You’ve just won the Super Bowl. The confetti is raining down. Teammates, friends, and family members are rushing to the field. The sideline reporter puts her microphone to your face and asks how you’re feeling:

“Well, I know we just won the Super Bowl and all, but boy was our defense terrible out there. There was pretty much no protection from our offensive line either. I could not believe the plays our coaches were calling. Punting on 4th and 1, are you serious? And the officials, don’t get me started on the officials. Worst officiating I’ve ever seen in a big game.”

Yeah, no.

No one complains after they win the Super Bowl. A winner might complain after any other game. There is always room to improve before the next game, even if you won.

But no one complains after they win the Super Bowl.

When you are in a relationship with Jesus Christ, you have taken hold of the greatest victory of all.

Jesus won the battle over sin and death. Death no longer has its snares on you. This is what Jesus tried to teach his friend Peter.

Peter complained when he heard that Jesus would have to endure suffering. He basically told Jesus he was being foolish for saying such things.

What Peter didn’t understand, and what Jesus had been trying to tell His disciples this whole time, was that He had already won.

Because Jesus knew He would overcome sin, He was willing to endure the painful process it would take to win the victory.

Jesus’s response to Peter’s complaints was harsh. It shows us just how off-base we are when we complain about the difficult circumstances that come against us:

But He turned and told Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me because you’re not thinking about God’s concerns, but man’s.”

Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wants to come with Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of Me will find it. What will it benefit a man if he gains the whole world yet loses his life? Or what will a man give in exchange for his life?” (Matthew 16:21-26)

Since you have already won the game, you can live knowing that every circumstance is building to the victory. You have the ultimate spoiler alert.

Super Bowl winners don’t complain, no matter how ugly the victory might have been. They know gameplans don’t always work out perfectly. In fact they never do.

You may feel like you’re losing a battle you’ve already won. But it’s the moments which don’t play out like we planned them to that make the great stories in our lives.

When it looks like you’re losing in life and things aren’t going according to your gameplan, take in stride.

Give thanks for God’s redirection. Give thanks for His ultimate plan. Give thanks because you have already won.

You can’t lose.

 What’s something that you would normally complain about today that you can give thanks for instead?