Spoiler Alert—Your Life Story

I recently heard a speaker share his experience of watching the men's U.S. Open semifinals on tape delay. The match was intense—neck-and-neck through repeated set points. But then, during a commercial break, he made the mistake of checking his phone. (Been there, done that.) Suddenly, he knew who had won. Bummer, he said, because the thrill was now gone.

My wife, Tammy, will occasionally walk through the room while I'm watching a similarly taped game. She'll ask, "What's the score?" ...doing her best to feign interest. I might say, "Well, it's really close right now, but I already know we won." She will shake her head and again wonder why I'd bother with any game where the outcome is already known. But sometimes, I enjoy the game more because I know the good guys win—the suspense is in seeing how we get there.

Not long ago, I overheard two readers comparing how they approach novels. One, like most of us, reads straight through from beginning to end. The other skims the opening, then flips to the end and reads the last chapter. If he likes how it ends, he'll read the whole thing. If not, he moves on. At first, I thought, "How strange." But his logic stuck with me.

When I wrote From Start to Finish earlier this year, I closed with a chapter that was positioned as me having reached the final fifteen minutes of my scheduled sixty-minutes story—at least according to life expectancy charts.

So, the opening example above got me curious as to how different life is from a sporting event when you already know the outcome? I don't know what my current "score" is, given all the multitude of my mistakes. But honestly, the score doesn't ultimately matter, because the final outcome is already determined. God settled it in John 3:16 when it was revealed that everyone who believes in Jesus will have eternal life. Game, set, match.

If you're reading this, the beginning of your story is already in the books. And if you're a believer, the ending is as well. Any remaining suspense lies in our middle chapters. We don't yet know what tomorrow will bring, but Romans 8:28 promises that "…in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."

Speaking from experience, every chapter doesn't necessarily feel good. Some will be painful, filled with disappointments and failure. At some point, most of us will pursue what we believe will bring success, only to experience repeated setbacks. But even those missteps become raw material in God's hands. He weaves our victories and failures into a larger story aimed at our good and His glory.

Some of you are old enough to remember the Pittsburgh Steelers' "Immaculate Reception" back in 1972. With only twenty-two seconds left on the clock, it wasn't Terry Bradshaw's finest pass—basically a ricochet off of Raider Jack Tatum's helmet. But it miraculously bounced right into Franco Harris's arms for the winning touchdown and the Steelers' first-ever playoff victory. Life often feels like that—our broken plays becoming the setup for God's surprising wins.

Faith, then, isn't just about knowing the ending—it's about trusting God with the pages still to be written.

Here's the question: how are you writing the rest of your story? With fear, hesitation, and anxious suspense? Or with trust, courage, and a willingness to let God redeem both the highlights and the low points?

Spoiler alert: We win.