victory Archives - Marissa Henley

More Than Conquerors {No Matter What Monday}

October 1, 2018 by Marissa Leave a Comment

I hate to lose. Whether it’s Candyland with a preschooler or the biggest college football game of the season, I want to feel the thrill of victory. (Although I’ll admit, I’ve stacked the deck to let a 4-year-old win Candyland before just out of desperation for the game to end. Anyone else??)

Even as a child, I struggled with losing. My parents taught me to say to the winner, “Congratulations. Maybe I’ll win next time.” The sentiment is not heart-felt, and I often spit out those words through pouting lips with a touch of resentment. Maybe that’s why, even at the age of 41, I haven’t deviated from the script. I still mutter these words when my kids beat me at Uno.

We’ve been looking at the end of Romans 8 the last few weeks and learning that God is for us, God provides for us, and God’s verdict is sure. Today we see that God has made us conquerors through Jesus Christ:

“No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” (Romans 8:37)

I’ll be honest, most days I don’t feel like a conqueror. I feel defeated, discouraged, and distracted. I’m barely hanging on sometimes. But even when my feelings don’t match up, God’s Word says this is true: God has given me the victory in Christ Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:57).

The victory doesn’t depend on me—Christ secured it when He rose from the grave. Now anything that threatens me has been defeated by my Savior. Even death has been swallowed up in victory and lost its sting (1 Corinthians 15:54-55). We still have trouble, but Jesus Christ has overcome the world (John 16:33).

And because of Christ’s love, we are included in His victory as if we are the conquerors. We can say with Paul, “I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).

Christ’s victory over all, given to you because of His love for you, gives us courage when we think we can’t go on. Your circumstances may seem uncertain, daunting, or even impossible, but God has made you a conqueror. He knows how He will bring you through the battle to victory.

No matter what you face this week, Christ’s love makes you a conqueror.

The Greater One {No Matter What Monday}

October 23, 2017 by Marissa Leave a Comment

Have you ever seen the Who Would Win book series? These children’s books depict a hypothetical battle between two animals and predict the outcome. Could a giant squid defeat a whale? What if a tiger and a lion dueled to the death? What about a tarantula vs. a scorpion? That’s a match I hope I never have to see!

Some days, the world around us might make us wonder, “Who’s gonna win? Will God really come out on top here, or are the forces of evil too great?” It seems like sin, wickedness, and death are winning. We watch violence rage around the world, disease threaten those we love, and sin rips families apart.

The Bible is the ultimate Who Would Win book, and the outcome is not hypothetical. Spoiler alert: Jesus wins. And because we are united to Him by faith, His victory is our victory.

“Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” (1 John 4:4)

He who is in you (God the Spirit) is greater than he who is in the world (the devil and the forces of evil). God’s victory has already taken place. Jesus Christ sits at the Father’s right hand and reigns over all powers and dominions (Eph. 1:19-21). His Spirit dwells in us, reminding us to not lose heart because glory is coming (2 Cor. 4:16-18).

If your heart is discouraged today, remember that the One who loves you and gave Himself for you is the same One who has overcome the world. The middle of your story might be messy and hard, but you know how this one ends.

And as you wade through the muck of sin, evil, and life in this fallen world, the One who is in you – the One who will never leave you or forsake you – is greater than your most threatening enemy. You have overcome, because He has overcome.

No matter what you face this week, He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

Christ Has Overcome the World {No Matter What Monday}

April 17, 2017 by Marissa Leave a Comment

On November 11, 1918, representatives of France, Germany, and Great Britain met in a railroad station in France to sign an armistice agreement and end the fighting in “the war to end all wars.” They signed the agreement at 5:00 a.m. with the stipulation that the fighting would end six hours later – at 11:00 a.m..

I wonder why they didn’t stop fighting immediately. I suppose in those days, it took time for word to spread throughout the Western Front. At 5:00 a.m., everyone knew Germany had been defeated by the Allies and celebrations started around the world. But for the soldiers in the field, the war wasn’t over. There were thousands of casualties that day as the fighting continued.

We are living in a time similar to those six hours in 1918. When Jesus walked out of the grave, God declared victory over sin, evil, and death. Satan knows he’s been defeated, but he’s not ready to stop fighting. We’re caught in the crossfire—living in the tension between the “already” and the “not yet” of God’s victory.

We say, “Where, O death, is your sting?” but still weep at the graveside of those we love. We read that the power of sin over us has been broken, and yet we confess with the apostle Paul that we keep on sinning (Romans 7:15-8:2).

Jesus knew we would suffer as the battle continues to rage, and so He told His disciples:

“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

We have peace because our hope isn’t in our own power to triumph. We trust in the One who has already conquered. Through our trials and our struggles, we can have confidence in this: God wins.

Take heart, friends. No matter what you face this week, Christ has overcome the world.

The Big Win

April 1, 2015 by Marissa Leave a Comment

I have a confession to make: March Madness games make me cry. Seeing those kids win a big game, knowing it is one of the most exciting moments of their young lives . . . I can be watching a team I don’t even care about, made up of people I don’t know and will never meet, and seeing their joy in WINNING will bring tears to my eyes.

We all love to win, don’t we? My middle child always cheers for the team that’s winning, even if (gasp!) it’s the team playing our beloved Razorbacks. He loves to win.

This morning, I was singing my favorite Easter hymn to my daughter and explaining the words to her. And I was reminded of the biggest WIN the world has ever seen. Final Four games have nothing on this victory and the joy it brings!

Up from the grave He arose, with a mighty triumph o’er His foes . . .

When Jesus rose from the grave, He won big-time over Satan, over death, over sin, over sickness, over sadness, over pain!

He arose a victor from the dark domain, and He lives forever with His saints to reign . . .

Jesus wins, and if you are in Christ, you win, too!

He arose! He arose! Hallelujah, Christ arose!

The message of Easter morning is this: Jesus wins. Because Christ is risen, we can have joy and hope in a world that seems to be falling apart. It looks like we are losing. It feels like we are losing. Our hearts break when we encounter pain, sadness, sickness, grief and death.

But the truth is, Christ has won. It is finished! And in Christ, we are more than conquerors – we win, too! We WIN because Christ has WON. And someday the victorious Christ will wipe away every sad tear from our eyes.

Here’s my daughter singing our favorite Easter hymn three years ago. I pray the truth of these words takes deep root in her heart as she learns all that Jesus has won for her. Happy Easter, friends. Christ is risen!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sqmfo5Fkus8