Our Church: A Bunch Of Winners Or A Bunch Of Whiners? Series

And absolutely make sure that you don’t give to the church.

Don’t even think about being a generous person. If you give anything, make sure it’s whatever you have left after spending all you want on yourself. Make sure it’s always whatever you have leftover.

Remember, you don’t want God to bless you, and, if you practice tithing and giving, He’ll start blessing you like you’ve never seen before. So don’t go there.

Oh, and for good measure, every time you hear any teaching on tithing, giving or stewardship, be sure to grip and belly ache and complain to as many other Christians about it as you can. After all, why should you be the only one who isn’t blessed by God?

Well, there you have it. A few suggestions which, if applied, are guaranteed to make you a whiny Christian who wastes your life. Just practice these things and you’ll be there.

But what if that isn’t the kind of life you want? What if you don’t want to be a whiny Christian who wastes your life? What if you want to be a winner instead?

2. How to invest your life as a winner.

It is important to recognize that we are at war. That we have an adversary who would delight in nothing other than our living meaningless lives. If there is any way he can keep us out of the game for God, he wants to do it. But we need not allow him to overwhelm us. Instead, we can overcome him in the same way the saints in the great tribulation will overcome him.

If you want to be a winner in the game of life as a Christian, there are three things that need to characterize your life.

A. Constant Cleansing - "They overcame him by the blood of the lamb"

The fact is that as we seek to get in the game for God, we will have times when we falter. Times when we fail. Times when we let our head coach down. But thankfully, constant cleansing is available to us whenever we need it because of our Savior’s sacrifice at Calvary.

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." - 1 John 1:9 (NKJV)

On New Year’s Day, 1929, Georgia Tech played UCLA in the Rose Bowl. In that game a young man named Roy Riegels recovered a fumble for UCLA. Picking up the loose ball, he lost his direction and ran sixty-five yards toward the wrong goal line. One of his teammates, Beeny Lom, ran him down and tackled him just before he scored for the opposing team. Several plays later the Bruins had to punt. Tech blocked the kick and scored a safety, demoralizing the UCLA team.

The strange play came in the first half. At halftime the UCLA players filed off the field and into the dressing room. As others sat down on the benches and the floor, Riegels put a blanket around his shoulders, sat down in a corner, and put his face in his hands.

A football coach usually has a great deal to say to his team during halftime. That day Coach Price was quiet. No doubt he was trying to decide what to do with Riegels.

When the timekeeper came in and announced that there were three minutes before playing time, Coach Price looked at the team and said, "Men, the same team that played the first half will start the second." The players got up and started out, all but Riegels. He didn’t budge. The coach looked back and called to him. Riegels sat and said, "Roy, didn’t you hear me? The same team that played the first half will start the second. "Roy Riegels looked up, his cheeks wet with tears. "Coach," he said, "I can’t do it. I’ve ruined you. I’ve ruined the university’s reputation. I’ve ruined myself. I can’t face the crowd out there."