man has gone before.” It worked out. But some of the places their ship ended up were not so pleasant. However, there was only one way to find out – go boldly. We Christians like to tell one another to “step out on faith.” This is good advice. But I would add, “Step out even when you don’t have the faith.” Say to yourself, “I don’t really think I can do this, but I’m going to do it anyway.”
Faith builds as you take one unsure step at a time. What started as a mustard seed turns into a mountain-mover.
Some ventures will fall like a deflated football, but a few will cross the goal line. But you’ll never know until you work your way into the red zone and send your running back into the defensive line.
Strange things happen all the time.
In early spring of 2025, I felt restless to embark on a new adventure, whether it was a new ministry, a business, or both. I desired to be involved in coaching and mentoring younger leaders. I also wanted more opportunities to work with groups of leaders, preach, and teach.
So I came up with the idea of starting leadership cohorts, which are currently popular in leadership circles. I discussed the idea with two friends, and within a couple of months, we decided to give it a try. We started doing our homework and developing a business plan. We also began spreading the word about our new ministry and completed the incorporation process to make it official.
But we needed two key ingredients for success: leaders willing to join and startup funding. We decided to focus on these two goals during the summer and fall, then review the situation in November. If we weren’t close, we would shut it down.
As fall arrived, I started to feel unsure about whether our plans would succeed. With some regret, I decided we should call it off. I talked with my partners, and we agreed it was time to stop. Failure. Yuk! What’s next? My idea failed, or did it?
Near the end of a long discussion with my friend about the decision, I said that I had hoped to speak more and continue working with church leaders. I was doing some of this, but I wanted more to complement my writing.
Later that day, I received a call from a colleague in Virginia. He leads a healthy church partnership organization. I’ve known him for years. He proceeded to let me know that he had recommended me to serve as an interim pastor at a church in Maryland; one I was very familiar with. I was surprised and honored.
Within a few hours on the same day I let go of one “opportunity,” another came knocking. I received a call from one of the church elders who invited me to talk with his board about this opportunity. Then, I got a call from a pastor who wanted me to coach him. Finally, I was invited to speak to a group of pastors in Pittsburgh, which I did last week.
Strange things happen all the time. One door closes, one idea is left behind, and a window opens. I am now speaking, coaching, and facilitating leaders weekly. Go figure.
The Indiana Hoosiers are the 2025/26 college football national champions. Go figure.
Live Inspired!
Don Mark
P.S. Starting the first Sunday in February, I will be speaking each Sunday at Fork Christian Church in Maryland. www.forkchristian.org.
