I keep losin’.
It was 1am and I was restless.
So, I asked God if He wanted to play cards.
“Sure,” He said.
“But we are going to play with My deck.”
“Your deck, it is then!,” I responded.
We played 21.
He had me beat on the first go ’round.
“I won,” He stated plainly.
He looked at me. I looked at Him.
We both looked down at His winning hand.
There was something in His eyes.
“What is it God?,” I asked.
“21!,” He cried out!
“Hand over a piece of your heart.”
No longer one to quibble with God,
I gave it to Him.
Next, He wanted to roll the dice.
“My dice,” He said. “You go first.”
I rolled a two and a three.
He rolled 2 sevens.
2 sevens?? “God, how is that possible?,” I asked.
“Through Me all things are possible.”
“Of course!,” I chuckled.
“Hand over another piece,” He said gently.
“Gladly, God!,” was my reply.
Then, I said “Let’s play Monopoly!.”
“Ah yes, Monopoly! Now there's a game!,”
He laughed.
I sat back, a bit anxious, excited even.
God seemed particularly calm and cool.
“Ha! He thinks He’s gonna win…again!,”
I thought to myself. Well, alas, He ended up with everything
that I owned and all of my money.
This time He didn’t have to ask….
I handed to Him another piece of my
now rapidly disappearing heart.
I must admit, at this point I was gettin’ a bit weary.
These games were taking forever!
And they were never as easy as I thought
they were going to be. Somewhere at the halfway point, well,
there always seemed to be a “twist.”
I said, “God, are you tired yet?.”
He looked me dead square in the eyes and responded,
“No. And you aren’t either. You have my strength.
Break out the Backgammon Board!!.”
So, I did.
“Now, this is really my game!,” I smiled to myself.
Analytical. Complicated.
I was energized!
An hour later, my pieces were positioned
nicely on the board.
I was winning!
Well, there was one teensy weensy problem.
It was God's turn to throw the dice.
And one of my pieces remained
on God's side!
Would He knock my piece out with one throw?
Could He? (Silly question, I would surely realize later in life.)
I held my breath.
“Well, what could I do?,” I pondered.
Absolutely nothing. The dice were in Gods hands.
Amazing! He landed on my last piece!
“How does He do that?,” I said, out loud and to no one in particular.
“Simple,” I thought to myself.
“His hand never fails!”
How extraordinarily simple.
It is the only way with Him.
“Well, God,” I said, “Here’s another piece.”
I looked down at my heart’s resting place.
It was then that I realized that I had just given Him the last lil’ bit.
I thought that I saw Him smile.
I am sure of it.
He looked through my eyes and asked, “Are you worried?
Your heart is mine now, you know..”
“I know. And, no God, I’m not worried. You won fair and square. I
would
be happy for you to keep it forever,” I said. “Okay,” He said. “Time
to rest. I will wake you in the morning.
You have a big day ahead of you.”
“Really? What’s going to happen tomorrow, God?,” I asked.
He responded, “You will see. Just be content for now.
I have it all under control. It’s in my hands.”
So was my heart.
I slept peacefully.
amen
*please be so kind as to read this as a metaphor. gosh, i've had a guts full of the "God doesn't play dice comments!" it. is. a. metaphor. to me this poem is about pride, its about wisdom, faith, humility, its about our search for God, trying to get to know Him the best way we know how. and then He steps in to help! in His way. His timing. its about God's love and patience. and how He overrules, gently and one piece at a time, the crap in our own hearts. for the good of the individuals, for others. commune. with the God of your destiny!*
Copyright 2008 Regina Y. Evans All Rights Reserved (from the poetry book Nonnie And the Butterfly)
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