How Small Steps Lead to Big Victory

In this episode of Take Heart with Pati P, I’m talking about something simple but powerful:

Little wins.

When we think about winning, we often think about one big moment, the championship, the finish line, the breakthrough, the victory. But in sports, and in life, winning usually does not happen all at once.

Winning is built through small steps. Small choices. Small moments of obedience. Small habits. Small acts of faith.

Little wins.

I fell in love with sports when I was five years old and my mom signed me up for t-ball. Sports became one of the first great loves of my life. I played all through high school and eventually received a full-ride scholarship to play Division I softball at the University of Utah.

Those years taught me more than how to play a game. They prepared me for life. They prepared me for motherhood. They prepared me for business. They prepared me for faith.

And in many ways, they prepared me for widowhood.

After my husband went to be with the Lord, I remember feeling like he had handed me a baton. I knew I had a mission. I had three children to raise, and I wanted them to heal, move forward, and still know that God was good.

So I put on my game face.

That athletic mindset helped me keep going. It helped me raise my children, navigate grief, and build a full-time photography business at the same time. Looking back, I truly believe God knew what I would need before I knew I would need it. He had been preparing me all along.

In sports, you do not usually win in one single moment. In softball, you win through a series of little wins. You get a base hit. You move the runner over. You score a run. You make a play on defense. You get an out. You keep showing up.

And along the way, you also fail. You strike out. You make errors. You lose games. You miss opportunities.

But athletes learn to shake it off and get ready for the next play.

“That is such an important lesson for life.”

We are not going to win every moment. We are not going to get everything right. We will have failures, mistakes, setbacks, and hard days. But we do not have to stay down. We can get back up, reset, and take the next step.

As I have grown in my faith, I have started to see winning through a different lens — a spiritual lens.

As a photographer, I know that different lenses give different perspectives. And sometimes in life, we get stuck looking through only one lens. But when we look through a spiritual lens, winning becomes something deeper than achievement, success, or applause.

“Winning is submitting to God and allowing our Creator to shape us into who He made us to be.”

He knows our gifts. He knows our talents. He knows our personality. He knows our weaknesses. He knows our purpose.

And He wants to grow us, stretch us, strengthen us, and use us to bring love and light into the world.

What we go through is not just for us. God uses our experiences, our challenges, our healing, and our growth to make us more like Jesus — and then to turn around and be a blessing to someone else.

That is part of the mission of Take Heart with Pati P: to encourage you to pursue God’s plan and become who He created you to be.

In this episode, I also share from 1 Corinthians 9:24–27, where Paul talks about running to win. He reminds us that athletes exercise self-control and discipline for a temporary prize, but we are running for something eternal.

That means the little things matter.

The daily prayers matter. The small choices matter. The habits matter. The discipline matters. The moments of faith matter.

At this stage of my life, I think about finishing well. I want to finish the race God has given me. I want to love greater, give back, encourage others, and become everything He intended me to be.

But finishing well does not happen by accident.

It happens through daily faithfulness.

About six months before this episode, I had hit a place of burnout. I felt stuck. I was not sure what God wanted next. So I began doing some simple things every day — small disciplines that became habits.

One of those habits was a morning prayer. I began bringing every part of myself to God:

My heart.
My soul.
My mind.
My emotions.
My eyes.
My ears.
My mouth.
My hands.
My body.
My day.

I asked Him to guide me, lead me, help me see what He wanted me to see, hear what He wanted me to hear, speak words of life, and use my hands for what He wanted me to do.

“And slowly, momentum started.”

One small choice led to another. One little win led to another. And eventually, those daily steps helped move me from feeling stuck to stepping into new opportunities — including the interview that eventually led to this podcast.

Daily habits matter. They accumulate.

So if you feel stuck today, I want to encourage you: you do not have to figure everything out at once.

Just take one step forward. Take one step toward God.

Bring the pieces of your life to Him. Ask Him to guide you. Listen for His voice. Trust that He has an amazing plan for you.

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Reflection / Journal Questions

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What does “winning” currently mean to me?
How might God be inviting me to redefine winning through a spiritual lens?
What is one little win I can choose today?
Where do I feel stuck right now?
What small step could help me move forward?
What past experiences might God have used to prepare me for this season?
What failure, mistake, or setback do I need to shake off?
What daily habit would draw me closer to God?
What would it look like for me to run my race with purpose?
Where is the enemy trying to keep me discouraged, distracted, or stuck?
What does finishing well mean to me?
What part of my life do I need to bring to God today — my heart, mind, emotions, words, hands, body, or plans?

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Main Point Takeaways

1. Winning is not usually one big event.

Pati explains that in sports and in life, victory is built through a series of small wins. Base hits, advancing runners, making outs, getting back up after failure — all of those little moments add up.

2. God can use your past training to prepare you for your future assignment.

Pati reflects on how years of athletics prepared her for life, motherhood, widowhood, and running a business. God knew what she would need before she knew she would need it.

3. Little wins build momentum.

Small choices may not feel significant in the moment, but over time they create movement, clarity, confidence, and strength.

4. Failure is part of the process.

In sports, you make errors, lose games, strike out, and miss opportunities. But you learn to shake it off, get back up, and prepare for the next play. The same is true in life.

5. We need to look at winning through a spiritual lens.

Through a spiritual lens, winning is not just achievement or success. Winning is becoming who God created you to be and allowing Him to use your life to bless others.

6. God wants to shape us into people who bring light and love into the world.

The purpose of growth is not only for us. God uses our experiences, healing, stretching, and transformation so we can encourage and help others.

7. We are called to run to win.

Pati connects the message to 1 Corinthians 9:24–27, where Paul encourages believers to run with purpose, discipline, and eternal focus.

8. The enemy does not want you to win.

Pati reminds listeners that there is an enemy who wants to steal, kill, destroy, discourage, and keep people stuck. But God gives strength, direction, and freedom.

9. Finishing well matters.

Pati reflects on being in the “back nine” of life and wanting to finish the race well — loving greater, giving back, encouraging others, and becoming everything God intended her to be.

10. Daily habits can move you from stuck to unstuck.

After a season of burnout, Pati began practicing simple daily disciplines, including a morning prayer of surrender. Those small habits created momentum and helped move her forward.

11. One little win can lead to another.

One prayer, one act of obedience, one habit, one small choice can begin a chain reaction of clarity, movement, and purpose.

12. You do not have to stay stuck.

God has a plan for your life. You can take one step toward Him today, bring every part of yourself to Him, and trust Him to guide you forward.

Call to Action

If this episode encouraged you, I’d be so grateful if you would subscribe to Take Heart with Pati P, leave a review, and share it with someone who needs encouragement to take one small step forward today.

And before you go, ask yourself: What is one little win I can choose today that will move me closer to God and the life He is calling me to live?