Almost every week, my husband and I play Uno with our children. This game is an all-time favorite. For one, it allows us to have family time and secondly, for our younger children, it allows us to reinforce and use creative teaching techniques for them to remain comfortable with their numbers and colors. We have played this game with all of our children. As the 2-3 year old children  become comfortable with learning  how to play by themselves, then all the children can plan together without our assistance. It’s something about seeing a child beat their parent; but I promise you, I think my family sets me up to lose. I literally NEVER win a game and my husband wins the most.

At first glance, it seems like I’m losing, but I am not. Although I may never win a game, I am still winning, because I am spending time with my family. While I may not often end up with the “special” cards to get my opponents to “draw four” or “skip” them, I am STILL winning.

Life often presents itself like the game of Uno. It may seem to you that no matter what you do, you just cannot get ahead. Every time you are led to believe that this “next move” is the one that will lead you to joy, it all falls apart. I have been at that point in my life as well. The cards that we are dealt with in life does not often seem fair, IF that’s your perspective. Change your lens. 

There are a few things you can do: Continue to complain about your cards, believe that the next shuffle will be the best shuffle, or walk away – the choice is yours. 

I don’t know about you, but here is what I did. After I shuffled my cards around a bit (got rid of what was hurting me, confessed my sins to my Father, came home, and presented my body a living sacrifice for His glory), I learned how to win with the hand I was dealt. You can do the same thing. They call this day “Motivation Monday” and I desire to motivate you to become so inundated with the words of God, that your conviction about the love of Jesus and all that He is and has done for you, compels those who are lost. 

What is a conviction? It’s a strong feeling of being CERTAIN or sure that what you believe or say is true. Your conviction about Jesus being the Son of God and the Savior of the world, should be so powerful because you know without any doubt, what He has done for you. Guess what? It is powerful, but we don’t often walk in the power. 

Regardless of what situation you may face, with Jesus, all we do is win.

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” Romans‬ ‭8:35, 37‬ ‭NKJV‬‬