Life is Just a Game

Last week I was in Wisconsin and a lot of the news in the sports world was about Brett Favre breaking the NFL record for touchdown passes. I have liked the Green Bay Packers as long as I can remember knowing about football. During the "glory" years of the Packers in the 60's, I can remember sitting in our den with my dad watching football on our black and white TV. In the 70's and 80's, the Packers struggled. Then Brett Favre joined the team and the Packers were once again a successful team. I think I would be a Brett Favre fan even if he played for another team, but I"m glad he's on my team. I love to watch him play. He plays with joy, passion and a pure love for the game.

I'm in a game too, a game called life. God gave me X amount of days to live and He gave me the choice on how to live them. I'm reading John Ortberg's book "When The Game Is Over, It All Goes Back In The Box." He talks about how we should play this game called Life.

"You are not a pawn, a victim of circumstance beyond your control. Instead, you are responsible for your own life. No one else can take your turn. There are no designated hitters. You are not allowed to say "pass."

You have a "turn" every time you have an opportunity to choose. But most of us see only a tiny fraction of the choices we have. One of the best exercises for playing the game wisely is to be conscious of making decisions. The more you become aware of how many choices are up to you, the more eagerly you embrace your turn. You can practice this today. What will you feed your mind? What thoughts will you dwell on? Whom will you have conversations with? What will you eat? How will you spend your time? All of these are calls you will make and when you add them up, they create your life. No one else can take your turn."

It really is our choice, we can choose to live unhappy lives, being concerned only for ourselves or we can choose a life of joy, of giving, of playing this game with passion.