Let me ask you a question:
When you look at the different areas of your life from your marriage, your family, your career, even your relationship with God, what's the best case scenario? What's the win? What does succeeding look like?

In organizations like a church or a business, you often set up specific parameters in the way you want things to go because you have a specific outcome in mind. If a business wants to release a new product or jump into a new area of service, there is a specific win in mind. In terms of an organization like us, for instance, when it comes to the marriage seminar that's coming up on April 18, what is the outcome we are expecting? What is the win?

When you start off with the expected outcome, it makes the process make sense.

Last summer, our camping trip to Inks Lake got canceled because of the floods so we decided to load up the car and drive to the Grand Canyon.
Monique has always wanted to go to the Grand Canyon with our kids and this seemed like a great opportunity to do that. We didn't know how every detail was going to work out, but we knew we wanted to see the Grand Canyon and so that meant I needed to find a place for us to stay. That started the process of me looking for different places, and I came across this incredible lodge that had a bunch of tiny homes called Village Camp Flagstaff. It was incredible! The tiny homes were really modern and cool and there was a restaurant in the clubhouse, they had a huge heated pool, tons of outdoor things, seven minutes away from a cave, about an hour and a half away from everything we wanted to see at the Grand Canyon.

I don't know if you know this, but it is a long way to the Grand Canyon. A little over 18 hours. And then the attractions we wanted to see weren't 15 minutes away from each other. We spent hours driving to the various things to see, and some of those things we saw were not planned, but simply the natural result of using Google Maps to search “Natural Attractions Near Me.”

This incredible trip started with the Grand Canyon as the direction, but that wasn't the expected outcome, or the win.

Do you know what the win was for us, the thing that was going to make this trip successful? That our family had an experience we would never forget. That's what made the driving worth it, the expense worth it, the long hours in a car with five people worth it.

When it comes to your marriage, your family, your friendships, your church, your career, your relationship with Jesus, what is your win, your outcome you are expecting, your definition of success? Let me ask it like this: What is the prize? What is that thing that makes the hard parts bearable? God wants to help you evaluate what you see as success, as the prize, because he wants you to be effective in enduring.

2 Peter 1:5-8
5 Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. 8 The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Do you know how you can accomplish that list that gets you to the deeper understanding of who Jesus is, so you can be perfect, complete, lacking nothing like James talks about in James 1? You have to understand what success actually is, the reward, the prize. When you get that, faith gets easier and growth gets faster.

I want to talk to you today around 3 ideas on understanding what the prize really is.

1. Your why makes your what makes sense
Comedian, Michael Junior says it like this: “When you know why, your what becomes more clear and more impactful.”

When it came to our family vacation:
Our what was a trip to the Grand Canyon that turned into ascending Sandia Peak, enjoying Village Camp Flagstaff, River Rafting on the Colorado in Horseshoe Canyon, exploring Antelope Canyon, Monument Valley, Meteor Crater, and a lava tube cave that ran 7 miles into the mountains. Trying not to get abducted in Roswell New Mexico, delving into Carlsbad Caverns, and hiking Guadalupe Mountain, camping in a geometric dome beneath the Milky Way in the desert, and finally winding our way in Big Bend National Park along the Rio Grande. And let’s not forget the Grand Canyon…All that was what we did, but our why was not just a trip we’d never forget, but time together we’d never forget. The time, the memories, the moments, That was the prize!

19 hours to get there from Houston. Minimum 2 hours one way from Flagstaff to the Grand Canyon. 2.5 hours from the Grand Canyon to Monument Valley. 4000 miles. And money lol. The why made the what bearable.

When it comes to your marriage, what is the why that makes the what make sense? Let’s say you have a disagreement. The resolution is the what you’re after, but the why is what dictates how you resolve. If your why is “Get even,” your what is going to be destructive. If your why is, “Grow closer,” your what is going to be constructive.

When it comes to your kids, what is the why that makes the what make sense? Let’s talk about extracurriculars. If your why is, “Have a great experience doing something they love,” then you are going to focus on ways to help them grow. If your why is, “To live vicariously as they do something I love,” then you won’t care about the why (great experience doing something they love), you’ll only care about the what (play the game I loved).

What about when it comes to Jesus? Christianity is hard when you make the what the why. The what of Christianity is the disciplines like reading, praying, meditating on God, serving, fasting. When you elevate doing what a Christian does over the being that a Christian is, faith becomes difficult and obedience a chore. But when you understand the why, the what makes sense.

