Ironic that I'm writing this after a World Series loss from my favorite team. In defeat, there's not really anything you feel like giving thanks for. You feel low. You look for someone to blame. You look back and think about all the missed opportunities. Defeat feels terrible.
Life beats us down and challenges are ability to see things through the lens of victory. Defeats happen along the way, and we get so beat down that we see things through failures, guilt, shame, regret and/or uncertainty.
1 Corinthians says that in Jesus we have victory. We have hope. We have a future. We have redemption. We have forgiveness. Past mistakes don't have any power over us. Future bumps pale in comparison to the eternal promises of being with Him forever.
Today I'm grateful that my past hurts and failures don't define me. My faith lifts me up out of that and allows me to see myself as a son of God. He gives me the victory, and I'm thankful!