Who wants to lose?

For me as a believer in God, it is difficult to imagine life without God. How can people deal with tragic events in life without God? Widows stay alive, probably because of their children who give them hope for a brighter future. Therefore, the woman who jumped to her death, carrying her 14-month baby with her, might have suffered from post-natal depression to such an extent that she saw no hope for any future. She literally denied herself and the baby a future. Modern couples don't want babies. They are unwilling to take up the burden of educating these children. I wonder what hope they cherish for their married life in the future. Don't we say that children are the future of our society? Life without any hope of a future is really hard for most people to lead.
Nor is life a bed of roses for the rich and powerful. I have never paid attention to Taiwan politics. Yet, the news of the sudden death of the Interior Minister-designate, Liao Feng te, left us bewildered, pondering over the absurdity of life. Whatever hope you hold for your future or the future of the country, death always comes at the most inconvenient moment! Therefore, putting our hope on our children does not enable us to fare any better. We can only echo with the author of Ecclesiastes,
Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity (Ecclesiastes 1:2).
Christianity is an expert in the field of handling sufferings. Christ suffered to set the tone for all Christians to follow. They see sufferings as trials, as the testing of faith and most important of all, they bear these sufferings with joy! Christianity really drives one crazy!
Count it all joy, my brethren, when you meet various trials,
for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness (James 1:2-3).
Sufferings, trials and the testing of faith involve failures of some sort, loss of a kind. We suffer because our health fails, our relationship fails and our business fails. We suffer because we lose loved ones, we lose confidence from others and we lose our hope. Sufferings, failures and losses are inevitable. But who wants to lose? Who doesn't want to win? Then, it seems to me that to be an authentic Christian, you are willing to lose, to fail and to be defeated and humiliated. Don't worry. We have God to vindicate us and to lift us up.
James seemed not to be friendly with the rich and powerful. He said,
For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits (James 1:11).
I think here, the rich does not simply refer to those financially abundant. It may refer to those who have been successful and powerful so far. Sometimes, these successful people need to lose and to be defeated so as to recoup their resources and faith. There is wisdom in James' advice.
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives to all men generously and without reproaching, and it will be given him (James 1:5).
Of course, for those who don't believe in the existence of God, or who feel that God probably exists but is irrelevant in their life, I have no idea how to persuade them to accept losses and defeats. Without God, only fools would lose. Without God, only the stupid and the weak would be defeated. Life follows the rules of the jungle. If you are being eliminated or fall prey to stronger rivals, think of yourself contributing to the continued survival of the mighty. You will feel better.

My Advocate, allow me to see hope in the future. In times of trials and tribulations, allow me to go through and grow up. I pray for my students so that their hopes keep burning in their hearts. Allow them to see what I see. Amen.