What A High School Basketball Game Taught Me About Faith

Last night, I went to a basketball game with my dad at his old high school where the Somerset Briar Jumpers (Our school team’s mascot) was playing against the Danville Admirals (Boo!) in the Regional semi-finals. At the beginning, Somerset played terribly as they missed a lot of easy shots, did some bad throws, and kept giving Danville the upper hand to score a point left and right. It was miserable and the boys were getting rattled, I could tell.

During 2nd quarter when both teams went on break, I excused myself from the stadium also to wander the halls a bit and pray for a miracle that the game would turn around and we’d win a victory lol. And as I was praying, I felt calm and a sense of joyful anticipation when a sudden realization hit me.

Often times in my faith, I get discouraged when the beginning looks awful and it feels like it will stay that way. I knew that’s how the boys must’ve felt as they were getting ran over by the other team. It made me think about difficult times in my life when things weren’t going the way I had hoped. And my prayers weren’t getting answered the way I wanted it, but looking back now, God did answer by reminding me that He was in control. No matter how many obstacles there are or how hopeless a situation appears, He is faithful regardless of the situation and outcome.

It made me reflect that on my faith. That even when my journey has ups and downs and terrible beginnings or middle, it doesn’t mean it will have a terrible ending. And when the result isn’t what we expected, will we still trust God and His character in tough and dry seasons? Believe that He is good and faithful regardless of the outcome?

That’s when I realized I needed to step back and just continue watching, cheering those boys on, and enjoy the game no matter the score. And I had this odd feeling that things were gonna change. Sure enough, those boys made a fierce comeback during a 18 point halftime deficit to tie the game with less than 12 seconds on the clock once they figured out how to intercept the key players from the other team. But sadly lost at the very last shot from the opposing team at the buzzer. Would’ve been a fantastic finish for the boys had they won but they lost by 2 points!

My heart would’ve been so happy but it was a good game. And I had faith in them. The student body and the crowd’s high spirited energy filled the stadium and never once gave up on those boys, and the boys didn’t give up either. The final score was 66 to 64. That’s what I call perseverance. I’m so proud of the boys for not giving up and playing their very best despite a terrible beginning and bad calls from the refs. They played hard all season and became District Champs which is a great accomplishment!

So the students, fans, and alumni have every reason to be proud of them. It all depends on how you look at it. Even though my God didn’t answer my prayer the way I hoped, He still answered by reminding me of who He is and taught me something in the process. God moves in mighty ways, but answers prayers according to His ways and on His terms.

Next year, some of those returning players are coming back for the next season so I’ll be sure to be rooting for them! Way to go Briar Jumpers!