December 11 – Last night I was paying the classic board game “Chutes and Ladders’ with my 7 year old and two 4 year old granddaughters. It was an interesting experience! One child was happily moving her playing piece randomly all over the board. The second child was thrilled when she landed on a ‘chute’ because sliding down was much more fun than tediously moving from square to square! The third child was often in tears because sliding down the ‘chutes’ was not her idea of fun! I explained that when she reached a lower position on the game board that would give her the opportunity to land on some long ladders which could ultimately bring her to a higher location, closer to the ‘winner square’. She trudged along, sometimes trying to cheat so she would land on a ‘ladder square’ but in the end she gave up.
Later I was thinking about the game. I realized it gave a visual to what real like is all about. One minute we are on top of the world, with all of life going in the right direction, then suddenly we seem to land on a ‘chute’ where we roll and tumble, down to a difficult, hard or even painful spot. I’m so grateful for a faithful God who is with me on the mountaintop or in the ditch!
“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22, 23