Luke 10:38-42
38 As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. 39 Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. 40 But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.” 41 But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! 42 There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”

One lady focused on the what. One focused on the why. Because Martha saw the what as the prize, she was frustrated. She was upset that Mary wasn’t doing the what, which she saw as the most important thing. Because Mary saw the why as the prize, she was honored. We never hear from Mary in this moment, but I know I would wonder why Martha was so consumed with the what.

This doesn’t mean the what isn’t important, it just isn’t the prize.

Why did you say yes to Jesus in the first place? Obligation? Expectation? You wanted to go to heaven? Did you say yes out of duty, or did you discover what Mary discovered?

If your yes to Jesus was because of anything other than you realizing that you couldn’t be whole without him, then your relationship with him is going to be difficult.

So which are you? Martha or Mary?

2. Your motivation is driven by the prize
Now this might sound kind of strange, but think of it like this: Some of you recognize that I've lost a little bit of weight. I'm trying for real. In this process, I've really changed how I eat. I'm trying really hard to not eat a bunch of carbs, sugars, things like that. I try to drink more water, less carbonated drinks. I definitely don't drink full sugar drinks because those are just empty calories.

But sometimes, because I don't have just one sweet tooth, but a whole head full of them, I want to eat something sweet. I realize that complete deprivation is probably not gonna be sustainable, so I've been trying to be modest when I do eat something sweet.

In this whole process, the prize has been me at my goal weight, which for me is 225 pounds. I looked my best, felt my best, when I was at that weight. When I started this process, I'd gotten to 317 pounds. Long way to go, I know.

But do you know what motivates me? It isn’t the number. It’s knowing I’ll not just feel better, but I’ll be better.

When it comes to your life, and not just in things like your marriage or your family or your friendships, etc., but even in areas where you struggle, what is the prize?

Let's say you've had a struggle your entire life with something. Have you imagined what success would look like in that area? If you have, then that prize is what motivates you to achieve it. But if you haven't, that's a part of the reason why you haven't dealt with it yet.

Truth is, what you focus on is what you achieve. What you're looking for, you'll find. But the other side of that coin is it if you don't have focus, you won't achieve, and if you're not looking, you won't find it.

Matthew 7:7-8
For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

Jeremiah 29:13
You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

We see an incredibly stark contrast between Peter and Judas in the Gospels. Both of them betrayed Jesus, yet they met very different fates.

Why is that? What was so different about those two men that led to wildly different outcomes?

First, Peter. Peter constantly had his foot in his mouth, he constantly made bad choices. He was rough around the edges and hyper emotional. I really relate to him. But he understood the prize. We know this because the same guy who said he wasn’t with Jesus also said, “You are the Christ, the son of the living God.”

What about Judas? Judas was originally excited about Jesus because he believed him to be the Messiah, but very differently from what Peter believed. Judas believed what mainline first century Jews thought about the Messiah, that he was going to come in as a reigning conqueror who would expel the Romans from Judah and restore the throne of King David. And Judas was pretty much on board until Jesus started talking about things like his kingdom not being of this world. And Judas definitely was on a different track when Jesus started talking about laying his life down, being sacrificed, none of which fit into the Jewish mindset of what the Messiah would be.

In the Gospels, whenever Judas directly addresses Jesus, he consistently uses the term "Rabbi" (meaning "Teacher" or “Master" a formal, instructional sense), not “Lord."
- At the Last Supper, when Jesus announces a betrayer is among them, the other disciples ask, "Is it I, Lord?.” Judas says, "Is it I, Rabbi?" (Matthew 26).
- During the betrayal in the Garden of Gethsemane, Judas approaches Jesus and says, "Hail, Rabbi!” before kissing him.

This pattern is noted in many biblical commentaries and studies: the other disciples use "Lord" in moments of faith or address, while Judas sticks to "Rabbi," which highlights a spiritual distance—he views Jesus primarily as a teacher rather than as Lord and Messiah. Not a single verse in Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John records Judas using "Lord" for Jesus.

Judas wanted something from Jesus - a prize. He wanted military victory, and probably a role in the new kingdom. He wanted Jesus to do what he expected Jesus to do.

Before we hurl stones at Judas, let us remember that we can very easily become transactional in our relationship with Jesus, too. That prayer Jesus didn’t answer, that job he didn’t let you have, that family member that passed even though you begged…We can easily become Judas when we begin to believe that the prize lies in the work of his hands. And when we’re operating like this, the motivation isn’t lordship. The motivation is reward-ship. “You can have you, Jesus. I just want what you can do for me.”

