Tonight we played a vicious game of The Settlers of Catan. Drew and I love this game and have introduced it to several family members and friends who weekly play at our house. Tonight my initial plans were foiled and I didn't handle it very well. I was grouchy and bitter and thought that there was no way any new plan would make up for my original and what was the point etc etc. Pretty pathetic, I know. Eventually the luck of the draw turned and I was improving and prospering on a new plan and actually having a good time, (except that I felt like an idiot for being an idiot before.)
Anyways, I was thinking about my attitude after the game (I didn't win) and how Settlers is sometimes like life. This may seem cheesy, but I really feel blessed for this perspective... that sometimes life doesn't go as planned. We're not the ones in control of what gets rolled on the dice and the choices and trades that others make. But we are responsible for our own choices- good or bad, and our reactions to the choices of others. Sometimes life will give us two rounds with no cards to speak of and then we'll be blessed with so many that it's hard to know what to do with all of it. But, through it all- the ups and the downs- the cities and the sevens- it's really our attitude that determines whether we're having a good time or not.
It's easy of course to be happy when everything is going our way: no one is blocking off your longest road or sticking the robber on you, but how much of our true character is shown when the tables are turned and we're the ones getting the largest army stolen or losing a city to the barbarians. I am embarrassed for the poor attitude I displayed while in such a situation and hope that in life, when things don't go my way I'll be able to make up for it and accept that the Lord's ways are higher than my ways and endure- happily- to the end.
But, of course, life isn't a game. It's so much better because it's not a competition. The objective isn't just to get ourselves and only ourselves the victory, but to help and encourage others to win as well. Maybe we should try a Settlers game where the goal is to get everyone to ten victory points, and maybe we would all be a little bit happier and kinder in the midst of our trials in the game.
Sorry about all of these gamer analogies for those who don't know the game... maybe now you'll want to learn : ).
Anyways, I was thinking about my attitude after the game (I didn't win) and how Settlers is sometimes like life. This may seem cheesy, but I really feel blessed for this perspective... that sometimes life doesn't go as planned. We're not the ones in control of what gets rolled on the dice and the choices and trades that others make. But we are responsible for our own choices- good or bad, and our reactions to the choices of others. Sometimes life will give us two rounds with no cards to speak of and then we'll be blessed with so many that it's hard to know what to do with all of it. But, through it all- the ups and the downs- the cities and the sevens- it's really our attitude that determines whether we're having a good time or not.
It's easy of course to be happy when everything is going our way: no one is blocking off your longest road or sticking the robber on you, but how much of our true character is shown when the tables are turned and we're the ones getting the largest army stolen or losing a city to the barbarians. I am embarrassed for the poor attitude I displayed while in such a situation and hope that in life, when things don't go my way I'll be able to make up for it and accept that the Lord's ways are higher than my ways and endure- happily- to the end.
But, of course, life isn't a game. It's so much better because it's not a competition. The objective isn't just to get ourselves and only ourselves the victory, but to help and encourage others to win as well. Maybe we should try a Settlers game where the goal is to get everyone to ten victory points, and maybe we would all be a little bit happier and kinder in the midst of our trials in the game.
Sorry about all of these gamer analogies for those who don't know the game... maybe now you'll want to learn : ).
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