I’m not the sports guy I used to be, but I try to keep somewhat clued in on what my childhood team the Chicago Cubs are up to, when I think about it.

A story from the Cubs camp that has caught a lot of attentional nationally this past week has been the team’s ace pitcher (and former ND football star) Jeff Samardjzia. The dude has thrown close to perfectly from the mound and has THE best statistics of any pitcher in Major League Baseball. He’s been nearly flawless. And up until yesterday, he hadn’t won once in the past 16 games he started.

Yesterday, he broke a record-breaking streak of seven straight starts with a loss by finally recording a win. This streak started way back in 2013. When people were Facebooking about Miley Cyrus, listening to “Blurred Lines” everywhere and predicting that  Anchorman 2 would be awesome (it wasn’t).

It had to be SO frustrating for Jeff to come off the mound after pitching so well and doing the best he could for his team and for himself and then watch his team basically make his work irrelevant by blowing the game. He was the best pitcher in the league and had zero wins to show for it. That changed yesterday when they beat the Giants 8-4. His first victory in 17 games as a starting pitcher. Last week, in the midst of his 16th straight win-less game, a former teammate of Jeff’s said this about a conversation the two had earlier:

“I told him: ‘It doesn’t matter, dude You play in Chicago. I was there and I lost 30 wins in three seasons. So it’s not your fault. Just pitch your way out of it…Keep your eyes focused. Keep your eyes straight ahead and just pitch. There’s nothing else you can do.”

Jeff could mope and moan and knock over Gatorade coolers in the locker room over his team not only letting him down by losing, but really, making him look bad. I mean, there are now records no one wants attached to this guy for losing so much. And the truth is, whether it was public or privately, he probably did do all of those things. He’s a naturally-competitive, professional-athlete human male with a spotlight on him.

But I’m struck by his former teammates advice, as simple as it was: Yeah, it’s a really crappy situation. And by now, you should be well past the point of being surprised by how crappy this is, because it’s gone on for so long and nothing major has changed–you’re still pitching alongside the same teammates. There’s nothing you can do about what your team is doing. But there’s absolutely something that you can do, and that’s concentrate on doing the best you can with what you have. And what you have is, clearly, a lot of talent. Don’t look around at the mess around you. Don’t listen to the people reminding you of your winlessness. Don’t blame the universe for putting you in this situation (because, ultimately YOU put yourself in this situation by joining the team…an entirely different point).  Just stay on your path.

To me, the redemption with Jeff Samardzjia here isn’t that he finally won his first game yesterday and broke his streak. Remember, he’s still 1-16 and 1-4 for this season. Far from great.

The redemption is found in (if) he has taken up his friend’s advice and truly made the decision to stay the course and do the best he could, regardless of what was happening in the world around him. Because he’ll get through this and he’ll get through it as one the best pitchers in baseball.

As one who’s gone through a painful divorce and prays and hopes for a restored marriage with my former wife, I can identify with Samardzjia’s journey of loss:

It’s a crappy situation of tremendous loss, rejection and disorder. And by now–several years later–it should be no surprise that this situation is what it is because nothing’s really changed. Same former spouse. Same emotional distance and complete lack of communication about the situation on her end. There’s nothing that I can do to effectively change her mind.

But what I do have is hope (Romans 5:5). And increased wisdom (James 1:5). And faith that what God once joined together, He would love to see restored (Mark 10:9, Joel 2:23-25). So my best option is not to blame the elements: God, my wife, others who influence my wife. My best option is not to throw my hands up and give up on the whole deal because things just aren’t going the way I’m working so hard for them to go.

My best option is to “pitch my way out of it” and make constant decisions to do my best with what I have. And to keep getting better, regardless of what’s happening around me. To love stronger, even if it feels like I’m heading for another loss of some kind. To trust that staying on this path will increase my faith to the point that I’m not…claiming…God’s promises; I live like I already have them. Because I do.

To keep walking straight. Like Christ did, on his way to the cross. Never distracted. Never thrown off course.

Jeff Samardjzia knew he wouldn’t be in this position forever. He just needed to pitch and believe his team will turn around eventually…or he’ll get traded. There’s nothing else he could do.

I know I won’t be in this position forever. I just need to faithfully stay on my path and believe God’s doing a work in my heart and the hearts of people around me. There’s nothing else I can do.