Cheaters Never Prosper

So we have recently tried to implement Family Night. Life seems to be passing in a blur. And although we spend lots of time all together, it seems like most of that time is spent rushing here or there and everywhere. As a result, we decided to take one night a week and try to reserve it for a little something fun. Movie night, a barbeque, or sweet husband’s suggestion—game night. Apparently, there exists no better bonding method for the family unit than gathering together for a rousing round of board games.

There’s just onnnneee small glitch though. We have three boys. Seven. Five. Two. Bless it Lord. Just bless it. So there are a few minor obstacles that we have to overcome for Family Game Night. The rules must be simple. The pieces must be few. The time must be limited. And the patience must be plenty. Because Jesus loves us and has chosen to smile upon us, we have found a game that seems to fit all interest levels and lasts just long enough that we do not lose our parental marbles.

The game is called Kids on Stage, and it is essentially a game of charades. Each person spins, chooses a card that represents an animal, object, or action and then does their best to act out these things for the others to guess. Even our littlest little can look at the pictures and (with a little help) join in the fun. So last Sunday, we all sat down for a little family time. It was actually pretty entertaining to see everyone’s age appropriate interpretation of the different cards. Everything was going really great until the older two boys, each at separate times, broke the rules. A double spin. A skipped space. A peek at the cards they were supposed to be guessing. And let me just tell you, that did not end well for them. Daddy made them go allllll the way back to the beginning and start again, leading the TWO YEAR OLD to win the game. Lord have mercy.

The next day, my middle was reflecting on the terrible turn of events for Family Game Night. And he said, “Momma, if I didn’t cheat, I maybe would have won.” I replied, “That’s right, Buddy. And you know what that tells us? We should never cheat.” I felt proud of my parenting prowess. Lessons learned, folks, lessons learned. And just as quickly as it came, that pride left as I felt the lesson move from five year old application to adulthood application. Because the best lessons learned for the little people in my life often tend to transcend to my own life as well.

How often in our own lives do we want to take the short cut through things? We pray for things, we suffer through things, we work towards things all the while hoping to trim as much time off the process as possible and just get to the end result. So it’s not just me? Okay, good.

Can I let you in on a little secret? Shortcuts don’t shorten the process. If we are busy trying to speed through the lessons God is trying to teach us, move quickly through the process through which He is trying to perfect us, we are setting ourselves up for a journey down a long and winding road. It is through this kind of learning where we find our Father making us start back at the beginning until we get it right. Why? Because He loves us. He wants the best for our lives and loves us enough to lead us down the path with persistence and patience.

So we trust the journey. We hang on to the promise. We believe that if this spin led us to only move two spaces, then we move—hand in hand with the Father—until the next steps are shown. He is a loving, faithful, gentle Father. He longs to teach us the best lessons. And if we allow Him the opportunity, if we don’t try to cheat the process, He will work every piece of the puzzle for our good…