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Loss or Victory, it Depends on the Day

by Luke Burns on August 04, 2020

There is a story in the Bible (found in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke) about Jesus casting a demon out of a man near The Sea of Galilee. The story is also retold by Bob Goff in his popular book, “Love Does”. In the story a man meets Jesus who is overcome by an evil spirit. Jesus performs a miracle and casts the evil spirit out of the man, and into a group of swine on a nearby cliff. The swine, possessed by the spirit, run off the cliff and die, and the man is free from evil, and he thanks Jesus for his healing powers. 

My initial reaction is to be happy for the man that Jesus helps! What an amazing day for him, after a considerable amount of time struggling with evil, he is liberated by Christ and is cured. But then I think...what about those pigs? Did the pigs belong to someone, like sheep belong to a shepard? Did any of the pigs have other pig friends who wondered where they went? I’m so concerned for those pigs! What actually happened to them and why? 

Despite all of that, there are some days I feel like the man Jesus cured, and some days I feel like the pigs who ran off the cliff. Some days I feel the Holy Spirit and am reassured that Jesus is next to me and guiding me through life! Other days I feel like a pig running off a cliff, unsure of God’s plan, confused about my purpose, feeling overwhelmed by evil instead of the holiness of God. 

One person’s loss is another’s victory. The truth is, it was a great day for the man, but not for the pigs. Sometimes in our lives we experience hardship and challenges. Maybe you didn’t get the job you applied for, or you got a flat tire, or you had to clean the toilet because your brother did it last week, and now it’s your turn. Sometimes we can’t see what God is doing for others, but that doesn’t mean that he isn’t there. 

We are truly all God’s children, made in his image and loved by God and his army of angels, and we are all called to live together, united by faith, in His Kingdom. In order to do this, I often have to remind myself that the job that I didn’t get, went to someone who may have needed it more than me, or was being called to serve in that way. When I have to clean the toilet instead of my brother, I know he gets to spend that time doing something he enjoys. 

Loss and victory go hand in hand, and the amazing thing is, God is with us whether we are the swine or the saved man. 

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