We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God (2 Corinthians 5:20 NIV).

[The Connect Devotional team is on summer hiatus. We pray you will be blessed by the second week of devotionals from the September 2023 sermon series “Inner Strength, Resilient Core.”]

Many years ago - almost 12, to be exact - Santa gave me the Christmas present that led me to be the person I am today: my first horseback riding lessons. One day, I was riding Walnut the lesson pony when suddenly he shot his head down to the ground to eat some grass. Instantly, I flew out of the saddle and over Walnut’s neck before ultimately landing on the ground in front of him. 

Six-year-old me felt defeated; however, since both Walnut and I were uninjured, my trainer said, “Ok, get back on.” I finished my lesson, and upon our return to the barn, she gave me a ribbon. It wasn’t a big, blue, first-place ribbon, but a brown one, one she said was a prize for my first time falling off.

When I look back on it now, I realize that ribbon is more than a prize. It is a sign of resilience, a sign to always “get back on,” and it ultimately led to many blue ribbons in the years to come. 

Our journey as Christians may feel very similar. 2 Corinthians 5:20 says we are Christ’s ambassadors in sharing the Good News. However, being an ambassador for Christ isn’t all butterflies, unicorns, and blue ribbons. We will face trials and hardships. We may face persecution or judgment from the world. But when we are ambassadors for Christ, we are essentially setting a life-long goal to be resilient. 

Being resilient in our faith doesn’t mean things will be easy; instead, things are almost guaranteed to be difficult. When we strive for resilience, we are constantly trying to get back up and aiming to never give up. It may seem like all we receive throughout our lives are brown ribbons, small prizes for small acts of resilience. 

But if we are resilient in living Gospel-centered lives as ambassadors for Christ, we will ultimately receive the best blue ribbon of all - eternal life with God. 

How can you take a step this week to becoming a resilient ambassador for Christ? How can you remind yourself that minuscule victories and brown ribbons are not meaningless but are, instead, reminders to be resilient until you reach the end goal?