Just When You Think It’s Over
It is not a secret that I love playing cards…not like poker and black jack cards, but games like solitaire, gin, and canasta. The other day I was playing a game of solitaire on my phone and I was at impasse…I had no aces showing, so no progress was being made clearing off my board. I was about to give up when an overturned card allowed me to move a row of cards, exposing 3 aces back-to-back. After that, things started falling into place and I ended up winning the game. And as He often does, in my seemingly unimportant daily activity, God showed me a message.
In our day-to-day, we sometimes get to a point where we see no end in sight…no light at the end of the tunnel. We’re at an impasse…we don’t see any possible solutions, no strategic moves to improve our game. Often times, we give up before we get that single playing card that sets everything in motion for the win.
What we tend to forget is that God is all-knowing, He sees things we don’t see and He knows all the cards in the deck long before they’re exposed. When we’re going through struggles and we’re at our wits end, I can see God, like a proud parent watching their kid at a track meet, cheering us on, encouraging us to not give up because a win is just around the next bend.
I know I’ve used this scripture many times, but it sure is one we need to memorize, deep down in our spirit, for such a time as this. Philippians 3:14 “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” God isn’t up in heaven playing a game with our lives. He wants us to trust that He has a better plan for what we currently see. He wants us to not give up because He’s got a prize for us if we can just finish the race. I liked how this verse read in The Message bible “I’ve got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I’m off and running, and I’m not turning back.” Not turning back…we must keep looking forward, our eyes on the prize. Envision God up ahead, cheering you on, like the proud parent that He is. He’s beckoning you; He wants to bless you; just take the next step!