Mountain View - Play the Hand Your Dealt By Paula Friedrichsen
Writer Author Church On The Mountain
Christian Column
:
Christian Living
- Fiction No
Play the hand your dealt. I'm sure we've all heard that phrase before. I believe it's a saying taken from card playing, meaning just play the cards you've got in your hand instead of always waiting for the better hand. Sometimes we wait for true happiness, productivity, and fulfillment to come after…. After we get that perfect job; After we find that perfect mate; After we have those perfect little babies; After we get in shape. But we are only promised today. “This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24)
Last January I got the flu. Once I recovered I still had to regain my strength and this took awhile. One morning as I sat on the couch feeling like a wet dish rag (no energy, no spunk and no desire to enjoy the day) I asked God to “just help me get through the day.” Well, He showed me something that really changed my perspective on things. He showed me that each day was like a beautiful garden. It had a pretty fence around it and a gate by which to enter. The garden had gorgeous flowers to look at and enjoy. It had experiences and pleasure and closeness with my creator and closeness with my family. And then He showed me that I had the choice everyday whether I would enter into the garden and enjoy each fragrance and each touch of beauty, or if I would just stand right inside the gate waiting for the day to end. Each day God gives us is a gift not a burden! Each day is to be enjoyed not endured.
The crux of this is a relationship with God. He is the one who gives us eyes to see all the beauty in our lives. He is the one that will comfort us in our troubles and sorrows. He is the one that promises better things for our future and then enables us to live fully today. He has given me many promises through the years, some of which have already come about. But even while I look forward to the things God has said He will do in my life, I fully embrace my life now. Today it is snowing softly. Today I am enjoying the warmth and comfort of my home. Today I will hug my daughter and my husband. Today I will experience the joy of knowing Jesus. Today!!
So I encourage you (and myself also) to play the hand we’ve been dealt. No more excuses. Live fully! Be tenacious in your pursuit of a deeper walk with God. Seek out opportunities to be a blessing to others. Don't wait until you have it all together, just take what you do have and get busy.
Paula Friedrichsen is a member of Church on the Mountain, a vibrant community of believers in Crowley Lake. We meet at 9:30 Sunday mornings. Call for more information: 935-4272 or www.ChurchOnTheMountain.org
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About the Writer Author
State:
California
Country:
United States
Email:
Paulafriedrichsen@live.com
Website:
www.churchonthemountain.org
Profile:
Click here!
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