A Victory Not Our Own

My roommate bleeds Butler Blue.

With newspaper cutouts, pennants, balloons, posters, and pompoms taking over her closet door, corkboard, and every wall on her side of the room, Tabitha recently asked me if she could start spreading her Butler paraphernalia to other walls to make space for the posters she has waiting for her in a stack on her dresser.


On game days, my other roommate and I always have a looming anxiety about what will happen on the court. Yes, we are proud of our team and always want "our boys" to win, but we are also concerned about Tabitha's emotional well-being. When the Dawgs bring in another victory, Tabitha is high as a kite with unbreakable joy- checking airline prices so she can see the next tournament game in person, adding more pictures of Matt Howard and Brad Stevens to what she proudly calls her "stalker door," and rejoicing greatly in their hard-earned victory. But- when we lose- make way, there will be tears. And her school assignments will be put on hold, and it is a quiet, somber day in room 12. I can't tell you how many times I have heard her say, "We cannot afford to lose this week…I have an exam on Friday!"


She is going to hate me for posting this, by the way. :)

But the truth is- I love this about her! I thoroughly enjoy being caught up in this drama of battle and victory and team-pride. March Madness has brought such a triumphant air to the entire campus, and I am soaking it up.

Now that I have exposed some of my roommate's qwerks, let me also expose mine. I can be a real spiritual nerd- I seriously over-spiritualize everything. So yes- what looks like a blog post about sports is about to become a blog post about Jesus. Surprised? Here goes:

It's the night of the Sweet Sixteen game, and Butler is playing Wisconsin. The game has been so stressful, and a huge crowd of Butler students are watching together on a projector screen with anticipation so thick you could cut it with a knife. My ears have been ringing for the past hour and my throat is on fire. Occasionally I black out from standing up and screaming too fast, but that does not keep me from roaring with the utmost enthusiasm at every free-throw and three-pointer. It is nearing the end of the game, and the results are looking more and more promising. Two students begin to open the outside doors, and everyone gathers their things and throws on their jackets while they scream and roar and clap on the victory we know is soon to come.


And surely, as soon as that final buzzer sounds and our team rakes in another win, a mass of blue and white rushes for the doors. I am in the midst of this crowd, and so is my friend Brittany. Next thing I know, at least half of the student body is outside in the streets, jumping, hollering, and crowding around news cameras. There is crowd surfing, flag waving, and people sitting on their friends' shoulders with war paint on their faces chanting the Butler cheer. After a while, Brittany and I separated from the crowd to give our bodies a rest.


"Look at them…" I said as we stood facing them from afar. She did, and I know she saw what I saw. We saw a loud, unabashed celebration of victory- the physical manifestation of what we often feel in our souls.
"They are celebrating the victory of a battle they didn't even fight," I said. And I saw the light-bulbs light up above her head.
I continued, "And they are loud about it! Boasting! The victory of the ones who fought on their behalf belongs as much to them as the players who earned it."

We were suddenly even more encouraged to behold the celebration that was taking place before us.Then we walked away, remembering that we are tailored with human needs according to what the Gospel provides.

"Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord."
-1 Corinthians 1:31

"But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through the Lord Jesus Christ."
-1 Corinthians 15:57