Oklahoma Softball Wins Championship: ‘The Joy of the Lord is Our Strength’
By Movieguide® Contributor
The Oklahoma softball team won their third consecutive national title last week, defeating Florida St. 3-1. The reason behind their success? The joy of the Lord.
In a post-game press-conference an ESPN reporter asked how the team handled the pressure and kept their joy, team captain Grace Lyons answered, “The only way that you can have a joy that doesn’t fade away is from the Lord. Any other type of joy is actually happiness that comes from circumstances and outcomes.”
“Joy from the Lord is really the only thing that can keep you motivated [and] in a good mindset, no matter the outcomes,” she added.
Teammate Jayda Coleman added saying she agreed “1000%.” After last year’s national title Coleman said she still felt empty, and she couldn’t understand why.
“I was just so happy that we won the College World Series, but I didn’t feel joy,” Coleman stated. “I didn’t know what to do the next day. I didn’t know what to do for that following week. I didn’t feel filled, and I had to find Christ in that.
“I think that’s what makes our team so strong is that we’re not afraid to lose because it’s not the end of the world if we do lose,” she added. “Yes, obviously, we worked our butts off to be here and we want to win. But it’s not the end of the world because our life is in Christ and that’s all that matters.”
Alyssa Brito, the team’s infielder, explained what the team’s “Eye’s up” mentality mean’s, in which the players point upwards to indicate they are focused on Christ.
“We know this game is giving us opportunities to glorify God. Once we figured that out…it’s really changed so much for us,” she said.
“This isn’t our home. … We have so much more. We have an eternity of joy with our Father, and I’m so excited about that.” she concluded, “No matter what, my sisters in Christ will be there with me in the end, when we’re with our King.”
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