Lose Some, Winsome

Many of you have already read my wife's rant of a month or so back - regarding the brutality of youth wrestling.
On that fated day, she posed a question to me:  what was I going to do when AA had to go up against a girl - yeah! what was I going to do then?!?!?  She didn't say that last part but I inferred it.

I did not know what I would do.  I would certainly be very uncomfortable with the prospect - as would AA, I'm sure.

By now the news has spread round the continental United States of just such a match up in the first match of the Iowa State Wrestling Tournament.  Joel Northrup, a home-schooler, forfeited the match rather than wrestling 14 year old female, Cassy Herkelman.  Here was his statement:

"Wrestling is a combat sport and it can get violent at times, as a matter of conscience and my faith I do not believe that it is appropriate for a boy to engage a girl in this manner. It is unfortunate that I have been placed in a situation not seen in most other high school sports in Iowa."

(from Associated Press story 02/17/2011, "Rather than Face Girl, Wrestler Defaults" http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/highschool/news/story?id=6131909 )



Wow!  Many people have remarked about the class displayed by this young man.
It illustrates the importance of a word I have heard bandied about a great deal lately:

Winsome.

Joel Northrup stood up for his convictions in a winsome way.  It won over a lot of commentators and bloggers; Cassy, herself indicated that she did not feel disrespected by him; and her father also seemed to feel that Northrup acted with honor. 

It is how we are supposed to share the Light of Jesus Christ - in a winsome manner.

I have known some "persecuted" Christians that were not rejected because of their relationship with Christ - but rather - they were rejected because they were annoying.

You can see winsome in the Bible when you read about the "excellent spirit" of Daniel and when the detractors could not counter the arguments raised by Stephen in the book of Acts, whose countenance was said to be "like the face of an angel".

Oh that I might learn to always be winsome in the way the gospel is presented through my life.  I hope that we are rearing our son and daughter in such a manner that they would always respond to big questions in a winsome way.

Thank you Joel, for showing us how to lose - and win.