Lessons from Life

Playing board games is one of our favorite things to do during vacation. Chess is a favorite. So is Monopoly. Benjamin and I broke out the game of Life yesterday. It had been awhile since I had played the game. After he beat me pretty good, I thought about all the lessons from the game of Life.

1. Rules can change without notice

The new game has different rules than the game I grew up with. The Life Tiles were new. And so was the way a career is determined. I liked the old rules better. But my affinity to tradition didn’t matter. The choice is between adaptability or irrelevance. You know the better option and so do I. 

2. Learning opens doors. 

Learning doesn’t guarantee success in life, but it does open doors. Some careers are available only to those who commit to learning. Personally, interpersonally, or professionally—some habits, achievements, lifestyles, and innovations are available only to those who are willing to learn. 

3. Decisions we make have consequences, but grace exists and so do second chances. 

Decisions made early in life have a direct correlation to what happens later in life. Decisions made later in life have a direct correlation to what happens later in life. We are products of our past. But, in the game of Life and in life, mid-course corrections are possible and they happen. We don’t have to be defined by our past. We can redefine our future. 

4. Choose long-term satisfaction over instant gratification. 

We live in a culture of instant gratification. A better plan is satisfaction over the long haul. Be an investor and not a consumer. Invest in others. Invest in yourself. Invest in God’s Kingdom. Or as Jesus says: Build your house upon the rock.

My office as I wrote this column

5. Enjoy the companions on the journey. 

The best part of playing Life was my opponent. I got to look at his blue eyes and his partially sun-burned, freckled face as he asked me about mortgages and cosmetic surgery. We laughed. We shared. We talked. It wouldn’t be much fun playing Life by yourself. 

6. Bad things happen. 

Flat tires, tornados, and car accidents all happen. So do illnesses, failed relationships, and financial troubles. Jesus tells us such is the case. He also promises he will always be with us. I’ll put up with #1 if I get #2. 

7. Being the first one finished isn't always a good thing. 

David was kind of playing too. He wasn’t making decisions or required to do what was on the spaces he landed on. But he had a car, he got to spin, and he was in it to win it. And he won. He was the first one to finish. And when he was done he wanted to play more. As a six year old he discovered an important rule of life: Sometimes in life we go so fast that we miss out on life. 

The best is yet to come… 

Craig