If you’ve been operating like this, I want you to know there is hope. You don’t have to be like Judas. You can be more like Peter. Judas ended his life. When he came to his senses and realized what he’d done, the failure in him drove him to end everything. Peter, however, didn’t end his life. He just ended his old life. When he came to his senses and realized what he’d done, the failure in him drove him to repentance.

What is motivating your relationship with Jesus? What he does or who he is?

3. The prize is what always has your heart
Matthew 6:21
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

What has your heart? The answer is whatever you see as the prize.
In your marriage: Is the prize just not being alone, or do you see your spouse as the prize? I didn’t deserve Monique. She has always been a tangible representation of God’s grace to me. She is the prize. As a result, there is no argument too important, no other woman too irresistible, no thing to be gained that is better than the prize God gave me. That’s why the argument will always have a resolution and the temptations around me unenticing. Why? She’s the prize. And if the argument does get too big or the temptations do get too strong, it is a warning to me that I’m no longer seeing her as the prize.

With Jesus: Is the prize Heaven, or stuff he can do, or is it simply him?

Philippians 3:3-12
3 Whatever happens, my dear brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord. I never get tired of telling you these things, and I do it to safeguard your faith.
2 Watch out for those dogs, those people who do evil, those mutilators who say you must be circumcised to be saved. 3 For we who worship by the Spirit of God are the ones who are truly circumcised. We rely on what Christ Jesus has done for us. We put no confidence in human effort, 4 though I could have confidence in my own effort if anyone could. Indeed, if others have reason for confidence in their own efforts, I have even more!
5 I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin—a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law. 6 I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault.
7 I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ 9 and become one with him. I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith.
10 I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, 11 so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead! 12 I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me.

Listen to me church family:
Heaven isn’t the prize. You free from addiction isn’t the prize. Your marriage rescued or your family members restored isn’t the prize. You healed or redeemed - not even your salvation - none of these are the prize.

JESUS is the prize. Jesus and him alone. He is the treasure. He is the desired outcome. He is the goal. He is the focus. Christ and Christ alone, he is the prize.

When Jesus is your prize, he’ll have your heart. And what is amazing about that is that all those things we mistakenly put as the prize, the healing and restoration and salvation and rescue and the good things he can do for us, all of those are byproducts of you embracing the truth that Jesus is the prize.

How do I start living the truth that Jesus and Jesus alone is the prize?
You make him the priority. Interestingly enough, priority is from an old Latin word that even into the 1400’s meant, “precedence in right, place, or rank."
The 1897 Century Dictionary wrote "Priority is the state or fact of coming first in order of time. So to prioritize, you make the prize prior to everything else.

You do that? Is he first? You do know that which you prioritize has your devotion, right? So if you won’t make peace in that argument, what are you worshipping? If you won’t let that offense go, what are you worshipping? If you won’t give up that addiction or mindset, what are you worshipping?

Is Jesus the prize to you? If he is, then prioritize the prize.

Hebrews 12:1-2
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy set before him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.

Hebrews 2: 9-10
9 What we do see is Jesus, who for a little while was given a position “a little lower than the angels”; and because he suffered death for us, he is now “crowned with glory and honor.” Yes, by God’s grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone. 10 God, for whom and through whom everything was made, chose to bring many children into glory. And it was only right that he should make Jesus, through his suffering, a perfect leader, fit to bring them into their salvation.

We’re going to end today with a song and a moment to acknowledge who Jesus really is to us.

Maybe you’ve never made Jesus Lord and that’s why you haven’t seen him as the prize. It isn’t heaven or healing or help. The prize is Jesus. Receive him. “Jesus I confess you as Lord. I repent of my sin. Save me.”

Maybe you need to confess some sin. Maybe you’ve been worshipping at the feet of illegitimate prizes. Maybe you simply need an experience with Jesus now so you can taste and see how good he really is.

But it all begins when you understand that he is the treasure, the reward, the prize.

Let’s let this song be a prayer that gives the Holy Spirit an opportunity to speak and move:
And we are His portion and He is our prize
Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes
If His grace is an ocean, we're all sinking
And heaven meets earth like an unforeseen kiss
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest
I don't have time to maintain these regrets
When I think about, the way
He loves us