Child’s Play
Aggravation. It’s the stuff of life, right? Is it any wonder that game makers created a child’s game with that name? This simple board game is played with marbles, and the goal is to be the first to get your all marbles from start to “home”. There’s the long way around the board and short-cuts. Along the way, you can be bumped and sent back to start. Life lessons I learned are:
- A single “bump” can mean starting over. It only takes one event to change our lives for the short term and the long term. King David’s choice to act on his lust for Bathsheba was a bad choice that led to adultery, murder, an illegitimate child, and a son’s death (2 Samuel 11). Called out by Nathan, the first thing David did after his son died was to go to the Lord’s house and bow down. Putting his sin behind him, he started over.
- The fastest route isn’t always the best way to go. Caught in sin’s trap, David thought that the quickest way to resolve his issue was to kill Uriah but he compounded his sin with more sin. His sin was not obvious now, but his “quick” route to resolution was wrong. Sometimes, we just have to go through the circumstance with God’s help rather than look for a quick fix that compounds things.
- Starting over isn’t all bad. While David could never undo his sin, he repented and started over. He led his life in such a way that the Bible calls him a man after God’s own heart. Though the rest of David’s life could have been sinful and completely wasted, his repentance allowed him to experience forgiveness and God’s goodness. Repenting and starting over restores us and allows us to receive God’s blessings in our lives again.
- There’s no such thing as a “bump–free” journey. The scripture tells us explicitly that in this life we will have struggles, but to be happy because He has overcome anything we will face (John 16:33). We have to take the bumps and keep on moving.
- We are all on the journey home. In Hebrews 9:26, we are told that we’re all going to die and face judgement. Living this life well, with Christ in our lives and at our side, will help us complete the journey to our eternal heavenly home.
Today, remember to seek the Lord when encountering the aggravations of life. If you hit a bump, repentance and starting over is all it takes to receive God’s grace. It will lead you safely home.
– TH –