Day 39 – Learning to Celebrate Other People’s Wins

May 9, 2026 — Saturday (Sabbath)

The rain came down all day.

Thunderstorms.

Gray skies.

A quiet Sabbath.

It was just me and my daughter at home again.

We stayed inside most of the day.

Napping.

Resting.

Slowing down.

And honestly…

I needed it.

A Different Kind of Sabbath

There’s something strange about rainy Saturdays.

The world outside slows down for you.

No pressure to go anywhere.

No pressure to perform.

Just stillness.

And somewhere in the middle of that stillness…

I carved out time to read.

I’ve got stacks of books piling up lately.

Leadership books.

Ministry books.

Growth books.

But one thing I read yesterday really stayed with me:

Celebrate other people’s wins.

Why That’s Hard For Most People

Especially in business.

Because business often trains you to think:

• compete

• compare

• chase

• prove

So when somebody else succeeds…

there’s this temptation to think:

“Why them and not me?”

And if you stay in that mindset long enough…

it poisons you.

Not them.

You.

The Trap of Comparison

Comparison quietly turns life into competition.

Even with people you care about.

Even with friends.

Even with people on your own team.

And once everything becomes competition…

you stop being able to genuinely celebrate anybody.

But What If We Did The Opposite?

What if we actually became people who:

• celebrated wins

• encouraged growth

• championed others

• lifted people up

Not because it benefited us.

But because we genuinely wanted to see people win.

I’ve Been Seeing This Inside ROI

One of the guys in our group had been searching for direction for a while.

Trying different businesses.

Different ideas.

Different paths.

Then finally…

something clicked.

I remember him saying:

“I found it.”

And I felt excited with him.

Not fake excitement.

Not forced encouragement.

Genuine joy.

Because when you truly care about people…

their wins become your wins too.

That’s The Kind Of Culture I Want To Build

Not one where people secretly compete.

But one where people genuinely want to see each other succeed.

Imagine what the world would look like if:

• people celebrated instead of envied

• encouraged instead of compared

• supported instead of competed

That changes everything.

The Realization

I think a lot of people spend their lives searching for applause.

Recognition.

Validation.

Attention.

But the more I walk with God…

the more I realize:

freedom comes when it stops being about you.

Even In Speaking

I was coaching someone recently on public speaking and stage presence.

And one of the things I told them was this:

“When you walk on stage, stop thinking about yourself.”

Because the moment you become self-focused…

you tighten up.

You perform.

You protect yourself.

But when your focus shifts to:

“How can I serve these people?”

Everything changes.

You become:

• more present

• more authentic

• more connected

Because it’s no longer about impressing people.

It’s about helping them.

The Shift That Frees You

This was the biggest takeaway from yesterday:

Self-focus creates pressure.
Service creates freedom.

Because when life is all about:

• your image

• your success

• your recognition

You become trapped by it.

But when your focus becomes:

“How do I encourage and build up the people around me?”

You stop carrying the weight of needing to prove yourself.

The Anchor

“Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.” Romans 12:15

Closing Thought

The older I get…

the less interested I am in applause.

And the more fulfilled I feel…

watching other people step into who God created them to be.

Because maybe the greatest form of leadership…

isn’t building your own platform.

Maybe it’s helping other people rise.